Reading, Writing, Speaking: Basic Skills for scientists

Summary written by Anna-Birgitta Burmeister and Hoang An Nguyen

Overview

Professor Holger Karl is head of the chair Internet Technologies and Softwarization at the Digital Engineering Faculty at the University of Potsdam. In addition to his research on softwarization, he also conducts research on wireless networking and data centers. In his lecture "Reading, Writing, Speaking: Basic Skills for Scientists" on 27 January 2025, he gave practical advice on how to conduct goal-oriented scientific work. In the first part of the lecture, he outlined how to research scientific publications efficiently. The second part of the lecture then focused on how ideas can be successfully communicated through writing and speaking. Throughout the whole lecture, Professor Karl presented practical strategies for overcoming common challenges of scientific work.

Reading

Reading papers is the key to getting an overview of the current state of research in a particular field. Using tools like Google or Paperpile, one can easily find hundreds of papers on a specific topic. To filter the most relevant ones out of these, appropriate criteria are needed.

As the first criterion, Professor Karl suggests the title of the paper. If it refers to the topic of search, the paper is likely to be relevant. Secondly, the pedigree of the publication venue, i.e. the journal or conference where the paper was published, should be considered. High-ranking conferences or journals can often serve as an indicator of quality, although they do not guarantee it. A third criterion that readers who already know the field can refer to are the authors. This is particularly true in smaller scientific communities where the most frequent authors are well known. The quality of their papers can often be assessed based on their previous work.

Only after eliminating irrelevant papers with the help of these three criteria, one should begin to read the abstracts of the remaining papers. An abstract is again a predictor for the quality of a paper, as it should drive to read the paper entirely. To this end, it should answer these five essential questions in one to two sentences:

1. What problem does the paper address?
2. Why is the problem still open?
3. Why is the problem relevant?
4. How was the problem approached?
5. What were the results?

After filtering the papers based on the abstracts, further prioritization can be done by evaluating their visuals. The figures and graphs provide an immediate way to assess whether the paper's methodology and results are plausible. For example, confused units or inappropriately selected metrics may already indicate that the results are not highly relevant. Additionally, a look at the presented pseudocode and algorithms can help to quickly understand the proposed approach.

With the help of these criteria, it is possible to select around ten relevant ones from hundreds of papers comparably fast. These ten papers should then be read carefully, but with a critical mindset. Generally, Professor Karl advises researchers to always question their own ideas as well as those of others, as this is the basis of science. Particularly when reading papers, it is therefore recommended to be skeptical, to consider what you read to be wrong and to search for counterexamples. By doing so one can gain a deeper understanding of the field and potentially uncover new ideas for one's own work.

While reading, notes should carefully be taken, as they help to continue working on the same papers later without having to read them again. Furthermore, bibliography management tools such as Zotero or Paperpile are strongly recommended for finding and annotating papers, as well as keeping track of bibliographic data. Using such tools in an organized way is particularly valuable when writing one's own work based on numerous references.

Writing

Professor Karl provided actionable advice on writing clear, concise, and compelling academic papers. A common pitfall is overly complex language, often used to sound intelligent or conform to academic norms. However, effective academic writing prioritizes clarity over complexity. Sentences should have clear subjects and actions, ensuring logical flow and readability. He introduced "writing in the large" and "writing in the small". The former refers to structuring a document coherently, while the latter focuses on crafting clear, well-structured sentences. Cohesion (smooth transitions) and coherence (maintaining focus within paragraphs) are essential for effective writing.

Passive voice, while generally discouraged, can sometimes improve flow or shift focus. However, researchers should avoid using it to obscure responsibility. Taking ownership of research enhances credibility and clarity. In terms of style, Professor Karl advised against vague abstract words like "enable" and "achieve," which can weaken clarity. Researchers should use direct language and simplify sentence structures to enhance readability.

Speaking

To convince an audience in an oral presentation, it is most important to be enthusiastic. Professor Karl formulated this in the memorable phrase "Enthusiasm carries over", meaning that an audience is at most as enthusiastic as the speaker. If a speaker conveys genuine enthusiasm for their work, it sparks interest in the audience. Therefore, it is particularly important that the speaker is engaging, convinced of their work and not afraid to present it. Non-verbal communication, such as eye contact and body language, play a crucial role in conveying confidence and maintaining the audience's interest. For this reason, the speaker should not read directly from slides, but rather use them as a visual aid to support the talk. Particularly for complex topics, it is important to communicate as clearly, comprehensibly, and accessibly as possible to turn a boring presentation into an exciting talk.

Summary

In his lecture "Reading, Writing, Speaking: Basic Skills for Scientists", Professor Holger Karl provided practical strategies for conducting effective scientific work. He outlined methods for efficiently filtering and critically engaging with research papers, emphasizing structured note-taking and bibliographic tools. In writing, he stressed clarity over complexity, advocating for logical structure, direct language, and ownership of research. For speaking, he highlighted the importance of enthusiasm, clear communication, and confident delivery to engage an audience. By mastering these foundational skills, researchers can improve both their understanding and presentation of scientific ideas.

References

1. Williams, Joseph M. Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace. 7th ed. New York, Longman, 2003.
2. Schneider, Wolf. Deutsch für Kenner. Die neue Stilkunde. PIPER, 2005
3. Sick, Bastian. Der Dativ ist dem Genitiv sein Tod. KiWi, 2004