Chapter 12: Writing Science with Style and Styles

1 According to the chapter, which of the following are lessons in style that cross different types of STEM writing? (Check all that apply.)

using “signposts” to guide your reader

using numbers to convince, not drown, the reader

avoiding one-sentence paragraphs

using words to communicate, not intimidate

keeping sentences short

writing STEM articles conversationally

using paragraphs to emphasize your ideas

making sentences concise

2 According to the chapter, which of the following statements about bullets and bolding are true? Please select the true statements from the list below.

Bullets are an increasingly important mark of punctuation in online communication.

Bullets take up too much room to be useful in STEM journal articles.

Bolding can lose effectiveness if used too often.

Bullets help readers organize ideas.

Bolding in long paragraphs takes readers away from more important concepts.

Bolding helps to focus reader attention.

Bullets are not covered in traditional punctuation guides and should therefore not be used.

3 According to the chapter, stages of the writing process are related to an effective style in STEM writing. Which of the following statements show this relationship? (Check all that apply.)

Creating section headings should NOT be left to the editing stage.

Writing to learn can help a writer think about the style the writer wants to use in a particular piece of writing.

In the drafting stage, writers should be sure to write sentences concisely.

In asking for feedback on an article, a writer might want the reader to focus on transitions between sentences.

Writers can write in paragraphs in drafting but may change the length of paragraphs in editing.

When drafting, writers should be sure that all words chosen will not confuse readers.

The editing phase can be used by STEM writers to determine which statistics will be most useful to readers.

4 Based on your reading of the chapter, match each term in the left column with the most appropriate phrase.

a) white space
b) bolding
c) drafting
d) paragraph
e) numbers
f) headings
g) transitions

can help readers choose sections of the article to read
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writers focus on expressing ideas, not on fine points of style
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can help readers to focus attention by avoiding distraction
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a visual grouping of one or more sentences
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can help readers see the flow of ideas in a paragraph
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if used carefully, can convince readers of main ideas
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can help readers to focus attention through graphic emphasis
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