Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: April 12, 2019

This week’s quote – “Plagiarism: Getting in trouble for something you didn’t do.” – comes from an unknown source, but as often seems to be the case, the articles in our collection from around the web seem to have kindly fallen in line with this academic pun.

While our collection doesn’t have anything to do with the true definition of plagiarism, it does have a lot to do with the concept of getting in trouble for something you didn’t do. Specifically, problems or challenges may arise if you don’t check an index properly, if you don’t adequately prepare for a thesis proposal defense, if you don’t accept the dissertation publication requirement, if you don’t follow a traditional research path, if you don’t include your PhD on your CV (or if you do as the article discusses), if you linger in between identities during a career transition, if you don’t properly market yourself for a job, or if you don’t plan your approach attending a large conference.

As you approach your writing efforts this week, challenge yourself to not only look at accomplishing the things on your to-do list, but also examine the things that never made it there – the things that you aren’t doing that may be making your efforts more difficult than they need to be. Happy writing!

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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: January 4, 2019

The new year is always an opportunity to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. In this first week of 2019, we begin our collection of posts with two that look back at works from 1923 which have now entered the public domain and the related future of copyright reform. We continue with a couple posts focused on how writing is taught at the college level and advice for PhDs and PhD seekers interviewing and networking at conferences this year. Finally, we have found a few articles focused on the publishing industry at large, including the future of PLOS, open access publishing, and “The Great Acceleration”.

Whatever your writing efforts have in store this week, we hope the new beginnings of a new year provide time for reflection, preparation, and anticipation of what is to come. Happy Writing!

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The most useful textbook & academic posts of the week: November 2, 2018

As we enter into Academic Writing Month (#AcWriMo)  2018, the focus of many is academic writing practices and ways to improve the results and experience of academic writing. At TAA, we will be maintaining a fundamental focus on academic writing this month around the theme of “The 5 W’s of Academic Writing“. It is therefore fitting that our collection of articles from around the web this week focuses also on such challenges and practices.

Our collection begins with the challenges of academic writing, revising with a reader in mind, and starting new research topics as a post-doc. We continue with topics of experimental control and collaboration with peers. Finally, we explore the wildcard of examination, a holistic publication strategy, and the ethics of conference speakers.

Wherever you are in your own writing process, we hope that you can find ways to build a stronger writing practice over the coming weeks. Shannon Hale once said, “I’m writing a first draft and reminding myself that I’m simply shoveling sand into a box so that later I can build castles.” So whether you are simply shoveling sand or finishing a castle, happy writing!

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The most useful textbook & academic posts of the week: July 27, 2018

Isaac Asimov said, “It is the writer who might catch the imagination of young people, and plant a seed that will flower and come to fruition.” This week’s collection of articles from around the web are sure to have something to catch your imagination and plant a seed for the future.

We start with ways to develop your passion, understanding preprints and peer review, and the importance of conference presentations for early career researchers. We then look at the academic taboos associated with writing, some summer practices for graduate students seeking employment opportunities, and advice on how to choose the right journal. We close this week’s list with current noteworthy topics of discussion on transparency, discrimination, manuscript exchange, OER, and the impact of Amazon on the publishing economy.

Whatever your passion or discipline, write this week in a way that might catch the imagination of others and plant seeds for tomorrow’s ideas and practices. Happy writing!

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The most useful textbook & academic posts of the week: June 1, 2018

This week’s collection of useful posts from around the web begins with strategies for designing scientific posters, academic blogging, loving the PhD life, and dealing with reviewers’ comments. We then look at some innovative approaches to academia worthy of consideration, including how the success of LeBron James in professional basketball can be used as a model for academic success, tips for research commercialization, and the use of data citations as additional citations in our research.

As A.D. Posey reminds us, “reading sparks writing”, so we close our list this week with a list of open access best sellers that might just spark your writing in the week ahead.

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15 Tips for engaging conference presentations

Conferences offer opportunities to develop professionally, build networks, find potential collaborators, and stay up-to-date with emerging research. As presenters, conferences offer us the opportunity to try out new ideas and get input from attendees. If we use our presentation time to talk at the audience, and don’t create an environment where attendees are invited to think and contribute, we haven’t made the best use of our time. When attendees are straining to read small print from the back of a conference ballroom or trying to stay awake while you talk fast to fit every detain in during the allotted time, the usefulness of the event is diminished.

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