Humn x12

HUMN 120:

Technical Writing & Communication Prepared By

Dr. Ahmed Yakout

Lectured By

Prof. Dr. Sohair Sakr

Prof. Dr. Mahmoud Abdel Hamid

Dr. Ahmed Yakout

Cairo 2012

© Dr. A. Yakout, 2012

TEXT BOOK

• David Beer, and David McMurrrey, A Guide to

Writing as an Engineer, 3rd Edition, John

Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2009.


TOPICS

1. Engineers and writing, and the concept

of noise in writing.

2. Some guidelines for good engineering

writing.

3. Eliminating intermittent noise in writing.

5. Writing common engineering reports.

4. Writing good paragraphs.


TOPICS

6. Writing an engineering report

7. Constructing tables and graphics

9. Engineering the presentations

10.Documentation and ethics in

engineering writing

8. Reasoning with Quantitative data.


ASSESSMENT & GRADING

POLICY

• Group Report 10

• Group Presentation (for Report) 10

• Quizzes 5

• Final Examination 50

• Absence - Marks


CHAPTER 1

Engineers and writing, and the concept of

noise in writing

• Communication skills are extremely important.

• To be a successful engineer you must be able

to write and speak effectively (clear, correct,

and organized).


FOUR IMPORTANT POINTS

1. Engineers write a lot. Engineers spend

over 40% of their working time writing. This

percentage increases with promotions.



2. Engineers write many kinds of documents like

• Inspection or trip reports

• Laboratory and field reports

• Specifications

• Proposals,

• progress reports,

• Instructions

• recommendation reports.

• Emails, memos and letters



3. A successful engineering career requires

strong communication skills. You are not

judged by the by the quality of your

technical work alone but also by how well

you communicate ( write and speak).



4. Engineers can learn to write well because

• As an engineer, you will be trained to think logically.

• In the Lab., you will be concerned with precision and accuracy.

• From School, you posses skills needed for basic written communication.

• Everyday, you see samples of clear writing in newspapers, and weekly magazines.


Thus you are in a good position.

All you need is some

instruction and practice.

CONCLUSION


NOISE AND THE

COMMUNICATION PROCESS

• Noise is anything, that causes a reader to

hesitate in uncertainty, frustration, or even

amusement.

• Example: There was not a sufficient enough

number of samples to validate the data.

• Noise in written documents causes anything

from momentary confusion to a complete

inability to understand a message.

CONTROLLING THE WRITING

SYSTEM

© Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

Language is a system made up of various components such

as sounds, words, clauses, sentences and so on. Whenever

we speak or write, we use this system, and like other systems

it must be controlled to do it’s job right.

09-15-2012 13

Lecture 2:

Guidelines for Writing

Noise-Free Engineering

Documents

By

Dr. Ahmed Hassan

© Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout 15

Guidelines for Writing Noise-

Free Engineering Documents

1. Focus on Why you are Writing

2. Focus on Your Reader

3. Satisfy Document Specifications

4. Get to the point

5. Provide Accurate Information

6. Present Your Material Logically

7. Make Your Ideas Accessible

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Guidelines for Writing Noise-

Free Engineering Documents

8. Format Your Pages Carefully

9. Express Yourself Clearly

10.Use Lists for some information

11.Use Efficient Wording

12.Manage Your Time Efficiently

13.Edit at Different Levels

14.Share the Load: Write as a Team

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1. Focus on Why You are

Writing

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• Define the purpose of your writing in

your own mind so you can

1. Present appropriate supporting data

2. Test its adequacy

3. Discard anything that is not needed

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Before writing, ask yourself

the following: Do I want to

1. Inform?

2. Request?

3. Instruct?

4. Propose?

5. Recommend?

6. Persuade?

7. Record?

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Note

• The purpose of most technical writing is to

present information or to persuade people

to act or think in a certain way.

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2. Focus on Your Readers

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Think about your audience

before writing to them. You

must consider their

1. Nature

2. Interests

3. Level of expertise

4. Abilities

5. Expectations

6. Knowledge

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Before writing, ask yourself the

following: 1. Are my readers engineers in my field of

expertise? (No need for elementary details)

2. Are my readers engineers from a different field? (Provide Background)

3. Are they managers and supervisors who need to make decisions based on what I write? (Be persuasive)

4. Are they nonexperts from marketing, sales, finance, or other fields? (Don’t use technical words without explaining them first)

5. Are they a mixed audience? 09-15-2012


Note

There is always a gap between you and

your audience caused by variations in

knowledge, ability, or interest. To

communicate effectively, you must bridge

that gap.

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3. Satisfy Document

Specifications

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• Before writing, you should be aware of any

specifications your document must meet.

Many audiences expect documents they

receive to be within certain parameters.

• Various document specifications exist. Such

specifications may

1. Require you to provide sections addressing

certain topics.

2. Put limits on the number of words and the

number of graphics your technical paper can

include.

3. Define headings, spacing, and margin width. 09-15-2012


Note

• Knowing precisely what is expected of

you before you begin to write will

1. prevent wasted time

2. give your document a better chance at

success

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4. Get to the Point

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• Anyone reading your memos, letters, and

reports is likely to be in a hurry. Thus you

have to get to the point by

1. Using direct sentences

2. Keeping most of the important information at the

beginning of your document.

• Moreover, readers would much rather know

your key points, complaints, requests,

conclusions, or recommendations before

they read supporting details

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Note

• No matter what kind of document you are producing, however, first determine your audience and purpose, and then give your readers the information they most need in the place they can most efficiently access it, the beginning of the paper, rather than buried somewhere in the middle or at the end.

• (In abstracts and summaries for reports and books, and in titles for memo and emails).

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5. Provide Accurate

Information

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• Even the clearest writing is useless when the information it conveys is wrong. Wrong information could

1. Stump your readers

2. Cause them to lose confidence and be highly suspicious of the reliability of your report.

3. Make readers question your honesty as a writer.

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Note

• In short make sure that

1. your facts (statements of external reality

that can be verified by others) are correct

when you write them down and

2. your opinions (impressions that may not be

readily verifiable by others) are presented

as such until adequate evidence is

provided to verify them.

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6. Present Your Material

Logically

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• All information should be in the right place.

This means you must organize your material

so that each idea, point, and section is

clearly and logically laid out within an

appropriate overall pattern.

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1. If you are writing about what progress you have made on a

project, what you did on a trip, or how to carry out a

procedure, your material should be in a chronological

order.

2. If you are writing about a description of a piece of

equipment, or a layout of some facilities, your description

should logically move from one physical point to

another.

3. If you have a number of points to make, such as five ways

to reduce costs or six reasons why a project must be

cancelled, your points should be presented from the most

to the least important, or vice versa.

4. If you are writing a tutorial or textbook, your material needs

to be presented in order of familiarity or difficulty.

5. If you are writing a memo, move from general to specific.

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7. Make Your Ideas

Accessible

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Structure and present your

material efficiently by:

1. subdividing your material into sections

and subsections with hierarchical

headings

2. controlling the length of your paragraph

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7.1 Hierarchical Headings • A system of heading is essential to

1. Keep your material clearly organized.

2. Let readers know what is in each section of the document

3. Help the reader to get through a report without getting lost

4. Reveal the hierarchical relationships of your material, enabling readers to understand the levels of detail and importance to your work.

5. Give your document good “browsability”, that is, they help readers to find the parts of your report that interest them most.

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A common format for the first three

levels of headings is as follows:

FIRST-LEVEL HEADING

Sdgfhjgj khklkjlkjljl;kl;k; k;kkl;l;’l’;l’l’fgdgfjhghjk hhgdhgjkg ghfgjhkjfhjk hj fjk hjkgj kggfjghgjgjfghgjffj

Second-Level Heading

Fsghfjhgjgjgjkhkjhkhkjhkhkjhkjhkhljljljlkjlkjljlkhhgcdfdsfrrsxhgcxrtcvbhcxrtyyjbvt rtsydtvrdcvtrdytvctycyvcrtyt

Third-level headings.Ersytdtrsdhj fdtrsdhtsdyjy fdstrshdrt sd jys trys hdtrsytdrystdtysdyrts drtytdtrs ttrydtrdytd

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Numbered Headings

Some times you may be required to add a numbered or decimal system to your headings. A number system gives readers easier reference to parts of a very long report.

1.0 FIRST-LEVEL HEADING

1.1 Second-Level Heading

1.1.1 Third-level headings.

1.1.1.1 Fourth-level headings 09-15-2012


7.2 Paragraph Length:

• Break your text into easily digestible

paragraphs so that the reader would be able to absorb your information.

