Workshop for the University of Michigan Enriching Scholarship, May 2016.

1. Writing A Sexier
Research Abstract:
Making Research In Life Science
More Discoverable
PF Anderson, Enriching Scholarship, May 5, 2016

2. Why would you want a sexier abstract?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/185914/scientist-with-beaker>

3. Why would you want a sexier abstract?
“Citations, according to the conventional wisdom, are the glue that binds a
research paper to the body of knowledge in a particular field and a measure of the
paper's importance. So what fraction of the world's vast scientific literature is cited
at least once? Seventy percent? Eighty percent? Guess again.” David P. Hamilton.
Publishing by -- and for? -- the Numbers. Science, 250:1331-2, 1990.
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/110257/citation-needed>

4. Why would you want a sexier abstract?
Charles A. Schwartz. The Rise and Fall of Uncitedness. College & Research
Libraries, January 1997, 19-29.
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/110257/citation-needed>
Uncitedness Rates
No Disaggregation Articles Only
Physical Sciences 47% 22%
Social Sciences 75% 48%
Humanities 98% 93%

9. exciting,
stimulating,
interesting,
appealing,
intriguing,
slick, red-
hot
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/230162/chili-pepper>

10. What would a sexy
abstract look like?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/102247/twofisted-professor>

11. Before you start

12. Who is your primary audience?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/98323/ragnarok-boy> <https://openclipart.org/detail/176252/anime-style-girl>

13. Who is your secondary audience?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/204390/found-schoolgirls-boy-friend> <https://openclipart.org/detail/203990/found-schoolgirl-
request-filled>

14. Who is the audience for the abstract?
A lot more
people than
you’ve been
thinking about

15. Who is the audience for the abstract?
“This is important, because the abstract is all that many people see,” wrote Loder.
“The information it contains about the study helps people decide if they should
retrieve the full article.”

16. Who is publishing the article?
What are their rules for abstracts?
Is the journal open or closed?
What is their target audience?
How different or similar is it to your
ideal audience?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/201542/theater-audience>

17. Planning strategy

18. What are the most important ideas?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.
org/detail/35149/jon-phillips-notepad-idea-
session-1>

19. … for which audience?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/222289/bright-idea> <https://openclipart.org/detail/244714/brainstorming>

20. What are the most common words for
them?
Image credits: <https://openclipart.org/detail/226080/search-engine-optimization-word-cloud-typography>

21. What are the MeSH Terms for those
concepts?
Image credits: <https://www.flickr.
com/photos/rosefirerising/3314010233>

22. Let’s find out …
Image credits: <https://openclipart.
org/detail/237029/Seek-and-you-will-find-
photocopy>

23. Let’s do it!

24. Start in Pubmed

25. Go to the MeSH Database

26. Example: Osteogenesis

27. Example: Osteogenesis

28. Example: Osteogenesis

29. MeSH Browser
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html

30. More about MeSH
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/

31. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/authors.html

32. Yale
MeSH
Analyzer
http://mesh.med.yale.
edu/help

33. KNALIJ.com

34. Contact
PF Anderson
@pfanderson
<pfa@umich.edu>