Academic Writing:
THE PURPOSES OF ACADEMIC WRITING
1.The most common reasons for writing:
• to report on a piece of research the writer has conducted
• to answer a question the writer has been given or chosen
• to discuss a subject of common interest and give the writer’s view to synthesize research done by others on a topic
2.Common types of academic writing:
• Notes
• Reports
• Projects
• Essays
• Dissertations/Thesis
• Papers
3.The most common written sources:
• Textbooks
• Websites
• Journal articles
• Official reports (e.g. from government)
• Newspaper or magazine articles
• e-books
4.The most common requirements to your academic text:
• your should give reasons for your initial hypothesis
• you should obtain more well-rounded data
• you should show the logic of your experiments
• you should present clear, consistent logical argument to somebody else involved in the research of this field.
Ex. 1 Read this example of introduction to an article:
Introduction
The increasing need for electrical energy in the 21st century, as well as limited fossil fuel reserves and the increasing concerns with environmental issues for the reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gasses, call for fast development in the area of renewable energy sources (RESs). Renewable energy is derived from natural sources such as the sun, wind, hydro power, biomass, geothermal, and oceans and fuel cells.
Limiting green house gas emissions, avoidance of the construction of new transmission circuits and large generating units, diversification of energy sources to enhance energy security, quality and reliability, and support for competition policy are some important drivers in environmental, commercial and national/regulatory aspects behind the growth of RESs.
Recent studies have found that the renewable integration impacts are non-zero and become more significant at higher size of penetrations. Some studies represent a range of estimates based on different system characteristics, penetration levels and study methods. However, a common thread of all methods was the focus on RESs effects on the interconnected power system, rather than in an isolated one.
The RESs affect the dynamic behaviour of the power system in a way that might be different from conventional generators. Conventional power plants mainly use synchronous generators that are able to continue operation during significant transient faults. If a large amount of wind generation is tripped because of a fault, the negative effect of that fault on power system control and operation, including frequency control issue, could be magnified. High renewable energy penetration in power systems may increase uncertainties during abnormal operation and introduces several technical implications and opens important questions, as to whether the traditional power system control approaches to operation in the new environment are still adequate.
Integration of RESs into power system grids have impacts on optimum power flow, power quality, voltage and frequency control, system economics and load dispatch. Regarding the nature of RESs power variation, the impact on the frequency regulation issue has attracted increasing research interest, during the last decade. Significant interconnection frequency deviations can cause under/over frequency relaying and disconnect some loads and generations. Under unfavourable conditions, this may result in a cascading failure and system collapse.
Ex. 2 Answer the questions:
1) What is a piece of research the writer has conducted?
2) Did the writer give an answer to a question that he/she has been given or chosen?
3) Was it a subject of common interest?
4) Did the writer manage to synthesize research done by others on a topic?
Ex. 3 What the difference between textbooks, websites, journal articles, official reports, newspaper or magazine articles, e-books?
Ex. 4 What are the most common requirements to an academic text?