• A paragraph should not be more than 12 lines.

• Caution : Try to avoid “orphan lines” in your document.

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8. Use Lists for Some

Information

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Use lists to present

1. steps in a procedure

2. materials to be purchased

3. items to be considered

4. reasons for a decision

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Why Lists?

• because readers retrieve some kinds of

information from a list more easily than a

paragraph.

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Example • First of all, set the dual power supply to +12 V and

-12 V. Next, set up the op-amp as shown in Figure 1. Use a 1 Vpp sine wave at 1 kHz and then plot the output wave form on the HP digital scope. Then obtain a Bode plot for the gain from 200 Hz to 20 kHz.

1. Set the dual power supply to +12 V and -12 V.

2. Set up the op-amp as shown in Figure 1.

3. Use a 1 Vpp sine wave at 1 kHz and then plot the output wave form on the HP digital scope.

4. Obtain a Bode plot for the gain from 200 Hz to 20 kHz.

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Types of Lists • Numbered lists: Use a number list when a set of data

1. follow a certain chronological order

2. follow a certain order of importance

3. has more than 7 items

• Use can letters a, b, c, etc., for sublists.

• Checklists: Use to indicate that all the items on your list must be tended to, usually in the order presented. When checklists get longer than 10 boxes, try to break them into smaller sections and give each section its own subheading.

• Bulleted lists: These kinds of lists are commonly used when items (no more than 7 items) in a list are in no specific order.

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Punctuation of Lists

• If the lead-in to your list ends with a verb, no colon is necessary.

• E.g. The five priorities we established are (no colon). On the other hand, We have established the following five priorities: (needs a colon)

• If the items are complete sentences, end with a period. Otherwise, a period at the end of list items is optional.

• Capitalizing the first listed item is up to you, unless each entry is a complete sentence.

• Whichever style of punctuation and capitalization you use, be consistent.

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Parallelism in Lists

• Maintain grammatical parallelism between entries to achieve smooth reading and logical neatness.

Example of a bumpy List:

• Last week we accomplished the following for WW3-A:

1. Completed BIU, ICACHE, and ABUS logic design.

2. All instruction buffer blocks have had final simulations.

3. Written and debugged 75 percent of test patterns.

4. Scheduling of first silicon reticules for WW4-A with Vern Whittington in Feb 16.

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9. Format Your Pages

Carefully

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• People prefer a print that is visually

accessible and pleasing. You can create

psychological noise if you fail to meet

these preferences. You can easily prevent

it by keeping the following points in mind.

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9.1 Margins

• Leave margins around your text to help prevent

your pages from appearing overloaded

• Standard margins are 1 inch all around your page

• Make sure the margins are consistent on all

pages

• If report is important enough to be bound like a

book, you will need a wider-than-usual left margin

to accommodate the binding and ensure that the

first word or so of each line is still readable.

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9.2 Typography • Typeface is the style of individual letters and characters.

Serif and sans Serif are the two general type styles. Serif fonts have small strokes or stems on the edges of each letter.

• Example

Serif Sans Serif

T V T V

• Sans Serif fonts can be effective for titles and headings, but serif fonts make larger quantities of text more readable since the little stems bind the letters and help guide the reader’s eye from letter to letter.

• Standard type size is 10 to 12 point. You should use larger or smaller sizes only for special effect in titles, captions, warnings, and such.

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• Avoid sentences with all capital letters, known as “shouting”, because in a long of uppercase letters you have the same visual contours, making such a sentence slower and somewhat more difficult to read:

• Example:

THE GOVERNMENT PLANS TO ESTABLISH A HIGH-LEVEL ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCILTO COORDINATE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.

• Capitalized words should be used to emphasize a heading or directive.

• Example:

WARNING: dfsgfdghfhjgjhgjkhkhkhjkjklj

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9.3 White Space

(Areas of a page not filled with text or graphics) • It plays an important part in a document by

1. creating a path for reader’s eyes,

2. isolating and emphasizing important data, and

3. providing “breathing room” between blocks of information.

• Thus, it can have a positive effect by making difficult technical material appear more accessible.

• You will have enough white space on your pages if you do the following:

1. Provide adequate and consistent margins.

2. Leave a space between all paragraphs.

3. Leave spaces before and after every heading and subheading.

4. Leave one or two spaces between text and graphics or lists.

5. Leave a space before and after each equation in the text.

6. Indent subheadings or text where appropriate.

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10. Express Yourself Clearly

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• You have to state clearly what you have to

say. Your sentences must convey a single

meaning with no room for interpretation or

misunderstanding.

• Avoid: Ambiguity and Vagueness

• Ensure: Coherence and Directness.

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Ambiguity ( from Latin word meaning

to be undecided):

• It results from permitting words like they and it to point to more than one possible referent in a sentence, or from using short descriptive phrases that could refer to two or more parts of the sentence.

• Examples:

• The microprocessor interfaced directly with the 7055 RAM chip. It runs at 5 MHz.

• Our records now include all development reports for B-44 engines received from JPL.

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Vagueness (not clear, fuzzy,

unfocused): • Vagueness causes the readers to see no useful meaning

at all. Avoid abstract words like pretty soon, substantial amount, and corrective action.

• Examples:

• The Robotics group is several weeks behind schedule.

• The CF553 runs faster than the RG562 but is much more expensive.

• Vagueness can be an asset to people who don’t want to reveal much or who have nothing to reveal because they have done nothing.

09-15-2012


Coherence (meaning stick together):

• Coherence in writing refers to how well paragraphs and even complete documents stick together and stay focused on their true subject.

• You can achieve coherence in your paragraph by making sure that each sentence is clearly related to the one before it and after it. This means opening with your main point or topic sentence, repeating key words where needed, and using transitional words and pronouns to link sentences as they build up a paragraph

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Example

• A significant disadvantage of the 125-H CRT is its high power consumption. This The tube requires substantial power to produce the high voltages and currents that are necessary to drive and deflect the electron beam. In addition, The 125-H is inefficient, only about 10% to 20% of the power used by the tube is converted into visible light at the surface of the screen. Thus, The 125-H is poorly suited for portable display devices that run on batteries, where lower power consumption is necessary. Because of this drawback, We should consider other options before committing to purchase the 125-H.

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Directness

• Being direct allows your reader to grasp

your point quickly. The most important part

of your message should come at the

beginning of your sentences and

paragraphs.

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Example:

After a long and difficult development cycle due

to factory renovation, the infrared controller

will be ready for production.

• The infrared controller will be ready for

production on Feb. 4. Its development cycle

was slowed down due to factory renovation

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11. Use Efficient Wording

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Avoid

1. Wordiness

2. Redundancy

3. Turning Verbs into nouns

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Wordiness

• Wordiness means using many or

unnecessarily serious words instead of

straightforward ones

• This causes your reader to slow down. So,

simply choose the simplest and plainest

word whenever you can.

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Instead Of Use

Words

Commence start

Compel force

Endeavor try

employ use

Phrases

A large number of many

Exhibits the ability to can

Subsequent to after

In majority of instances usually

At this point in time now 09-15-2012


Example

• You may often find that there are a

number of words contained in your writing

that can be safely eliminated without any

kind of danger to your meaning

whatsoever.

•You may find words in your writing that can be eliminated without any danger to your meaning.

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Redundancy

• using extra words

that say the same

thing, like phrases

that duplicate what

has already been

said

Redundant Efficient

Alternative

Choices

Alternatives

Completely

eliminate

Eliminate

Connected

together

Connected

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Example

• They decided to reconstruct a hypothetical

test situation that does not exist.

• They decided to reconstruct a hypothetical

test situation.

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Turning Verbs into Nouns

• Replacing a good

verb (action) with a

noun (the name of the

action).

Noun Verb

Made a

selection

Selected

• Example

• An investigation of all possible sources of

noise was undertaken.

• All possible sources of noise were

investigated.

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12. Manage Your Time

Efficiently

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• Consider writing a part of your professional activities.

12.1 Finding and Using Time

• Most of the ways to find writing times are not too attractive.

Nonetheless, you should make writing an organic part of

your daily schedule.

12.2 Outlines, Deadlines, and Time Lines

• Make a rough outline: give you an idea about what is

involved in document, help divide the task to smaller

separate ones (to be accomplished with no order pref.)

• Establish a deadline and schedule back – Draft a timeline –

Allow enough review and edit time at the end (for the entire

document).

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13. Edit at Different Levels

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• Check your document for technical accuracy first. Then, edit your document at least once for each of the following “writing levels”:

• Level 1: This level is the nitty-gritty level of spelling, grammar and punctuation.

