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Lecture 1 - Sept 16, 2019

This document provides an overview of a technical report writing class. It reminds students to sign the attendance sheet and asks if they have any questions about basic course documents or see a spelling error. It then discusses the research project reports due in October and December and emphasizes starting early due to the multi-stage editing process. The document provides examples of ambiguous language and how to resolve ambiguity, which is important for clear technical writing. It also provides resources for students and discusses tests, vocabulary review, and a self-graded test section.

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17 views58 pages

Lecture 1 - Sept 16, 2019

This document provides an overview of a technical report writing class. It reminds students to sign the attendance sheet and asks if they have any questions about basic course documents or see a spelling error. It then discusses the research project reports due in October and December and emphasizes starting early due to the multi-stage editing process. The document provides examples of ambiguous language and how to resolve ambiguity, which is important for clear technical writing. It also provides resources for students and discusses tests, vocabulary review, and a self-graded test section.

Uploaded by

twinlens
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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ENGLISH 1112 D: TECHNICAL REPORT WRITING

SEPTEMBER 16, 2019


REMINDER

Sign attendance sheet


QUESTIONS ABOUT BASIC COURSE DOCUMENTS? SPOT THE
SPELLING ERROR

 Syllabus

 Report instructions

 Attendence/participation
SPELLING CORRECTED

 Syllabus

 Report instructions

 Attendance/participation
THE FOLLOWING FIVE SLIDES

Catch-up from last week


REPORT 1 (OCTOBER 30) AND FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 11):
YOUR RESEARCH PROJECT

 Instructions on virtual campus (basic course


documents).

 Start as soon as possible.


START NOW BECAUSE EDITING IS
 A multi-stage process.

 Important to go through as many edits as


possible.
NEWTON ON HOW HE DISCOVERED TRUTH

“I keep the subject constantly before me and


wait till the first dawnings open slowly, by
little and little, into a full and clear light.”
CAN USE INTERNET FOR PRELIMINARY RESEARCH AND TO
LOOK FOR INTERESTING ISSUES

https://www.cbc.ca/news/thenational/canadian-start
up-uses-ai-to-reduce-job-interview-bias-1.4810864

But in the report must discuss sources based on


library research.
LIBRARY SUBJECT GUIDES

http://www.biblio.uottawa.ca/html/Page?node=h
elp-guides&lang=en

Librarian talk on September 30 and October 7


FAQ ABOUT THE REPORT

Do library resources include online resources


obtained through the library’s catalogue?
YES

Resources obtained electronically through the


library catalogue are library resources.
VIRTUAL CAMPUS HELP

1-866-811-3201

https://tlss.uottawa.ca/site/support-form

How to download course documents?


REQUIRED DGD HANDOUT

In the “bring to DGD” folder by Tuesday at 5:00


pm
READ BEFORE DGD (AND BRING COURSE PACK TO DGD)

Kimberly Young’s "Clinical Assessment of


Internet-Addicted Clients," 211-226
DISCUSSION STARTERS STARTING THIS WEEK

 See attendance and participation handout on


Virtual Campus (basic course documents).
REMINDERS FOR TEST 1 (SEPTEMBER 25)

Slides with Test-1 reminders are copied from last


week.
TESTS
 Test your knowledge of the principles and texts discussed in class. For
example:

 Recognize and correct a grammatical/stylistic problem.

 Answer questions about class discussion.

 Answer questions about course pack texts (not only what discussed in class).

 Define meaning of words—see following slides.

 Self-graded component (5%)—see following slides.


SAMPLE QUESTIONS FOR TESTS
 Given in DGD one week before the test.

But

 Everything we do in class can be thought of as


a “sample question.”
STUDY THESE WORDS FROM THE COURSE PACK FOR THE
TESTS:

 Test 1: SAT words, 347-349 (5% of test)

 Test 2: SAT words, 350-352 (5% of test)

 Test 3: SAT words, 353-356 (5% of test)


A USEFUL TOOL FOR STUDYING VOCABULARY

http://youglish.com/
SELF-GRADED SECTION OF TEST 1 (5% OF TEST)

 These instructions for the self-graded section


will also appear in the DGD handout posted
one week before the test.

 In the test, you will be asked to provide your


grade for the self-graded section, to be
calculated as follows:
3 POINTS

For having fifteen observations in your reading


journal about any combination of the course
pack texts in the following slide (1 point per 5
observations).

You do not have to show your reading journal


observations, just to report that you have them.
COURSE PACK TEXTS FOR READING JOURNAL

 “Meeting your ethical obligations,” pages 43-57


 Wushow Chou’s “Communications Smart,” pages
137-145
 Frederick Brooks’ “Great Designs Come from
Great Designers, Not from Great Design
Processes,” and “Where Do Great Designers
Come From?,” pages 280-293
 Kimberly Young’s "Clinical Assessment of
Internet-Addicted Clients," 211-226
EXAMPLE OF READING JOURNAL OBSERVATIONS

 Write down a word that the author uses which


impressed you as effective and useful (record
the sentence from the text in your journal).

 Comment on an idea in the text.


1 POINT

For carefully having read all the materials in the


“basic course documents” folder on Virtual
Campus (except for the bibliography) at least
once.

