Abstract
An abstract is a paragraph with a synopsis of a document (typically paper). As a stylistic element, an abstract contains the following parts:
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1.
background and motivation,
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2.
problem statement (or research question of the presented paper),
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3.
methods,
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4.
results,
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5.
conclusions.
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Notes
- 1.
Depending on your institution. Some universities require you to add a summary in different languages. In Delft, a Dutch and English summary is required. For my M.Sc. thesis at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, I had to add a summary in Dutch, French, and English. German was optional.
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Note: some scholars prefer not to use these sites as they are for-profit. You could also host preprints of your work on your website and/or blog to provide this information.
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If you speak Dutch, look up “vrekkentips”.
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With or without the comma between “Author” and “Date”.
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Provided that outlines work for you.
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Whatever that means – there are many self-proclaimed gurus out there, each with often absurd claims (Carbs kill you! Tomatoes cause cancer! Buy my supplements and you will be fit/healthy/smart/beautiful!), so don’t fall for the pseudoscience trap.
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Remember Goodhart’s law: “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.”
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Rule of thumb: with a hand calculation approximation you should be able to be within 20 – 30% of the more advanced methods. Note that the range of 20 – 30% is valid for structural engineering – talk to your colleagues to find the accepted bounds for your field.
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I didn’t quite enjoy reading this book, but I liked the idea of mastermind groups.
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Don’t listen to anybody who treats you like that – you, and only you, know when you don’t feel like yourself.
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Remember that outlines don’t work for every writer.
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Outlines don’t work for everybody. You can let your dissertation grow in a more organic way and/or use mindmaps to structure your writing.
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For example: include a headshot or not?
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Or any other stretch of time until the habit feels natural.
- 15.
Storify is going out of business mid-2018.
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Lantsoght, E.O.L. (2018). Glossary. In: The A-Z of the PhD Trajectory. Springer Texts in Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77425-1_15
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