• Level 2: Looking at things such as paragraph and sentence length and structure, possible verbiage, precise word choice and tone.

• Level 3: This level is the global level, where you check the overall format, organization, readability appearance, and accuracy of content.

09-15-2012


14. Share the Load : Write as a

Team

(To be discussed later)

09-15-2012

Lecture 3 : Elimination of Random Noise in

Engineering Writing

(The Word and Sentence Level)

By Dr. Ahmed Hassan

Cairo, 2012

09-15-2012 © Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout 78

Random Noise

• Where does random noise exist?

1. Spelling

2. Punctuation

3. Sentence Structure

4. Technical Usage


1. Spelling

• Poor spelling can cause your reader to :

1. Get annoyed

2. Get distracted

3. Stop reading your document

4. Question your ability as a writer

5. Suspect your technical abilities


1. Spelling

• To eliminate noise caused by incorrect

spelling use

1. A spell checker

2. A current dictionary


2. Punctuation

• Punctuation marks act as “ traffic signals ”

for written communication.

• They control the flow of meaning in

sentences.


2. Punctuation

• We will discuss some common punctuation marks like :

1.Commas

2.Semicolons

3.Colons

4.Parentheses

5.Dashes

6.Hyphens

7.Exclamation points

8.Quotation marks


2.1 Commas

• The use of commas is frequently optional.

• The trend in technical writing is to omit

commas, unless omitting commas cause

confusion and noise.

Examples

Before we arrived at the meeting we had already

decided how to vote.

After the construction works finished eating rats

emerged to look for the scraps.

,


2.1 Commas

• “Serial Commas” is considered a must in technical writing.

• In technical writing, you should add a comma before the and joining the last two terms.

Examples

Rathjens, Technobuilid, Johnson and Turblex

build the best turbines for our purposes.

Rathjens, Technobuilid, Johnson, and Turblex

build the best turbines for our purposes.


2.2 Semicolons

• Semicolons are mistakenly replaced by

commas.

• Semicolons are used to join sentences

that are psychologically close.

Example

Take professor Hixson's class. You'll find he's a

great teacher.

Take professor Hixson's class; you'll find he's a

great teacher.


2.2 Semicolons

• If you use words like however, therefore,

namely, consequently, and accordingly to

link two sentences, insert a semicolon

before and a comma after them.

Example We wanted to finish the computer program yesterday,

however, the network was down all afternoon.

We wanted to finish the computer program yesterday;

however, the network was down all afternoon.


2.2 Semicolons

• Use semicolons to divide larger elements

of a list that already uses commas for

internal sublists.

Example

I suggest you choose one social science subject

such as psychology, or philosophy; one natural

science course such as chemistry, physics, or

biology; and one math class.


2.3 Colons • Colons separate the hour from minute in a

time notation.

• Colons divide parts of book titles.

• Colons introduce lists within sentences. Examples: This proposal is due on Monday morning at 8:30 sharp.

One of the books recommended for the seminar is The

Limits of safety: organization, Accidents, and

Nuclear Weapons.

For the final exam you will need several items: a pencil,

a calculator, and three sheets of graph paper.


2.3 Colons

• Use colons in sentences only if the

statements before the colons can stand by

itself and have meaning.

Example

For the final exam you will need several items: a pencil,

a calculator, and three sheets of graph paper. (correct)

For the final exam you will need: a pencil, a calculator,

and three sheets of graph paper. (wrong)

For the final exam you will need a pencil, a calculator,

and three sheets of graph paper. (correct)


2.4 Parentheses

• Use parentheses to set off facts or references.

• If the statement within the parentheses is a

complete sentence, put the period inside the

marks; otherwise, put the period outside the

parentheses.

• Don’t use parentheses too frequently because

these marks force the reader to pause.


2.4 Parentheses

• Examples

• This reference book (published in 1993) still

contains useful information.

• Typical indoor levels of radon average 1.5

picocuries per liter (a measure of radioactivity

per unit volume of air).

• I have already calculated the values of the

resistors. (R1 is 10.5 KΩ, and R2 is 98 Ω.) The

next step is to choose standard values.


2.5 Dashes

• Dashes call attention to the words after it.

• Dashes are less formal than the other

marks. Avoid them in very formal writing.


2.5 Dashes

• Dashes can be used for the following purposes:

1.Emphasis: Staying up all night to finish a lab project is

not so terrible once in a while.

2.Summary: Reading all warnings, wearing safety glasses and hardhats, and avoiding hot materials all these practices are crucial to sensible workshop procedure.

3. Insertion: My opinion whether you want to hear it or not is that the drill does not meet the specifications promised by our supplier.


2.6 Hyphens

• Hyphens divide a word at the end of a line

or join pairs of words acting as a single

descriptor.

Examples:

Research showed that computer-aided students im-

proved their grades dramatically.


2.6 Hyphens

• Don’t hyphenate prefixes such as pre, re,

semi, sub, and non unless leaving out the

hyphen causes an eyesore. Preconception

is fine but preexisting needs a hyphen.

• Don’t hyphenate compound words before a

noun if the first word ends in ly. For example,

Early warning system needs no hyphen.


2.7 Exclamation Points

• Use it in your novel, or personal letters.

• Avoid it in technical writing except in case

of warnings. (DANGER: Sodium Cyanide

is extremely toxic!)


2.8 Quotation Marks

• Use quotations marks to set off direct quotations in your text.

• Put any needed period or comma within the marks, even if the quoted item is one word.

• In case of questions, put the question mark within the quote if what’s between the quotes is the question. Otherwise, put the question mark outside the quotations. In both cases, no period should end the sentence.


2.8 Quotation Marks

• Examples

• The manager stressed to the whole group that the key word was “preparedness.”

• “The correct answer is 18.2 joules,” he told me.

• We left the game right after the band played “The Eyes of Texas”; it was too darn hot and humid to stay any longer.

• Their manager bluntly asked, “Are we on schedule?”

• What is the meaning of the term “antepenultimate”?


3. Sentence Sense

• In this section, we will look into the grammatical, and stylistic area. We will discuss

1. Connecting Subjects to Verbs

2. Modifiers

3. Unclear Pronouns

4. Parallelism

5. Fragments

6. Active or Passive Voice?

7. Sexist Language

8. Two Latin Legacies

9. Transitions

10.Sentence Length


3.1 Connecting Subjects to Verbs

• Relate the verb to the correct subject.

• Reduce the amount of information

between the subject and the verb.

• Use singular verbs for an amount that is

seen as one unit.

• When using either/or, or neither/nor, relate

the verb to the noun immediately before it.


3.1 Connecting Subjects to Verbs

• Examples

• This combination of electrical components

constitutes a single RC filter.

• 12 grams of acid was spilt.

• Either the recent procedures or the old

manual is acceptable.

• Neither the rudder nor the wings were

badly damaged in the crash.


3.2 Modifiers

• A modifier is a word or group of words

whose function is to add meaning to other

ideas in a sentence.

Example:

Our company has bought a transceiver.

Our company has bought a TS 840 S

transceiver with single sideband

capabilities.


3.2 Modifiers

• When adding modifiers:

1. Don’t omit words like I, we, or some other subject.

2. Don’t place a modifier too far from the word it modifies.

Examples Once having completed needed modifications and

adjustments, the equipment operated correctly and met

all specifications.

I was ordered to get there as soon as possible by fax.


3.3 Unclear Pronouns

• Make sure that the pronoun you use refers

to the noun just coming before it. If that is

not the case, repeat the noun.

Example The promotion was give to Vicky, who really deserved it.

We will study the terrain by soil analysis and computer

simulation before reaching decision on whether

construction can take place here. This will also enable us

to…

This study will also enable us to …


3.4 Parallelism

• Items in a list must share the same

grammatical structure.

Example The back-up system should be efficient, should meet

safety specifications, and have complete reliability.

The back-up system should be efficient, should meet

safety specifications, and should have complete

reliability.

The back-up system should be efficient, meet safety

specifications, and have complete reliability.


3.5 Fragments

• Avoid fragments (incomplete sentences).

Example

Nearly 60 percent of U.S. households had VCRs

by the end of the 1980s. In spite of the

microwave oven being the most popular

appliance of the decade.

In spite of the microwave oven being the most

popular appliance of the 1980s, nearly 60

percent of U.S. households had VCRs by the

end of the decade.


3.6 Active or Passive?

• Use the passive voice when writing up

your research or describing a process.

• Use the passive voice if:

1. You don’t want the doer to get in the way

of your description.

