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Style & Format

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Q: What should I adhere to, the page limit or the word limit?

Detailed question-What does this mean: 'Papers should not exceed 16 manuscript pages (±7500 words), including references plus up to 8 figures or tables'? My manuscript has only 6500 words…
  • Asked on October 16, 2020

1 Answer

You have two questions, one in the details, the other in the header. Let’s take them in that…

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Q: What is the difference between a narrative review and a descriptive review?

Detailed question-Are these terms used interchangeably or is there a slight difference in methodology?
  • Asked on July 14, 2020

1 Answer

At a lay level, they seem to be used interchangeably. However, at the academic/scientific level, a ‘narrative review’ is actually a literature review and a …

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Q: What should be done when the figure is large and there is no space below to write both the caption and the footnote?

Detailed question-I have a figure that is large. I also have to write text below the caption. If I write the caption and the footnote on the next page, and not on the page where the…
  • Asked on July 12, 2020

1 Answer

It’s great that you are paying such attention to detail and to the journal’s guidelines. You no doubt want your paper to be perfect in every way at the time of…

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Q: Could you advise on how to write the reference for a published paper?

Detailed question-In the graduate school class, we got a homework assignment to write an abstract of certain literature. I wrote ‘AA explains it by referring to CC (BB, 1992) of BB.’ In…

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Firstly, we have made some edits to your question for enhanced clarity. Also, it’s not clear if you mean an ‘abstract’…

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Q: Can I be a little informal when writing about a previously established fact in the manuscript?

Detailed question-Can I write a sentence such as: 'As all of us already that drug D is helpful for XYZ condition...'? Here, by 'all of us,' I mean all people and not only the authors of…
  • Asked on June 22, 2020

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You have provided a template statement rather than the actual statement. So, we may not know for certain whether the said drug is indeed helpful for the said…

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Q: For articles based on modeling, are there structures/sections other than IMRaD and Results/Discussion?

Detailed question-For articles based on modeling, I find that the Results and Discussion structure [sections] is/are not suitable. Are there other options [for the structure/sections]?

1 Answer

You raise an interesting question. However, it’s not clear what type of ‘modeling’ you are…

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Q: How do I cite the source information for a table in MLA format if I have used two sources?

Detailed question-I am creating a table that has information that comes from two different sources. In other words, I am combining data from two sources, thus I need to cite them. For MLA…

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As you have correctly mentioned, in the MLA style, the source information is mentioned underneath the tables, irrespective of the number of sources you have used…

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Q: What are some of the things to keep in mind for style and font?

  • Asked on November 4, 2019

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Majority of the journals have specific formatting guidelines for submitted manuscripts. Often submitting incorrectly formatted manuscripts leads to un-submission…

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Q: In a journal publication, do you suggest using serif or sans serif fonts and why?

Detailed question-We are interested in what are the preferred fonts for journal submission in the field of engineering (electrical and mining).
  • Asked on October 18, 2019

1 Answer

According to most studies, sans serif fonts, such as Helvetica, Avant Garde, Arial, and Geneva are more difficult to read than serif fonts, such as Times Roman,…

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Q: Could I use an acronym without its full form in the table caption?

Detailed question-For example, this is the caption of table: The different blood parameters in the patients with AIDS. or The different blood parameters in the patients with acquired…

1 Answer

Abbreviations and acronyms should generally be avoided in table titles or captions. However, if it is necessary to use an acronym or abbreviation in a table title,…

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