Students will complete a written scientific literature research paper based on their chosen topic and specifically about what is new in the research/development of their topic. Primary literature sources should be published after 2000. This could be a treatment, a cure, new information found about the disease/disorder, etc. The research paper should NOT include ANY background information unless it is absolutely vital to an explanation of the new findings. This paper is about NEW, cutting edge research. You will explain the background information on your topic during your oral presentation.

Minimum word count for the body of the paper (the portion you actually write) is 750 words. The minimum word count does not include citations. Max word count is 2000, including citations.

Remember, you need to have a clear focus on your subtopic, since you only have a maximum of 2000 words. Your paper must be well researched with scientific, peer-reviewed journals making up the bulk of your references. It should be an example of your best efforts at written communication. Part of your grade will be based on form, style, and grammar, while the content of your report will carry the heaviest weight towards your grade. You will be turning all written assignments into Canvas – No hardcopy is needed. If the body of your paper, i.e. the portion you have written yourself, is under 750 words you will not get a passing grade on this assignment.

Submission: You may submit this to the folder anytime before the due date. Only .doc, .docx, or .pdf can be read – or copy / paste into the submission folder. Any other type of file submitted (i.e. pages) will result in a 10 point penalty.

Check out the SJSU Writing Center http://www.sjsu.edu/writingcenter/ (Links to an external site.) for additional help with general English writing structure and grammar. Also see, https://www.marypoffenroth.com/writing-resources (Links to an external site.) – This paper must have the all the attributes of a well-written paper. This includes having a good sentence structure, excellent grammar and a logically, well thought out overall flow.

FORMAT:

• Minimum word count for the body of the paper (the portion you actually write) is 750 words. The minimum word count does not include citations. Max word count is 2000, including citations. Double space is preferred for the body of the paper and single space for individual citations, separated by a double space.
• No need to have a title page or include any personal identification information since it will be submitted through Canvas and all your information will be pre-populated for you. Just include the title of your paper at the top of your first page of text.
• No need to include page numbers or page identifiers
• This is NOT a free-form document. IT MUST BE ORGANIZED INTO THE 4 SECTIONS OUTLINED BELOW – no need to place section titles.
• No previous example of a paper will be provided for two reasons: 1) that violate FERPA laws and 2) creates a stagnant box that everyone then tries to replicate. As long as your citations are in CSE Name Year Style and you are following an accepted grammatically correct style of the English language, you will be fine. This means, that you may have your literature cited section and in-text citations in CSE Name Year Style and the rest of your paper can be formatted in the style you are most accustomed to writing in, i.e. APA, Chicago, MLA, etc.

1. Introduction: describe the topic, indicate the scope/focus/thesis statement and give any history and/or background information that is appropriate absolutely necessary (background info only needed if your topic is really new, as in the last year, or highly specialized). (Cite literature)
2. Body: Include current information/arguments drawn from a wide array of literature sources and text. Connect the issue to some aspect represented in the text (In other words what have you learned in the class that has enabled you to write on this issue). Develop your ideas sequentially and logically. (Cite literature)
3. Conclusion/Discussion: Pull together the information and ideas to make a coherent picture. Give some idea of the importance of the topic and its role in human health. Also, indicate what the future may hold. (Cite literature)
4. Literature cited: Follow the form as given at the end of these instructions. Note: all scientific names are in italics! – Not included in your word count

NOTE: Always give credit for ALL information you have gained from someone else. If it did not come from your brain or is not common knowledge (like the sky is blue), then you must cite your source. In science direct quotes are seldom used. Instead, information is summarized and the sources indicated. Citations occur in the text in the following format (Author last name, year article written) NOT as footnotes. DO NOT PUT DIRECT QUOTES FROM YOUR SOURCE. Turnitin.com will recognize that as plagiarism and you will receive a zero on your paper. You must REPHRASE the information you have gathered. You MUST follow the literature cited format as stated below. You must cite all your sources both within the body of the paper AND at the end, in the literature cited section.

Your sources must be diverse!

You must have at least 5 reputable literature sources, of which you must have 4 minimum peer reviewed journals. Your remaining references can be from any reputable resource, problem cited in CSE Name Year Style https://www.marypoffenroth.com/cse (Links to an external site.)

You get to introduce a citation by its full title in the body of the paper exactly once. Beyond that you will have points deducted. Introducing a citation is a great way of taking up space, I know, but this is a short paper. An example of this would be, as shown in “A Fictitious Paper that No One Actually Wrote” by Johnson and Johnson (2019) blah blah…. So you get one of these in your paper. The rest needs to be end of sentence or paragraph citations.

You must have the bulk of your references from primary literature articles. You may have NO Wikipedia resources! If you use multiple pages from a single website, it is still considered just one website-one source. When you access journals from the library through the internet, these are considered NON-WEB resources because they are simply electronic versions of hard copy papers that have been published in paper form elsewhere. Most libraries know store journal articles in electronic form. A “web” resource, is a website that does not exist in a published, printed format anywhere. If you access an electronic copy from a library database, treat it as a journal – do not put any info on what database you accessed it from.

If your paper is above 25% unoriginal material, you will be in danger of receiving a zero on the assignment and/or being reported to the University for plagiarism. Please see PDF Grading rubric available in canvas for more detailed information on how the individual written papers will be graded.