2. You find the doer unknown or unimportant.


3.6 Active or Passive?

• Use Active voice for procedures,

instructions, or your everyday technical

writing.

• Use active voice to:

1. be direct and efficient.

2. show that a person is involved in work.

3. give credit where credit is due.


3.7 Sexist Language

• Avoid the use of gender-specific terms.

Examples Restrictive: Every engineer should be at his workstation by

9 A.M.

Inclusive: Every engineer should be at his or her workstation

by 9 A.M. or ( preferred because less wordy): Engineers

should be at their workstations by 9 A.M.

Sarah is the chair of the new committee on marketing. Or

Sarah is chairing the new committee on marketing.


3.8 Two Latin Legacies

• You can ignore these two rules:

• Never end a sentence with a preposition.

• Never split an infinitive. Examples That's a problem on which we will really have to work.

That's a problem that we will really have to work on.

An electrician may find it necessary to entirely separate the

wires in a power line sometimes.

The team has been unable to, except for the lead engineer

and one technician who is on temporary assignment with us,

master the new program.


3.9 Transitions

• Use transitional words or phrases as

they:

1. Help connect ideas

2. Distinguish conditions or exceptions

3. Point out new directions of thought

Examples To indicate sequence : before … later, first…second, in

addition, additionally , then next, finally

To indicate contrast: but, however, yet still, nevertheless,

although, on the contrary, in contrast, on the other hand.


3.10 Sentence Length

• Avoid lengthy, and complex sentences.

• Don’t write sentences over 20 words long.

• Avoid too many short sentences. They

may let your readers feel as first graders.

• In conclusion, try to vary your style and

avoid both lengthy and short sentences.


4. Technical Usage

• In this section, we are considered with

the technical area. We will discuss

1. Jargons

2. Abbreviations

3. Numbers

4. Measurement Units

5. Equations


4.1 Jargons

• Jargon is the necessary technical terminology used in specialized fields.

• Jargon makes communication between experts easy, and efficient.

• However, if your readers are non-experts, using Jargon becomes useless and a source of noise.

• To avoid this noise, definitions within texts, examples, analogies, or a good glossary must be provided by the technical writer.


4.2 Abbreviations

• Abbreviations are necessary for technical communication.

• Abbreviations refer to concepts that would take a great deal of time to spell out fully.

• If your reader doesn’t understand the abbreviations you use, they become a source of noise. To avoid this, always spell abbreviations out the first time you use them.


4.2 Abbreviations

• Examples • Then it goes into the ROM (Read - Only Memory) .

• To understand our billing process, you first need to know

what a British Thermal Unit (BTU) is.

Abbreviations can be divided into 1. Initialisms: such as GPA, USA, IBM.

2. Acronyms: such as AIDS, MATLAB, RAM.


4.2 Abbreviations

• Two usage pointers:

• Use the correct form of a/an before an initialism. Write an before the initialism, if the first letter is pronounced with an initial vowel sound.

• Form the plural of Abbreviations by adding lower case s. Only put an apostrophe between the abbreviation and the s if you are indicating a possessive form.


4.2 Abbreviations

• Examples

• An MTCR

• An LED

• An ultrasonic frequency (but a UHF receiver)

• We ordered three CRTs.

• We weren’t satisfied with the last CD-ROM’s

performance.


4.3 Numbers

• Engineering means working with numbers

a great deal.

• To avoid noise:

• Make any number you write accurate.

• Give numbers to the necessary degree of

precision: 54.18543 is needed or 54.2 will

do.

• Use numbers in a consistent form


4.3 Numbers • Guidelines for using numbers: 1. For cardinal numbers (as one, two, etc):

a. Write from one to ten as words and all other numbers as

figures.

b. Write all the numbers the same if they appear in the same

sentence.

c. Also use numerals when citing money, or measurements.

Examples Two transistors 12 capacitors

The IPET has 4000 members and 134 chapters in 6 regions.

$5.48 12.4 m 8 ft


4.3 Numbers 2. For ordinal numbers ( first, second, etc): Spell them out

only if they are single words. Write the rest as numerals plus the last two letters of the ordinal.

3. If a number begins a sentence, it’s a good idea to spell it out regardless of any other rule.

Examples: Second harmonic fourteenth harmonic

21st element 73rd cycle

Thirty-two computers were manufactured today.

To avoid writing out a large number at the beginning of a

sentence, rewrite the sentence:

5198 engines were manufactured in this division last year.

This division manufactured 5198 engines last year.


4.3 Numbers 4. Form plural of a numeral by adding an s. Also, make a

written number plural by adding s, es or ies.

5. Place a zero before the decimal point for numbers less

than one. Omit trailing zeros unless they indicate precision.

6. Write fractions as numerals when they are joined by a

whole number. Connect the whole number and the fraction

by a hyphen.

Examples 80s 1920s

Nines sixes Fours nineties

0.345 cm 0.5 A 12.00 ft 19.40 tons

2-1/2 liters 32-2/3 km


4.3 Numbers

7. Time can be written out when not followed by A.M. or P.M..

8. When expressing very large or small numbers, use

can use the standard or the scientific notation. Choose

the best format and be consistent.

Examples Ten o’clock 4 hours 36 minutes 12 seconds

10:41 A.M. 8:45 P.M. 23:41(=11:41 P.M.)

0.0538 m or 5.38X10-2 m

3.67X108 m/s or 367 345 199 m/s


4.4 Units of Measurement • Units of Measurement are either English units or

Metric units. The engineering profession uses the metric system.

• Two versions of the metric system exist. The SI, the more modern one, is preferred.

• To Avoid Noise in using measurement units:

1. Be consistent. Don’t mix English and metric units unless

you are dealing with a mixed audience, where some engineers think English units while others think metric Units. In such case, add explanatory units in parentheses after the primary units:

• 212 F (100 C) 5.08 cm (2 in)


4.4 Units of Measurement

2. Be sure to use the commonly accepted abbreviation or symbol for a unit.

3. leave a space between the numeral and the unit.

• For example

• 70 ns 100 dB 12 V

• 34-62 m 23 e/cm3 6 Wb/m2

4. Make sure you use the correct symbol when referring to units of measurement. Don’t confuse capital with small symbols. A great deal of noise could result if you confused the following, for example:

• ºC (degrees Celsius) C (coulombunit of electric charge)

• m (thousandth) M (million)

• n (nano-) N (newtons)

• s (second - as in time) S (Siemensunit of conductance)



5. Don’t capitalize units of measurements derived from a person’s name, even if the abbreviation of the unit is.

6. Note that although the name can take a plural form, an s is not added to the abbreviation to make it plural.

amperes A, farads F, henrys H, kelvins K, teslas T

7. Be familiar with the designated SI expressions and prefixes, when working with very large or very small units:

Factor Prefix Symbol

106 mega- M

103 kilo- k

10-3 milli- m

10-6 micro- µ



8. Define symbols and abbreviations you use in your

writing, either in your text parenthetically (a brief

explanation in parenthesis following the term or symbol,

like this) or with annotations, as in the following example:

P= IE

where

P = power, measured in watts

I = current in amperes

E = EMF (electromotive force) in volts


4.5 Equations

• Equations can communicate ideas more efficiently than words can at times.

• To avoid noise:

1. Use Equations when necessary and when certain your audience can follow them.

2. Make sure your equation is accurate and legible.

3. Center equations on your page and number them sequentially in parentheses to the right for reference.

4. Leave a space between your text and any equation, and between the lines of the equations.


4.5 Equations 5. Space on both sides of operators such as =, +, or -,

as shown in the equation below.

6. Try to keep the equal signs and reference numbers parallel throughout your document.

(1)

(2)

7. Punctuate multiline equations, that read like sentences (See Figure 2.2 in text book).

sYsXxvsH 2

dxxxF log


Finally, Edit Edit Edit

• We could all produce better written documents if

we always:

1. Had time to edit our work carefully

2. Took the trouble to edit our work carefully

• How much time you invest in editing should be

in direct proportion to the document importance.

• Use your word processor programs for

assistance, but don’t follow their suggestion

blindly. You have to be the final arbiter on the

clarity and effectiveness of your work.


Collaborative Proofreading

• Two heads are usually better than one for discovering flaws in a piece of writing. Collaborative editing:

1. can involve something simple as asking a friend for his or her opinion of the organization, clarity, and mechanics of your work and using those comments to improve your writing where necessary. The more skilled and frank your friend is, the better.

or

2. can be done by having different team members check the document for different potential kinds of noise, which is usually better than having everyone searching for whatever they can find.

