33
votes
Accepted
When to refer to a paper as "seminal"
I would understand "seminal" to indicate that (a) the paper was the the first in some sense, and (b) that it led to a lot of subsequent research. For example, a paper proposes and tests a theoretical ...
- 19.9k
19
votes
Accepted
What is the name of the text that might exist after the chapter heading and before the first section?
Text between the chapter title and the first section heading is usually called the "lead paragraph" or "lede". Despite the name, this can be one ore more paragraphs of text.
- 6,705
18
votes
When to refer to a paper as "seminal"
From the Merriam Webster dictionary:
[2] containing or contributing the seeds of later development : creative, original
More specifically, I would call an article seminal if it was the start of a ...
- 8,641
14
votes
Is it bad to start an introduction with a direct quote?
While I am not aware of any hard and fast rule against it, I would find it off-putting to read a scientific document that started its prose with a direct quote. There are just so many ways to start ...
- 180k
13
votes
Accepted
Is it frowned upon to have a figure in the introduction of a Masters thesis?
If a graphic clearly gets across the message then why not use it? Just check what the regulations specify though,
To elaborate a bit more you need to think about what the introduction is for. If it ...
- 971
12
votes
Why can't motivations in a paper's introduction be copied?
At a fundamental level, every new paper is (or should be) presenting something new, whether it be new results, methods, experiments or even summaries or reviews. The paper would be redundant if it ...
- 1,341
11
votes
What is the name of the text that might exist after the chapter heading and before the first section?
If the text is a quotation, it is called an epigraph. See this APA blog post on how to format epigraphs.
Other than that, most citation guides do not seem to recommend the insertion of a section ...
- 7,304
10
votes
Is it frowned upon to have a figure in the introduction of a Masters thesis?
Having a figure in an introduction is a common practice, and one that I strongly recommend. Images are very good at conveying some ideas and relationships, and are also good for catching the eye and ...
- 180k
10
votes
Accepted
Rephrasing and Reproducing some part of the Introduction of a Research publication without citing that publication. Is it plagiarism?
Unequivocally, yes. Plagiarism isn't limited to results or figures alone. As for automatic plagiarism-checkers, they will make even less of a distinction, and will almost certainly flag it as ...
- 11.5k
10
votes
Accepted
Extensive introduction in an incremental paper?
The answer fundamentally depends on who the audience for the result is.
If you are addressing people familiar with the conjecture, then your introduction makes sense, because it consisely conveys ...
- 32.2k
6
votes
When to refer to a paper as "seminal"
The question is: why should you mention seminal paper altogether?
I would refrain from giving an adjective to the paper.
Firstly, because "seminal" is subjective. Secondly, because it does really ...
- 1,082
5
votes
Is it bad to start an introduction with a direct quote?
I generally am not crazy about starting anything with a direct quote unless it absolutely adds value. It's easy when you use this particular trope to just use a quote for the sake of using a quote, ...
- 2,182
5
votes
Accepted
Quotations and references in introductions to novels
I would recommend thinking about the prefatory material like the introduction to a journal special issue: it's entirely reasonable for such a work to have its own meaningful content and own set of ...
- 180k
5
votes
Accepted
How do I submit interdependent papers?
This is one of the things pre-print services can address quite readily, even for fields that don't normally use preprints. Putting both papers on arXiv (or another field-equivelent) allows them to ...
- 51k
5
votes
Should first introductory paragraph explicitly state the subject of the paper?
The purpose of the introduction is to focus in on the specific, and likely more narrow, topic of your research from a larger perspective. the "larger perspective" is the larger scientific problem to ...
- 71.4k
5
votes
Accepted
How should I deal with need-to-define terms in introduction?
There are at several possible ways, actually.
First is to avoid the yet-to-be-defined term in the intro and use a descriptive phrase instead. This assumes the term isn't frequently used in the intro....
- 258k
5
votes
Should the introduction of a thesis have figures/pictures?
I can't think of any reason in general that you should not do this if it makes sense in the context of the paper. If you can express the underlying concept better with a figure then it is better than ...
- 258k
4
votes
What should I put in the Introduction as opposed to the Literature Review?
(In economics at least.)
Introduction (5 pages)
• start with some broader motivation or backgrund
– maybe a sentence or a paragraph at most
• quickly explain your problem/puzzle
– show not tell
–...
- 141
4
votes
Accepted
Main argumentation in introductory chapter of Phd thesis?
Every dissertation or thesis should have an introduction.
When I receive a student's thesis to read, I usually do not have numerous hours to pick out the details of every page. Having a 4-8 page ...
- 853
4
votes
Paper on mathematical analysis using tools from other (almost unrelated) field: how to introduce them?
An appendix, maybe
In many other fields it is typical to first choose a journal and only then start writing. In mathematics this is often not done. But here it might be relevant to consider your ...
- 8,706
4
votes
What is the name of the text that might exist after the chapter heading and before the first section?
It's become quite common in academic books in the STEM fields to add such a section as a kind of abstract for the chapter. The reason for this is that the publishers are now selling online access to ...
- 35.4k
3
votes
Accepted
Differences between the introduction of a sandwich thesis and a paper
From a structural point of view, there is no major difference. An introduction should set the work in a wider context starting by establishing the wider context and showing the need for the work done ...
- 71.4k
3
votes
What to mention in your introduction to your research methodology chapter
Answer this question in less than one minute, assuming that I have the basic knowledge of your area:
What is your research about?
Than add these in less than two minutes:
Why did you do your research ...
- 11.7k
3
votes
Accepted
Including own review article in Thesis?
Generally speaking, the academic community does not consider it to be self-plagiarism to use your own previously published writings as part of your thesis, provided appropriate references are given. ...
- 128k
3
votes
Should first introductory paragraph explicitly state the subject of the paper?
You want to "capture" your audience when writing—that is, you want to make sure that you hold their attention as long as possible. Getting their attention by telling them what the purpose of your ...
- 171k
3
votes
Figures in the introduction of a paper
I would assume that there is no formal rule about figures in the introduction (at least i haven't heard of it). Still, it would be unusual because introductions tend to not get into specifics. I'd ...
- 3,578
3
votes
Accepted
Greetings to department's scientists
I disagree slightly with SolarMike's answer. The academic hierarchy in the UK is very informal. It is fine to use first names for everyone, be they professor, admin staff or cleaner. A simple "Hi Bob" ...
- 18.7k
3
votes
Accepted
The limits of self-plagiarism
You have a misconception. Plagiarism isn't about the actual words. It is about ideas. Copyright can cover the expression of the ideas (the words). In other words, you can plagiarize even with a ...
- 258k
2
votes
Should first introductory paragraph explicitly state the subject of the paper?
Coming from a psychology perspective, I have seen eminent authors adopt both writing approaches.
Introductions to journal articles should generally have an opening. The opening of an introduction ...
- 19.9k
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