Scientific Writing and Writing in Other Disciplines
According to the scientific method, the way to go about learning is to phrase a question, make a hypothesis as to the answer, and then test things to see if you were right or not. Other disciplines, though, have other ways of approaching learning: many of the social sciences (like anthropology) do not favor trying to solve a problem with a preconceived result in mind, since that very preconception can affect what you learn. Archeologists and historical linguists use hypotheses like scientists, but have to rely more on inference than observation. So a mathematician sees a chemistry paper as vague, a chemist sees an archeological thesis as vague, an archeologist sees a philosophy paper as vague, and so on (it becomes more ironic when one considers that many mathematicians are also philosophers).
Future contributors to this Guidebook are STRONGLY encouraged to teach everyone about standards of disciplinary writing: natural science, anthropology, and philosophy are all subjects found in most Friends World Portfolios, and are all subjects with long and distinguished histories of style.
Until then, if you are focusing on a discipline in a section of your Portfolio, find out what the standards of the discipline are. It might make things a lot easier for you. Ask your faculty advisor whether she knows anyone that works in that field. Read scholarly journals or other publications in the field to give yourself examples of proper format/standarts. Ask people at a university near you.
For what it's worth, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is partly a fair introduction to the history of Western Philosophical Thought, as well as a fair, if somewhat philosophical, introduction to the Scientific Method.
Workshop Discussion Sparks
- Specialization vs. Generalization in learning and life
Inspired and Creative
- When you find out something about the standards of your field, write them up so that others can benefit
Rigorous Training
- Become familiar with a specialized discipline that you haven't already worked with, just to give yourself perspective.
AAAAAGGGHHHH!
- Being aware of the patterns created by lots of previous experience of other people is more important here than holding yourself needlessly to rules.
- Find yourself a teacher. Failing that, find yourself a book or something else you can use as a model of thought.
See Also
Contribute to the Portfolio Resource Guide!!!
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