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Writing and Publishing Scientific Articles
Gap in Knowledge Write your background information so that it leads to a statement of the gap in knowledge your study tried to fill. Emphasize the importance of filling this gap in knowledge—for example, state how filling the gap could change medical practice or scientific thought. Hypothesis or Purpose Statement After identifying the gap in knowledge, state your hypothesis or the purpose of your study. Closely tying your hypothesis to an important gap in knowledge will make readers want to read your article. Use the same words and phrases in the statement of the gap in knowledge and the statement of the hypothesis. Word the hypothesis so that readers will be able to assess whether the hypothesis was proven or disproven by the experiments you performed. Stating the gap in knowledge and then the hypothesis and presenting only the background information directly related to the topic builds momentum for the article and sets an appropriate level of expectation. Be careful not to raise questions in your reader’s mind that you will not answer in the article—limit the background information to what is directly related to the gap in knowledge and the research question. Strategy for Testing the Hypothesis After stating your hypothesis, describe how you tested it. State briefly and clearly what experimental methods you used. (For example, “We identified the sequences downstream from the TATA box in basal PolIII snRNA using BLAST searches.”) If necessary, explain why you chose your experimental design. Conclusions In articles describing basic science studies, consider including a brief statement of your study’s conclusions at the end of your Introduction. This practice is uncommon in articles describing clinical studies. Your decision about whether to include your study’s conclusions will depend on your personal preference and the style of your target journal. (Look at articles previously published in the journal to see if the Introductions end with the study’s conclusions.) A concluding statement should say enough to make readers want to read the article but should not reveal all of the important findings.
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