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Dear Susannah, Thanks for that. Your last paragraph says it all! Stay healthy! Ray Boxman From the home of Prof. Emeritus Raymond (Reuven) Boxman School of Electrical Engineering Tel Aviv University Cell: +972 544 634 217 http://www.eng.tau.ac.il/~boxman/index.html CEO Clear Wave Ltd. http://clrwave.com<http://clrwave.com/> Scientific Writing Courses: http://communicating-science.com<http://communicating-science.com/> From: Ewing Bölke, Susannah <[log in to unmask]> Sent: יום ב 25 מאי 2020 09:52 To: Raymond Boxman <[log in to unmask]>; [log in to unmask] Subject: AW: Academic writing and the terror of flying Hi everyone, I have really enjoyed the exchanges of the last week or so, and this is probably my favorite. My own preferred analogy up to now was the one of artists or musicians, who first have to learn the basic tools and techniques (human forms, light and dimension or chords, conventions and systems) before they can diverge to develop their own voices. It perhaps allows a bit more creativity than the pilot analogy, but maybe it also goes too far: at some point, writing may no longer be recognized as academic writing and unless a scholar is by then completely established, they will lose all standing. Most of my writers (and perhaps that is because many of them are not only non-native speakers, but also of that structure-loving Teutonic/Prussian folk) want the systems, the rules, and the puzzle pieces. I actually have to push them to break out of the boxes set by their own expectations and the practices of publishers. But I also encourage them to read and practice the ‘art’ modelled by their favorite scholarly writers, as a budding artist would practice by painting a copy of a Renoir, or a guitarist would learn to play a piece by Eric Clapton. When they have mastered both the system and the theory, understood what is beneath and basic to expression, then they can branch out and become masters themselves, breaking ground or winning followers. The fact is, though, no one has yet won scholarly recognition for their writing style. They do that with their research. Thus, the research must be laid bare, and the language and form of the writing be as clear as possible. If getting our writers there requires teaching them boring repetition first, I am willing to do it so that they can make their important work known and have their voices be heard. Happy writing, happy teaching! Best Susannah Susannah Ewing, M.A., PGCert. 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Von: European Association for the Teaching of Academic Writing - discussions <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> Im Auftrag von Raymond Boxman Gesendet: Sonntag, 24. Mai 2020 14:38 An: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Betreff: Re: Academic writing and the terror of flying Dear Mary Ellen, Thanks for your comments. I can only agree with #1. If only more papers were subjected to internal review, self-revision, etc. that you describe! Unfortunately all journal editors that I know complain about the deluge of poor papers that they receive! On the other hand, we are apt to have a job for the foreseeable future. Re. #2. I love surprises when I read a murder mystery, and I’m happy to be in suspense up to the last page. That pilot can take me on a wild ride. But I think most of us read research reports for work, not for fun (albeit that we enjoy our work). We a busy, even overwhelmed, and keeping up with the literature is a real challenge. We enjoy surprise destinations, i.e. arriving in lands that are being discovered for the first time. (And we are very skeptical – experience tells us that a real surprise might result in a Nobel Prize, but 99% of surprises are simply errors (bad navigation, if you please)). But the plane ride is at best tedious. We researcher passengers want non-stop flights, as short as possible – no extra lay-overs in airport terminals, and no air-sickness on the way. We save the leisurely cruises, jeep rides along treacherous mountain roads, camel treks, mountaineering etc. for our holidays (and hope that the days when these will be possible will quickly return). Best regards, Ray From the home of Prof. Emeritus Raymond (Reuven) Boxman School of Electrical Engineering Tel Aviv University Cell: +972 544 634 217 http://www.eng.tau.ac.il/~boxman/index.html CEO Clear Wave Ltd. http://clrwave.com<http://clrwave.com/> Scientific Writing Courses: http://communicating-science.com<http://communicating-science.com/> From: Mary Ellen Kerans <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> Sent: יום א 24 מאי 2020 13:43 To: Raymond Boxman <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> Cc: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: Academic writing and the terror of flying Dear Ray -- an interesting extension of Susan's metaphor. Just two brief comments: ... the opposite, i.e. hubris “I can fly my plane the way I want to”, and a failure to read, or believe, the flight manual. Most prevalent is a failure to properly care for the passengers (i.e. the readers). The passengers want a smooth predictable flight, in a straight line. 1. Sure, I've seen those too. But if they're serious about their work, hubris gets knocked out of them soon enough when they participate in peer reivew with a high bar. When an aspiring author can't revise further -- though I intuit that clarity hasn't been achieved yet -- I say something like, "Well, then I think it's ready to submit it to true peers, not this 'surrogate peer' (me) for real-life feedback." Once they've gone through the full process successfully a couple of times, I find they're either exhuberant, itching for more, the more demanding the better. Or they think "it's is too much effort" and stop writing papers. But I also find they're better readers and practitioners (my "student" clients are clinicians) as a result of having engaged. As for writers at a stage where they don't know where they're heading yet, don't we all find that out through revising our own thoughts through writing, getting feedback, revisiting? Good pre-submission, in-house peer review (mentors, colleagues, a facilitating editor like me...) furthers that process, but real submission to top-flight journals brings it all home. And hones a writer's skills so the reader gets a smoother flight. There's no point in submitting before an engaged peer reviewer has "safe passage" to the message in the paper. 