Scientists Must Write: A Guide to Better Writing for Scientists, Engineers and Students

by Robert Barrass

Good writing and communication skills are essential in many areas of science and engineering, to help observation, thinking and remembering, to organize work and to avoid stress. Written by a scientist for scientists, this book is much more than a textbook of English grammar – it is a valuable source of information for all aspects of writing in scientific and technical situations. The only book focusing on the ways in which writing is important to the scientific community, this book assists readers on: * how to write and choice of words
* using numbers and illustrations
* writing project reports, theses and papers for publication
* giving a short talk or presentation. The new edition of Scientists Must Write has been fully revised and updated to take account of the changes in information and communications technology including word processing and information storage and retrieval; new appendices on punctuation, spelling and computers; and useful exercises to improve writing. This popular guide will be of great use to undergraduates, postgraduates, professional scientists and engineers.

Genres: Writing, Research, Science

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

People in all areas of science, mathematics and technology must be able to write clearly, concisely and accurately. While in most cases, a failure to do so leads to a bit of confusion and a correction being published, in a few cases the failure to communicate clearly can be mission critical or life threatening. In this book, Barrass dispenses some excellent advice regarding how to execute technical communication; I compare it favorably to the classic, "The Elements of Style" by Strunk and White. Effective written and oral delivery of technical information are both covered.
Reading this book should be a mandatory requirement for all graduating seniors in computer science and mathematics. One of the most common criticisms of recent graduates in computer science that businesses state is an inability of those graduates to communicate effectively in both oral and written form. A careful reading in combination to some practice will have a very positive affect on the impression that the graduate will make on potential employers. Finally, even longtime professionals will find that reading this book will lead to an improvement in their communication skills.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission and this review appears on Amazon

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

[Radhika]

I'm hoping this will help me in my career.