This will ensure that you understand the


structure and expectations of the course.
1 POINT
 For having chosen the topic of your report and
done at least two hours of work outside of class
toward the report.
EXAMPLE OF MATERIALS TO RECORD IN A READING JOURNAL

The following thought-provoking commentary is


from CP, page 47
“Whistleblowing on the company will lead to
being fired, and usually also to being ostracized
by other companies working in the same field.”

Ostracized: excluded from a group.


“The moral is not lost on U.S. engineers: do not
question the safety aspects of your work if you
want to remain employed.”

The lesson is understood.


THOUGHT-PROVOKING MATERIAL FOR READING JOURNAL

“The codes of ethics of engineering societies are


mere pieces of paper, and the officers of the
associations that have drafted the codes are
practically all in corporate management.”

Mere: an effective alternative to “just.”


CITATIONS IN SLIDE PRESENTATIONS

CP=course pack

Page numbers refer to the handwriten course


pack numbers unless an author is indicated.

Authors listed in the bibliography (basic course


documents, virtual campus).
TODAY

Eliminating Ambiguity (AMB)—important for


ethical writing
SAMPLE DISCUSSION STARTER

What is ambiguity?
AMBIGUITY (AM)
 From Latin word meaning undecided (Beer
and McMurrey 60; CP 13).

 An ambiguous word has diffrent (often two)


possible meanings. Spelling error?
THE PURPOSE OF A QUESTION CAN BE AMBIGUOUS

Consider the job-interview questions in the


following slides.
IN A JOB INTERVIEW
 Tell me about yourself.
AMBIGUITY CAN BE THOUGHT PROVOKING

Calling attention to the ambiguity of an issue


can be a good an effective strategy for reports’
report titles.
REPORT TITLE

Fulfillment centres: a convenient innovation or a


metamorphosis of slavery?

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/26/podcasts/th
e-daily/warehouse-workers-instant-delivery.html
REPORT TITLE

Smart phones in the classroom: instruments of


mass distraction or lightening rods?

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/engli
sh/lightning-rod
AMBIGUOUS PRONOUN REFERENCE
Each pronoun (he, she, it, they, her, his, their, its) must clearly
refer to a noun.

The pronoun should not point to more than one possible


referent in the sentence.

(Beer and McMurrey 60; CP 13)


WORD CHOICE: EACH OR EVERY?
Each/Every pronoun (he, she, it, they, her, his, their, its) must clearly
refer to a noun.

Each: emphasizes the individual item


Every: emphasizes the totality/group

https://www.grammarly.com/blog/each-and-every/
AMBIGUOUS: IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM

The microprocessor interfaced directly with the


7055 RAM chip. It runs at 5MHz.

(Beer and McMurrey 61; CP 32)


AMBIGUOUS: WHAT DOES “IT” REFER TO?

The microprocessor interfaced directly with the


7055 RAM chip. It runs at 5MHz.

(Beer and McMurrey 61; CP 14)


AMBIGUITY RESOLVED
 The microprocessor interfaced directly with
the 7055 RAM chip. The 7055 runs at 5 MHz.

Stylistic problem?
HIERARCHY OF VALUES FOR TECHNICAL WRITING

(1) Clarity

(2) Style (for example, avoid repetition)


AVOID REPETITION

The microprocessor interfaced directly with the


7055 RAM chip, which runs at 5 MHz.
WHAT IS AMBIGUOUS?

Our records now include all development


reports for B-44 engines received from JPL.

(Beer and McMurrey 61; CP 14)


WHAT WAS RECEIVED?

Our record now include all development reports


for B-44 engines received from JPL.
CLEAR: REPORTS WERE RECEIVED
Our records now include all B-44 engine development reports
received from JPL.

Turning “B-44 engine” into an adjective of the noun “development


reports” resolves ambiguity.

Clear that the reports were received.

(Beer and McMurrey 61; CP 32)


AMBIGUOUS

Victoria’s mother did not tell Victoria that she


was next in line to the throne after William IV.

(I saw this in a book, but cannot remember its


title.)
CLEARER

Victoria’s mother did not tell Victoria that she,


Victoria, was next in line to the throne after
William IV.

Hierarchy of editorial priorities:


(1) Avoid ambiguity

(2) Avoid repetition


AMBIGUOUS PRONOUNS IN BIBLE

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ex
odus+2&version=NIV

Are readers expected to understand all pronouns


from previous knowledge of the story?

Does the story leave room for interpretation


about who performed the actions?
TV TRIVIA

Which ambiguity does Sheldon in Big Bang


Theory point out in relation to the time machine?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXirBFMC
xcw
SIMILAR AMBIGUITY

I will start working on my report next weekend.


AMBIGUITY RESOLVED

I will start working on my report this coming


weekend.

I will start working on my report on the [add


date] weekend.
CAUSE OF AMBIGUITY?

“In all the containers were in good condition


considering the rough journey.”

(Beer and McMurrey 15)


PUNCTUATION CLARIFIES THE AMBIGUITY

“In all, the containers were in good condition


considering the rough journey.”

CP 300-301: Use commas to set off introductory


elements.

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