Lecture 4: Elements of a

Good Paragraph

By Dr. Ahmed Yakout


What are the elements of a

good paragraph? • A topic sentence must exist

• Well supported sentences must exist

• A concluding sentence must exist

• Unity must exist.

• Coherence must exist


What is the Topic Sentence?

• It is a complete sentence.

• It is the first sentence in the paragraph.

• It is neither too general nor too specific.

• It states the main topic and limits the topic

to one or two areas (the controlling idea)

that can be discussed completely in the

space of a single paragraph.


Example

• Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all, gold has lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for coins, jewelry, and omamental proposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as an untamished today as the day it was minted 23 centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for protection outside the space ship. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its utility.


What is the Concluding

Sentence?

• It is the last sentence in a paragraph.

• It signals the end of the paragraph.

• It leaves the reader with important point

to remember.

• It either summarizes the main points of a

paragraph or paraphrases the topic

sentence.


Example • Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important

characteristics. First of all, gold has lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for coins, jewelry, and omamental proposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as an untamished today as the day it was minted 23 centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for protection outside the space ship. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its utility.


What does Unity mean?

• It means that you discuss only one main

idea in a paragraph.

• The main idea is stated in the topic

sentence and then every supporting

sentence develops that idea.


Example

• The convenience and economy of small cars account for their popularity. They are easy to park and take smaller parking space. Small cars are also a means of conserving energy because they use less gas than big cars. Small cars are inconvenient and uncomfortable on long trips, however, because of their limited passengers and trunk space. They are also more economical to operate and maintain, and they cost less. Because of all these advantages, the demand for small cars remains high.


What does coherence mean?

• It means that your paragraph is easy to

read and understand.

• This is because all the supporting

sentences are related and stick together.


How to achieve coherence?

1. Repetition of key nouns

2. Use of consistent pronouns: Make sure you use the same person and number throughout your paragraph.

3. Use transition signals: These are like traffic signals that tell your reader how sentences are connected to each other.

4. Logical order: Arranging sentences must be in some kind of logical order.


Kinds of Logical Order

• Chronological order: Organizing the ideas in a paragraph in the order of their occurrence in time. Key to writing a good chronological paragraph

a. Discuss events or steps in the order in which they occur.

b. Use chronological transition signals (first, next, after that, in 1971,….)

• Logical division of ideas: You group related ideas together and discuss each group one after another. Use first, second , third,…, or Next, last , finally,……,or In addition, Also.

• Order of importance: Same as logical division of ideas, but each group is discussed according to its importance. Use the following transition signals: most importantly, more significantly, above all


Recognizing Coherence

(Repetition of key nouns)

• Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all, gold has lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for coins, jewelry, and omamental proposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as an untamished today as the day it was minted 23 centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for protection outside the space ship. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its utility.


Recognizing Coherence (Using

consistent pronouns)

• An Olympic athlete must be strong both physically and mentally. First of all, if you hope to compete in an Olympic sport, you must be physically strong. Furthermore, an aspiring Olympian must train rigorously for many years. For the most demanding sports, they train several hours a day, five or six days a week, for ten or more years. In addition to being physically strong, he or she must also be mentally tough. This means that you have to be totally dedicated to your sport, often giving up a normal school, family, and social life. Finally, not everyone can win a medal, so they must possess the inner strength to live with defeat.



Transition Signals)

• To introduce an additional idea: In addition, furthermore, moreover, besides, also, too, and, another

• To introduce an opposite idea: On the other hand, In contrast, however, instead, but, although, in spite of, while.

• To introduce a choice or alternative: Otherwise, or, if, unless

• To introduce a restatement: i.e., that is

• To introduce an example: For example, for instance

• To introduce sequence: First, second, next

• To introduce a conclusion: Finally, therefore, as a result, indeed, so



Logical Order) • chronological order • Put check beside the topic sentence suggesting that a chronological

paragraph will follow

• In the past 45 years, developments in the field of electronics have revolutionized the computer industry.

• American directness conflicts with Asian modesty.

• Surviving a major earthquake is possible if you follow certain procedures.

• The 2 most important holidays in the United States are, first, Christmas and, second, Thanksgiving.


Logical Division of ideas and

Order of importance

• Put check beside the topic suggesting logical division of ideas.

• Put double check beside the topic suggesting Order of importance.

1. My eighteenth birthday was a day I will never forget.

2. Gold, a precious metal, is prized not only for its beauty but, more importantly, for its utility.

3. In most occupations, women lag behind men in three stages: salary, power, status

4. Living in a dormitory offers three advantages to a newly arrived foreign student.


Concrete support: (Facts versus

opinions) Examples

• Smoking is relaxing

• Smoking is unhealthy

• The life expectancy of a 2 pack a day

smoker at age 25 is 8.3 years less than

that of a nonsmoker.


How to Achieve Concrete

Support? • Examples and illustrative incidents for

literature writing.

• Figures and statistics for engineering

writing.

Lecture 5: Writing an

Engineering Report

By Dr. Ahmed Hassan

2012


Writing an Engineering Report

• In this lecture, we discuss guidelines for writing the standard components of an eng. report:

1. Transmittal letter

2. Covers and labels

3. Title page

4. Executive summary

5. Table of contents

6. List of figures and Tables

7. Introduction

8. Body of the report

9. Conclusions

10.References

11.Appendixes 09-15-2012


1. Letter of Transmittal

• The transmittal letter is a cover letter.

• It is either attached to the outside of the report or bound within the report.

• It is from the report writer to the recipient.

• See Figure 6.1 in text book.

• The contents and the organization of the transmittal letter are as follows:

1.Paragraph 1. State the name of the report in italics. Also, mention the report assigned date and the reasons for the report.

09-15-2012


1. Letter of Transmittal

2. Paragraph 2. Focus on the purpose of the report

and briefly describe the report contents.

3. Paragraph 3. Acknowledge any funding or help

by other people, and mention any limitations or

omissions in the report.

4. Last Paragraph. Express hope that the reader

finds the report satisfactory. Encourage the

reader to get in touch with any questions,

comments or concerns. Give your contact

information.

09-15-2012


2. Cover & Label • Covers. Use covers that allow reports to lie open

by themselves. This type uses a plastic spiral for the binding and thick card-stock paper for the covers (inexpensive and adds professionalism to your work).

• Labels. Don’t forget to add a label for the cover of your report. You can use the word-processing software to design a label on a standard page. Print it out then photocopy it onto your report cover directly. Your label should contain the report title, your name, your organization’s name, and a date.

• See Figure 6.1 in text book. 09-15-2012


2. Cover & Label

09-15-2012


3. Title Page

• It’s the first page on your report just after

the front cover.

• Like labels, your title page should contain

the report title, your name, your

organization’s name and logo (if exist),

and a date.

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3. Title Page

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3. Cover & Label

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4. Page Numbering • All pages in the report, other than the covers, are

numbered; although, numbers are not displayed

on some pages. Don’t display numbers on the title

page and page one of the introduction.

• Use the traditional design, where all pages are

numbered in Arabic numerals, except for the

pages before the introduction (first page of the

report body); they are numbered in lowercase

roman numerals.

• It is preferred to place the page number at the

bottom center of the page. 09-15-2012


5. Abstract & Executive

Summary • Abstracts summarize the report contents

• A report might have one or two abstracts, in which case each abstract plays a different purpose.

• Abstracts are

1. Descriptive abstract. Provides an overview of the purpose and the report contents.

2. Executive summary. Summarizes the key facts and conclusions in the report. Moreover, the executive summary should not go over three pages. See Figure 6.2 in text book.

09-15-2012


5. Abstract & Executive Summary

09-15-2012


6. Table of Contents

• The Table of Contents (TOC) shows readers:

1. What topics are covered in the report.

2. How those topics are discussed (the subtopics).

3. On which page numbers those sections start.

• Don’t crowd the TOC. Don’t include more than three levels of headings in the TOC.

• Make sure the words in the TOC are the same as they are in the text.

09-15-2012


6. Table of Contents

• Each of the three levels of headings are aligned

together.

• Page numbers are right-aligned with each other.

• Main sections are all caps; first-level headings

use initial caps on each main word; lower-level

sections use initial caps on the first word only.

• First-level sections have extra space above and

below.

• See Figure 6.2 in Text Book.

09-15-2012


7. List of Figures & Tables

• List of figures and tables is like TOC in design

considerations.

• It helps the reader to easily find figures and tables

within your report.

• Create separate lists of figures and tables, for long

reports.

• For short reports, put them on the same page if

they fit and combine the two lists under the

heading, “List of Figures and Tables.”