2. As for what readers want (smooth, predictable, straight line), dunno about that. They don't want to crash, true. But the metaphor breaks down. Some of the best reads of my life were so exciting they had me pacing the floor. And my eyes popping with the intelligible surprises I was treated to! Very best, stay safe, Mary Ellen Kerans, in Barcelona, where phase 1 starts tomorrow On Sun, May 24, 2020 at 12:13 PM Raymond Boxman <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote: Dear Susan et al., I loved your analogy. Thank you for sharing it with us. I would like to add to it: The phenomenon that I encounter in the hard sciences and engineering is that the trainee pilots don’t usually learn from a flight instructor at all, but rather from another experienced senior pilot (e.g. their thesis supervisor). The result is usually OK, in fact most of the pilots I know learned this way, but the process can be tedious and trying for both the senior pilot and the trainee. I don’t encounter too much fear of flying. If anything, I see the opposite, i.e. hubris “I can fly my plane the way I want to”, and a failure to read, or believe, the flight manual. Most prevalent is a failure to properly care for the passengers (i.e. the readers). The passengers want a smooth predictable flight, in a straight line. But many of the trainee pilots put their wish to fly what for them is a more interesting zig-zag course, and perform aerobatics (dives, loops, etc.) along the way, which make their passengers air sick. And the most difficult to correct are the pilot trainees who don’t know where they a going. They don’t think like pilots, and don’t understand the difference between their destination, and what they need to do to get to their destination. Some really like the on-board instrumentation. Often they have a favorite flight instrument, and they will use it inappropriately (e.g. using the default options in an Excel chart) rather than choosing the instruments, and their options, that keep their plane on the straightest course. Best wishes to all for us to enjoy many flights, academic and aeronautic. Ray Boxman From the home of Prof. Emeritus Raymond (Reuven) Boxman School of Electrical Engineering Tel Aviv University Cell: +972 544 634 217 http://www.eng.tau.ac.il/~boxman/index.html CEO Clear Wave Ltd. http://clrwave.com<http://clrwave.com/> Scientific Writing Courses: http://communicating-science.com<http://communicating-science.com/> From: European Association for the Teaching of Academic Writing - discussions <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> On Behalf Of Susan Mitchell Sent: יום א 24 מאי 2020 01:20 To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Subject: Academic writing and the terror of flying Dear All, I often like to think of new academics as trainee pilots flying their research planes over the mountains and lakes of academia. We, the academic writing tutors, are members of the Academic Flight Training Corps. As such, we offer guidance based on the tried and trusted methods of qualified (published) pilots who have flown to many different destinations. We have a trainee flying handbook – long and full of detail. We have certain flight rules, regulations, and standards. We tell the trainees that they must read their instructions, strap on their academic flying language, check their reference style, refresh their quotations and keep their eyes firmly fixed on the horizon where their findings and conclusions will be waiting for them. Then we put the trainees in individual academic planes and wheel them towards the academic runway. But there is a major problem. Many trainees look outwardly confident but inside they feel unintelligent and unworthy compared to the others. They are frightened of being judged and this makes them terrified of academic flying. So they think that if they just copy exactly what the published pilots do then they will be fine. This strategy works fine until today when they have to fly their academic planes for themselves. Trundling out of the hangar, some of these trainees fail to read the instructions and don’t get to grips with what they have been asked to do. (Sometimes they don’t understand the language in which the instructions have been written.) Others aren’t sure of which flight word or phrase or sentence to use so they choose the longest and most convoluted in the belief these are the only truly academic and flight-worthy ones. Other trainees want to show that they have read widely about flying and therefore they put references at the end of every single sentence causing the sentences to leap haphazardly from subject to subject. Their numerous flying quotations take up so much room that there is no space for the trainees’ own luggage of words. As they begin to accelerate, these trainees cling to the flying handbook, pull back on their joysticks but fail to look up. With the horizon completely forgotten, each plane zigzags out of control and then comes to an abrupt halt in the bushes at the end of the runway. At this point, some trainees – dismayed and discouraged – simply lose heart, give up academic flying and go home. To prevent such occurrences I tell nervous young researchers the secrets of this strange and unfamiliar academic landscape. I tell them that the other academic flying trainees are often just as frightened as they are. I tell them that published pilots are not gods of the air, but mere mortals like ourselves who have had many moments of doubt and the occasional bumpy landing before achieving their published flying status. I tell them that academia is based on a level and equitable airfield where anyone can challenge anyone, and where no one person is greater than another. And lastly, I tell them that one day soon, rather than merely absorbing published pilots’ advice they will use this newly acquired knowledge to discover better flying techniques. So, they need to carefully read other pilots’ words but use their own – ones chosen specifically for the flight in hand. They should reference and quote only the best pilots and, of the others, favour the newer pilots over the older pilots. They should use quotations sparingly so that they leave room for their own suitcase of words. If there is an error in what the published pilots say or do they should politely but clearly point it out. Then, sooner or later, they will use the World’s pooled flying knowledge to fly higher and better than anyone would dream to be possible. And above all, they need to know where they are going and this means that they should stick firmly to their flight plan. If they stick to the flight plan and keep their eyes on the horizon, then the plane and its passengers (the readers) will fly as straight and true as an arrow to their findings and conclusions – destinations that no one has ever considered flying to before. Have a fun day. With very best wishes, Susan _________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe login to https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=EATAW You find the 'Unsubscribe' button in the blue 'Options bar' _________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe login to https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=EATAW You find the 'Unsubscribe' button in the blue 'Options bar' -- Mary Ellen Kerans Barcelona, SPAIN _________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe login to https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=EATAW You find the 'Unsubscribe' button in the blue 'Options bar' _________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe login to https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=EATAW You find the 'Unsubscribe' button in the blue 'Options bar'