如何脱出(英文)论文地狱
鉴于在可以预见的未来我至少还要写一到两篇大论文……
总体流程
- 列出粗略目录,包括每章节题目
- 跳过介绍和文献梳理,直接从正文开始写
- 然后文献梳理
- 然后介绍
- 然后总结
- (如果需要的话)最后摘要
文本层面的注意点
- 保持块状的、互相独立的文本结构:
- 别讲 last section, next section 之类的,用编号或章节题目;
- 一旦大致有了点内容就开始用 Grammarly 逐段检查,能有效整理思路;
LaTeX 相关的注意点
- 保持块状的、互相独立的文本结构:
- 多用
\label{}
和\ref{}
; - Label 定了之后没发生大事儿就别改(大事儿:整节不存在了之类的);
- 多用
- 别改 float position!
- 准备一块备用屏幕,或者:
外围层面的注意点
- 写文本和做数据/做图的时候需要的姿势和心情是不一样的,多多尝试;
- 准备足够的咖啡和茶叶,特别是最后两周,不要逼自己熬夜之后还要出门补充物资;
- 准备几袋小包装的巧克力,实在写不动的时候吃一颗;
- 每天在开始工作之前洗澡,不要等到「正常时间」或者一天结束的时候再洗。
工作歌单
- All Day,适合一天刚开始心神不定的时候听:
- Girl Talk - All Day by mstrflsh | Free Listening on SoundCloud
- Girl Talk Shop(官网,可以免费下载,但网站最近好像挂了)
- 咖啡店类型的白噪音:
- 下雨类型的白噪音:
- Noizio – ambient sound equalizer for macOS, iOS & Android.(付费 app。我常用的组合:巴黎咖啡馆 + 键盘 + 雷雨)
前辈给我提的细节意见
感谢 Dr. Felix Mauersberger 给予我的大力支持和一大堆建议。
Huge shout-out to Dr. Felix Mauersberger for all the advice and support.
介绍部分:
The best structure of introduction is:
- What is the status quo that most researchers agree with? Also define everything.
- What is the problem with current methods?
- How are you contributing towards a solution?
总结部分:
Tips for writing the conclusion:
- what do we learn from your thesis in brief?
- what is the punchline? any policy implications?
- What are the limitations and implications for future research?
- if you had 2-5 years instead of just a few months for the thesis, what would you do?
表格:
Tables and figures are the heart of a thesis/paper and need to be self-explanatory – at the very least when reading the captions.
- All variables needs to be clearly labelled.
- Avoid the use of acronyms.
- And often summary statistics tables are more extensive.
看了以上修改意见以及例子之后我修改的表格:
数据来源:
- Scherpenzeel, A.C. and M. Das, ““True” Longitudinal and Probability-Based Internet Panels: Evidence From the Netherlands,” in M. Das, P. Ester, and L. Kaczmirek, eds., Social and Behavioral Research and the Internet: Advances in Applied Methods and Research Strategies, Boca Raton: Taylor & Francis, 2010, pp. 77–104.
- Gaudecker, Hans-Martin Von, Christian Zimpelmann, Moritz Mendel, Bettina Siflinger, Lena Janys, Jürgen Maurer, Egbert Jongen, Radost Holler, Renata Abikeyeva, Felipe Augusto Azuero Mutis, Annica Gehlen, and Eva Lucia Kleifgen, “CoViD-19 Impact Lab Questionnaire Documentation,” March 2021.