• See Figure 6.2, and Figure 6.3 in text book. 09-15-2012


7. List of Figures & Tables

09-15-2012


8. Introduction • The introduction is an essential part of any report; it

prepares the reader to read the main body of the report.

• The introduction discusses the following:

1. Specific purpose and topic of the report.

2. Intended audience of the report (Knowledge or experience that readers need in order to understand the report).

3. Motivation of the report.

4. Scope of the report (topics included).

5. Background (concepts, definitions, history, statistics).

• The introduction should not be more than 2 pages for a 20 page report. Moreover, the background should be 1/3 of the introduction. If the background needed is large, move it to a section of its own.

• See Figure 6.3 in text book. 09-15-2012


9. Body of the Report • The body of the report is the main text of the report, the

sections between the introduction and conclusion.

• Make sure that the report body contains

1. Headings (See Lecture 2)

2. Lists (See Lecture 2)

3. Symbols, numbers, and abbreviations (See Lecture 3)

4. Sources of borrowed information (See Lecture 10)

5. Graphics and figures (See Lecture 7)

6. Cross-references (See Lecture 10)

• Also ensure

1. Clarity of writing style (See Lecture 2 & 3)

2. Good paragraph structure (See Lecture 2)

3. Correct grammar, usage and punctuation (See Lecture 3)

• See Figure 6.4 and Figure 6.5 in text book.

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9. Body of the Report

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10. Conclusions

• This is the final section in your report. It should combine any of the following functions:

1. Conclude. Draw logical conclusions from the data and the discussion previously presented within the report.

2. Summarize. Review the key points from the previous material. Summaries present nothing new.

3. Generalize. Move away from the specific topic of the report to a general discussion of implications, applications and future development.

• See Figure 6.6 in text book.

• The length of the conclusion section can be from a 100 word paragraph up to five or six pages. One or two pages are enough for a 10 to 20 page report.

09-15-2012


10. Conclusions

09-15-2012


11. References Page

• In this section, your information sources

are listed in a numerical order according to

when they are first cited in the text.

• For more information, see Lecture 7 or

Chapter 11 in text book.

09-15-2012


12. Appendixes

• Appendixes are those extra sections following the list of reference page.

• Put in the appendixes anything that might distract and interrupt the flow of the report but cannot be left out of the report altogether.

• Appendixes are commonly used for

1. Large tables of data

2. Big chunks of sample code

3. Fold-out maps

4. Background that is too basic or too advanced for the body of the report

5. Large illustrations that don’t fit in the body of the report

09-15-2012

Lecture 6: Writing Common

Engineering Documents

By Dr. Ahmed Hassan

2012


Common Engineering

Documents • This lecture discusses the contents and the format

of some common types of reports:

1. Inspection or trip reports.

2. Laboratory and field reports.

3. Specifications.

4. Proposals.

5. Progress reports.

6. Instructions.

7. Recommendation reports.

09-15-2012


1. Inspection And Trip Reports

• These are short reports, whose function

is to

1. Report on the inspection of a site, facility

or property.

2. Summarize a business trip.

3. Report on an accident, describing the

problem, discussing the causes and

effect, and explaining how it can be

avoided. 09-15-2012


1. Inspection And Trip Reports • Contents and organization:

1.Introduction

2.Background

3.Factual Discussion

4.Actions Taken

5.Interpretive, Evaluative, or Advisory

Discussion

• For more details see chapter 5 in text book.

Also, see Figure 5.1 09-15-2012


1. Inspection And Trip Reports

09-15-2012


2. Laboratory And Field Reports

• The function of this report is to

1. Report on an experiment, test, or survey

2. Present the data collected, discuss the

theory, method, or procedure

3. Discuss conclusions, and explore

applications of the findings or

possibilities for further research.

09-15-2012


2. Laboratory And Field Reports • Contents and organization:

1. Introduction

2.Background, Theory.

3.Equipment

4.Method, Procedure

5.Observations, Data, Findings, and Results

6.Conclusions

7. Implications and Further Research

8.References

• For more details see chapter 5 in text book. Also, see Figure 5.2.

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2. Laboratory And Field Reports

09-15-2012


3. Specifications


1. Provide detailed requirements for a

product to be developed or detailed

descriptions of an existing product.

2. Provide specifics on design, function,

operation, and construction.

09-15-2012


3. Specifications • Contents and organization:

1. Use headings, lists, tables, graphics and identifying numbers to make individual specifications easy to find.

2. For organization, use the following techniques:

• General description

• Part-by-part description

• General-to-specific order

• For more details see chapter 5 in text book. Also, see Figure 5.3, and Figure 5.4.

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3. Specifications

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4. Proposals


1. Seek a contract, approval, or funding to

do a project; function as a competitive

bid to get hired to do a project.

2. Promote you and your organization as a

candidate for a project.

3. Promote the project itself, showing why it

is needed.

09-15-2012


4. Proposals • Contents and organization:

1. Introduction

2.Background

3.Actual Proposal Statement

4.Description of the Work Product

5.Benefits and Feasibility of the Project

6.Method or Approach

7.Qualifications and References

8.Schedule

9.Costs

10. Conclusion • For more details see chapter 5 in text book. Also, see

Figure 5.5, and Figure 5.6. 09-15-2012


4. Proposals

09-15-2012


5. Progress Reports

• The function of this report is to summarize

1. how your project is going

2. what you and your group has

accomplished

3. what work lies ahead

4. what resources have been used

5. what problems have arisen.

09-15-2012


5. Progress Reports • Contents and organization:

1.Introduction

2.Project description

3.Progress summary

4.Problems encountered

5.Changes in requirements

6.Overall assessment of the project.

• For more details see chapter 5 in text book.

Also, see Figure 5.7. 09-15-2012


5. Progress Reports

09-15-2012


6. Instructions


1. Explain how to perform certain tasks.

2. Provide procedures on using equipment.

3. Give troubleshooting and maintenance

guidelines.

4. Explain policies and operating

procedures.

09-15-2012


6. Instructions • Contents and organization:

1.Introduction

2.Special notes

3.Background

4.Equipment and supplies

5.Structure of the Instructions

6.Discussion of the steps.

7.References • For more details see chapter 5 in text book. Also, see Figure

5.8 and Figure 5.9. 09-15-2012


6. Instructions

09-15-2012


7. Recommendation Reports


1. Study a situation or problem

2. Report on various alternatives or options

3. Recommend the best one , or

4. Assess the feasibility of an idea.

09-15-2012


7. Recommendation Reports • Contents and organization:

1. Introduction

2. Background on the situation

3. Requirements

4. Technical Background

5. Description

6. Point-by-point Comparisons

7. Conclusions (summary)

8. Recommendations

9. References • For more details see chapter 5 in text book. Also, see

Figure 5.10, Figure 5.11, and Figure 5.12. 09-15-2012



09-15-2012


Important Notes

• Don’t get hung up on the names of reports.

• Find out your company’s requirements.

• Think creatively about content and organization.

• Build your reports on the needs of the audience.

• Be careful with discussion of technical

background.

• Be careful with the report introduction.

09-15-2012


Topics

09-15-2012


Topics

• You can also use these links for more topics:

• http://www.tu-

chemnitz.de/phil/english/chairs/linguist/independ

ent/kursmaterialien/TechComm/tcmtopic.html

• http://www.abacon.com/techcommunity/news/ne

wtech.html

• You can also choose any topic you prefer as

long as it is an engineering technical topic.

09-15-2012

http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/phil/english/chairs/linguist/independent/kursmaterialien/TechComm/tcmtopic.html




http://www.abacon.com/techcommunity/news/newtech.html

http://www.abacon.com/techcommunity/news/newtech.html

Lecture 7: Engineering

Tables and Charts

(Visual Aids)

By Dr. Ahmed Hassan

2012

09-15-2012 © Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

What are Visual Aids?

• Visual aids are nontextual material, that

include all devices of graphic

presentation of information, like tables,

charts, graphs, illustrations, diagrams,

drawings, photographs, and

schematics.

206


Why Use Visual Aids?

• Highlight important information.

• Help present your information more effectively. (make your report more easier to understand)

• Carry much more information per space than the same amount of text can.

• Give a polished, professional look to your work.( make your report more attractive)

207


Visual Aids

• In this presentation, we will discuss

1. Tables

2. Graphs & Charts

3. Illustrations

208


1. Tables

• Tables present data (numbers and words)

arranged in columns and rows.

• The function of a Table is to summarize

numerical and other statistical data.

