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Engineering Research Guide

EGR 1210 Source Activity

Work with your group to look through your assigned source. As you're browsing, consider:

  1. Can you learn anything about water, filtration, and/or design in this source?
  2. Who is the target audience? Where is this source from?

As you search, find sources, and deal with the deluge of information, ask yourself questions. This will help you determine which sources are relevant for your work.

  • Why does this particular source exist? What can you discover about the authors, publication venue, or project funding?
  • Do you need to have the most current information?
    • In the sciences and engineering, the answer is usually yes. However, you might be interested in the evolution of a technique you plan to use in your own work.
  • What do others have to say about this particular piece of information?

SIFT infographic

Understanding the different parts of an academic paper

The usual parts of an academic paper include:

  • Abstract - summarizes the research and findings
  • Introduction - includes background, history, and rationale for the project described
  • Methods - "what did the authors do, and how did they do it?"
  • Results - findings of the work
  • Discussion - "what does it all mean?" as well as limitations of the work
  • Conclusion - summarizes results, and often includes suggestions for future work

Dealing with jargon

It's ok if you don't recognize all of the words in an academic paper. This is actually a common occurrence! A few tips:

  • You don't have to read linearly (that is, from the first sentence, in order, all the way to the last).
  • Ask yourself: what question does this paper ask? What's the main point?
  • Check out the charts, graphs, and/or equations. What can you glean from them?
  • Look for section headings (see "understanding the different parts of a paper") of interest.