209


Tables Format

Table 1. Plant capacity and produced electricity in 2008. [5]

Table 1. Plant capacity and produced electricity in 2008. [5]

Plant Type Capacity of Electrical Plant (GW) Electricity Production (TWh)

Thermal 19.2 124.78

Hydro 2.783 15.51

Nuclear - -

Wind 0.305 0.83

Total 22.52 141.12

Source: “Egypt”, http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/CNPP2011_CD/country profiles/

Egypt/Egypt2011.htm Accessed October 13, 2011.

Heading

at top of

each

column

Put Units

in

column

or row

heading

Center under column

heading (numeric

material)

Table title above

(either in a

separate line or

in first row)

Row

Heading at

farthest left

row

Source citation

Left-align

column

heading &

content

(textual

material)

210


2. Graphs & Charts

• Graphs and Charts are visual representation of tables. Their function is to show a relationship at a glance.

• Graphs present data using lines that move up and down from left to right indicating changes in the data across the time.

• Charts use bars, pie slices, or other means to enable comparisons of data.

211


2.1 Line Graphs

Depict the:

1. Continuous change in

data occurring over

time

2. trend or rate of change

of different elements

or items.

0

20

40

60

80

100

2007 2008 2009 2010

East

West

North

212


2.2 Pie Charts

• Data is presented in circle form divided into segments to depict the relative portion of a total amount made up by each member that contribute to the total.

Steam

Combined

Cycle

Hydro & Wind

Gas

• Figure 2 The electrical energy generation mix in 2008

by Egyptian electricity sector. [5] Source: “Egypt,”

http://www-pub.iaea.org /MTCD /Publications

/PDF/CNPP2011_CD/country profiles/Egypt/ Egypt

2011.htm Accessed October 13, 2011.

213


2.3 Bar Charts

• Enable comparisons

and can, to a limited

degree, indicate

change over time. 0

20

40

60

80

100

2008 2009 2010 2011

East

West

North

214


3. Illustrations

• Illustrations are illustrative graphics that represent physical things.

• Illustrations include

1. Photographs

2. Diagrams

3. Drawings

215


3.1 Photographs

• Photographs: Supply lots of detail. They are

useful, for example, when you want to show

a model of a new product.

216


3.2 Diagrams

• Diagrams are abstract illustration of objects.

Diagrams can range from varying degrees of

pictorial to varying degrees of abstract.

217


3.2 Diagrams

• Diagrams can also represent non physical things such as concepts. An organizational chart of a company, and a flowchart of a production process are typical examples.

218


3.3 Drawings

• Drawings are simplified

illustrations of objects,

people, and places.

They strip away

extraneous detail and

focus on the key

objects and actions.

219


How to create or acquire

illustrations? • Internet

• Hardcopy scans

• Professional clipart

• Graphics professional

• “low-tech” graphics production

220


Graphics and Tables:

Guidelines

1. Add figure and table titles. Figure titles below figures, while table titles above tables.

2. Add labels. Add words and pointers to illustrations. Add labels to axes to identify the units of measurement and other details.

3. Indicate source of borrowed graphics or tables.

4. Include a legend. If your graphs use different symbols, colors, shadings or pattern to indicate different elements, include a legend.

221



Guidelines

5. Intersperse graphics and Tables with text. Insert graphics and Tables into the main text of your document rather than appending them at the end of the document.

6. Place graphics and tables at the point of first reference. Position graphics and tables just after the first point in your text where they become relevant.

7. Align and position graphics carefully. Maintain adequate spacing between graphics and text: make sure that graphics are nicely balance visually on your pages.

222



Guidelines

8. Provide cross-references to your graphics and tables. Refer to your graphics and tables in text, and explain key points. Use phrasing like:

a. As can be seen in Figure 5, the thermophysical properties……

b. The arrangements of the MOF network (Fig.8-2) is structured so that ………

c. Averages for the fabric cutting speeds are shown in Table 4 on the next page.

223

Lecture 8

Reasoning With Quantitative Data

Prepared By

Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

Cairo, 2012

PRESENTATION OUTLINE

Here, we will discuss

1. The Steps of Reasoning With Data

2. Two Examples and Their Solutions

09-15-2012 225 © Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

Reasoning With Quantitative Data

It involves the following steps:

1. Organizing Data in Tables or Graphs

2. Analyzing and Interpreting the Tabulated Data

3. Drawing Conclusions

4. Formulating Recommendations

Where,

• Common Sense is applied • Logical explanation is given

• Percentages are determined • Trends are observed


EXAMPLE 1


The power generation and distribution data for several

electric companies are given in Table 1.

If the reserve power is defined as the difference

between the generated capacity and load supplied,

while the average unit capacity is the generating

capacity divided by the number of units, give a

detailed discussion for Table 1.

Company

no.

Total

Generation

Capacity

(MW)

No. of

Generating

Units

Load

Supplied

(MW)

Generation

Cost

($/MWh)

1 3450 21 3000 100

2 1488 17 1200 50

3 6220 18 6900 25

Table 1 Generation and load data of three electric companies.


SOLUTION

• Company 1 has the largest power reserve.

Company

no.

Reserve Power

(MW)

Average Unit

Capacity

(MW)

Generation

Cost

($/MWh)

1 450 164.285 100

2 288 87.52 50

3 - 680 345.556 25

Table 2 Reserve and unit capacities of three electric companies.

• Company 3 needs to buy extra power from other companies to

supply its loads. • Company 3 should buy the total reserve 288 MW of company 2

as it is cheaper and then buy the rest 392 MW from company 1.

• Company 3 has the largest unit capacity, while company 2 has

the least.


EXAMPLE 2


If Figure 1 shows some experimental results,

Discuss the figure.

Figure 1 Potential difference versus current. 09-15-2012 231 © Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

SOLUTION

• Resistance changes with temperature.

• The relationship is nonlinear for coil in air.

• Resistance increases for coil in air.

• Resistance is constant for coil in water.

• The relationship is linear for coil in water.


Lecture 9

Giving Presentations

By

Dr. Ahmed Hassan Yakout

Cairo, 2011


Presentation Outline

• We will discuss important points to be

considered while:

1.Preparing a presentation.

2.Delivering a presentation.

3.Listening to a presentation.


1. Preparing the Presentation

• Here are 13 points you should consider while

preparing a presentation:

1. Analyze your audience. Know your audience

well because too complex, too simplistic or

unrelated to our interest talks bore the audience.

2. Decide on your main purpose. Decide exactly

what you want your listeners to take away from

your talk. This will help you organize your talk..



3. Determine your time frame. Never speak

longer than you are supposed to. Check how

much time you are allowed, then, decide how

much detail you can go into. Don’t speak rapidly

to say much or you will lose your listeners.

4. Identify your key points. Decide what the most

important points are and develop them within

your time frame.



5. Choose an organizational plan. Determine how

to organize your material. Presentation can be

broken down into

a. Introduction

b. Main points

c. Conclusion

d. Question-Answer period

• Moreover, a list of ways to organize your central

material are time sequence, spatial sequence,

decreasing importance, etc.


1. Preparing the Presentation 6. Prepare an outline and notes. Prepare an

outline because it

» Helps you clarify the best way to present your

material.

» Gives you a means of how much time to allow

for each point.

» Helps you when you rehearse.

• Moreover, engineers usually use

» Outline of talk , with key ideas highlighted.

» Note cards numbered in order with key facts

written on them.

» Slides with visual aids.

» Backup plan, i.e. have hard copies of their

overheads to handout in case of system failure.



7. Create supporting Graphics. Showing graphics

will save you time. You should use visual aids

wherever you feel they will simplify, clarify, or

stress a point; or show critical relationships

between ideas or facts.

8. Make your information accessible. Don’t put

anything that is too complex (don’t crowd the

screen, 8 lines per screen is enough), or too

small (don’t use font size less than 24 bold) on

the screen.


1. Preparing the Presentation 9. Prepare Handouts. Many speakers avoid

handouts, others pass out copies of their slides.

The most important thing is to choose the right

time to pass out your handouts so that they add

to listeners concentration and understanding

rather than distract them.

10.Prepare your introduction. To get your

audience attention from the beginning let them

know right away (orally)

» What your topic is.

» How does this topic benefit them.

» What do you plan to cover in your presentation.

» How long do you intend to speak.



11.Prepare your conclusion. Reinforce your

message at the end of your presentation by a

final summing up slide that

» Summarizes what you have discussed.

» stresses your central idea once more.

» Reviews your key points.

» Restates your recommendations or decisions.

12.Get ready for questions. Put yourself in place of

the listeners, and try to find parts in your

presentation that would generate questions

because that part is difficult or not discussed in

detail.



13.Practice, Practice, and Practice. Always, remember the PPPPPP (Plentiful Practice Prevents Painfully Poor Presentations.) You can

» Rehearse at least twice like most speakers.

» Go over your material (i.e. outline, notes, visuals) several times

» Do a dress rehearsal in the room you’ll be presenting.

» Make an audio/video tape of the rehearsal and self-criticize your performance.



» Find a trial audience to listen to your first

run and give you feedback.

» Practice on friends, colleagues, a spouse,

or even yourself in front of the bathroom

mirror.

• Finally, careful practicing increases your self-

confidence and decreases your nervousness about

speaking in front of a group.


2. Delivering the Presentation

• In this section, we will discuss

1. How to avoid noise in presentations.

2. How to strengthen your presentation.


2.1 Avoiding Noise in Presentations

• You can avoid noise in presentations by

1. Not speaking too softly. Adjust your voice relative

to the room and audience.

2. Not speaking too slowly or rapidly. Aim for normal

conversational speed, but pause and slow down to

stress on main points.

3. Not speaking monotonously. Don’t speak in a

bored tone. Speak in an energetic way. Enthusiasm

is the secret to grab your audiences’ attention.



4. Not using verbal fillers. Avoid uh, umm, yu’no,

like. Instead, keep silent.

5. Not becoming a statue, Pendulum, or a

traveler. Swinging can have a hypnotic effect.

Go for natural stance, and movement with some

foot movements.

6. Not blocking the screen. Try to avoid or prevent

screen blockage. Stand far to the side of the

screen.



7. Not reading from the screen or from notes.

Reading bores listeners and gives them the

impression that you don’t know your subject well.

8. Not dimming the lights to make visuals easier

to read. Low lights make people drowsy and

hides facial expressions and the eye contact you

need to have with listeners.


2.2 Strengthening Presentations

• You can strengthen your talk by

1. Using an informal style. The best style is the

informal one that uses normal conversation of

everyday life. It’s OK to use it’s, don’t, couldn’t.

Also, use you, your, I and we. Avoid long complex

sentences. Finally, don’t use any jargon not

readily understood by your listeners.



2. Making clear transitions. Show the connection

between your ideas by using “ For example, Here

is another aspect, First, Next, To begin with, On

the other hand, As you can see, Also,

Furthermore, Consequently, As a result, Finally,

In conclusion, and To sum up.”

3. Repeating key points. Don’t be afraid to repeat

yourself. Make sure your audience go away with

the main aspects of your presentation.



4. Using a pointer. To draw attention, you can use a straight metal, wooden stick, retractable stick pointer or a laser pen. The latest allows you to aim from anywhere in the room.

5. Being ready for unexpected questions. Don’t

appear surprised or defensive. There are two

strategies to handle unexpected questions:

» Say you don’t know, and offer to supply possible

sources of information later.

» Offer to talk with the questioner after your

presentation. Rarely will anyone seek you

afterwards.



6. Maintaining eye contact. It increases your

credibility, and enables you to pick up feedback.

7. Accepting your nervousness. Lessen your

nervousness by

» Knowing that it’s ok to be nervous.

» Having confidence in your knowledge and

ability.

» Taking some deep breaths before walking to the

stage.

» Having few friends within the audience to give

moral support through a smile or nod.


3. Listening to the Presentation

• This section discusses how to be a good listener, in order

to go away from a talk as a more informed person. This

can be achieved by

1. Maintaining natural eye contact with the speaker.

2. Showing by your posture that you are alert,

interested, and well-disposed toward the speaker.

3. Ignoring distractions such as side talks or other

external noise.

4. Taking notes on the speaker’s most important points.

5. Developing at least one question in your mind, and

asking it at the appropriate time.

6. Being sure to turn off cell phones and beepers.

Lecture 10: Ethics &

Documentation in

Engineering Writing

By Dr. Ahmed Hassan

2012


Ethics & Documentation in

Engineering Writing

• We will discuss

1. Engineering ethics.

2. Honest research ethics.

254


1. Engineering Ethics

• This section discusses

1. Five unethical communication concerns, engineers sometimes practice either knowingly or unknowingly.

2. Tools for ethical decision making

3. Points to be considered when facing a dilemma.

255


1.1 Five Communication

Concerns

• Avoid:

1. Copyright infringement.

2. Tampering with results.

3. Withholding adverse information.

4. Writing unclear instructions.

5. Omitting safety warnings.

256


1.2 Tools for Ethical Decision

Making

• Using the Code of Ethics (published by

professional engineering associations,

or large firms) can always help you

justify doing the right thing.

257


1.2 Tools for Ethical Decision

Making

Figure 1.1 A Typical Code of Ethics for the engineering profession. Source: American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ”Code of Ethics of Engineers,” http://sections.asme.org/colorado/ethics.html

Accessed October 19. 2011.

258


1.3 Facing a Dilemma

• When facing a difficult problem in your engineering career, you must

1. Analyze the situation carefully and responsibly.

2. Consider the issues involved from more than one angle.

3. Consult with others.

4. Think long and hard before making a decision.

259


2. Ethics of Honest Research

• This section:

1. Defines plagiarism

2. Explains how to avoid plagiarism

3. Explains why information sources should

be documented.

4. Presents a procedure for documenting

5. Shows the reference page format

6. Gives a sample of references.

260


2.1 Plagiarism

• Plagiarism is the act of using someone else’s work without giving proper credit.

• Plagiarism is a result of:

1. Dishonesty

2. Carelessness and laziness

3. ignorance

261


2.2 How to Avoid Plagiarism?

• When you do research, all information (including diagrams, ideas, facts, theories, findings, opinions, and graphics) that you obtain from journals, books, interviews, the internet, or any other sources must be fully documented that is, accompanied by references to the sources where you obtained the information.

• Note: No need to reference

1. Your own ideas and opinions.

2. Common knowledge.

262


2.3 Why Document Sources

of Information? • You document your information borrowings in

order to

1. Protect the originator. (she or he will get credit for

having developed it.)

2. Protect yourself from accusations of plagiarism.

3. Show readers that you have done your work and

are aware of the latest developments in the

particular field.

4. Enable readers to track down the information so

that they can read it for themselves.

263


2.4 Procedure for Documenting

1. Refer to the source of your information in the text by inserting consecutive numbers in brackets, beginning with 1, at the end of each segment of cited information, like this [1].

2. Insert the reference number at the end of a sentence or within it, without changing the sentence punctuation. For example,

• According to the 2006 U.S. Census Bureau [10], we see that………

3. Leave a space before the bracketed number and stick the punctuation to the second bracket.

4. References at the end of quotation marks are punctuated with a period after the reference, “like this” [8, p. 23].

264



5. Identify the page numbers of your source of information if you want to refer to a part of a book or article, like this [4, pp. 3-6], [8, p. 23], or

• However, on page 79 of [5] the author seems to …………….

6. Use semicolons to separate multi-information sources for one paragraph, like this [6, p. 46; 7, pp.29-31; 9, pp. 8, 12].

7. Once you have numbered a source, use the same number for all subsequent references to that source throughout your work.

265



Figure 2.1 A page from a well-documented research paper. Source: D. Beer, and D. McMurrey, A Guide to Writing as an Engineer, 3rd ed. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2009.

266


2.5 Reference Page Format

1.List your sources in a numerical order

according to when they are first cited in the

text.

2.Give the initials of authors’ first names.

3.Single-space individual references, with a

second, or third line aligned with the first.

4.Double-space between separate references.

5.End each entry with a period.

267



6. List every source once on your reference

page, even if you have referenced to the

same source more than once in your paper.

7. Incase of journals,

a. Titles of journal articles are given in sentence

form rather than title form.

b. Use a common abbreviation for the journal

title if there is one, e.g. IEEE transactions.

Otherwise, give the full name of the journal.

268



Figure 2.2 An example of a brief reference page. Source: D. Beer, and D. McMurrey, A Guide to Writing as an Engineer, 3rd ed. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2009.

269


2.6 Sample References • Book

[1] C. Conrad and M. S. Poole, Strategic Organizational Communication, 5th ed. New York: Harcourt Press, 2002.

• Journal Article

[2] N. M. Tahir, A. Hussain, S. A. Samad, and H. Husain, “Shock graph for representation and modeling of posture,” ETRI Journal, vol. 29, no. 4, pp. 507-514, August 2007.

• World Wide Web

[3] “AT&T enters India residential local phone market,” www.att.com Accessed January 26, 2003.

• For more samples, see text book pp. 262-265.

270

http://www.att.com/

ADVICE

For Final Exam, Learn All

Lectures By

Heart


Thank You

&

Best of Luck


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