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News Item Some Resources on Publication Ethics

By Barbara Gastel | Sep 07, 2008

Greetings again. I hope September has started well for you. Our school year has begun, the AuthorAID site continues to be refined, and I look forward to writing to you more often.

This week I received e-mail from a US scientist who will soon teach writing overseas. Earlier, I had shared with him resources posted on the AuthorAID site. Now he was seeking more material about publication ethics.

As I replied to this scientist, I thought some of you might be interested in ...

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News Item Annual-Meeting Scholarships and More: CSE

By Barbara Gastel | Aug 26, 2008

Recently I received an announcement that might interest some of you. It came from the Council of Science Editors (CSE), an organization in which I am active. Even if this announcement does not apply to you, you might find CSE a helpful resource.

The announcement was for a scholarship program through which editors in developing countries can receive funding to attend the

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News Item A New and Better Site

By Barbara Gastel | Jul 19, 2008

Looking at this blog, you might think that I am having a quiet summer. After all, no new post has appeared in more than a month. Perhaps you think that I am relaxing at the beach or vacationing in the mountains. 

Actually, this summer has been busy. Since returning from the Spanish course in Mexico, I have done lots of teaching, writing, and editing. Sadly, I have also flown many miles to see my husband’s mother one last time and to attend her memorial ...

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News Item A Message from Mexico

By Barbara Gastel | Jun 18, 2008

Greetings from Mexico! This time, I am away to learn, not to teach.

For many years, I have wanted to study Spanish. This language has become increasingly important in the United States. Also, I am working more and more with people in other countries who are native speakers of Spanish.

“How can I best start learning Spanish?” I asked a colleague whose job is to facilitate collaboration with Spanish-speaking countries. He suggested an “immersion ...

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News Item Back from Nairobi

By Barbara Gastel | Jun 01, 2008

Greetings again. I’m back from Nairobi, Kenya, where I helped give a workshop through AuthorAID.

This workshop, which was for water resources researchers, focused on two topics: revising research proposals and writing scientific papers. Dr Krishna Murthy, of the PES Institute of Technology (in ...

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News Item Getting It Written Anyway

By Barbara Gastel | Apr 22, 2008

I shouldn’t have said it. Late last month, I told a colleague that I expected my schedule to be quiet for the next few weeks. Well, my schedule hasn’t been quiet, and I haven’t written as much as I had hoped.

I did do some writing, though.  And I decided to write a blog post on how to get writing done when one is busy with other things. 

One item that can help is having specific times to write. For example, if you don’t have regular ...

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News Item Back from Addis Ababa

By Barbara Gastel | Mar 26, 2008

Greetings again. Too long has passed since my last blog post.

The time has been busy. First came the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Then, sadly, came the memorial service for my father-in-law. Then, happily, came the first AuthorAID @ INASP workshop. Finally, just as I was starting to catch up on work, I developed a horrible cold. Whew!

The current post describes the first AuthorAID @ ...

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News Item PDFs of Two Presentations

By Barbara Gastel | Feb 11, 2008

Inspired by a reader’s suggestion, I am sharing two presentations. 

Thanks for suggesting that I post the presentation I gave in Mexico. This presentation,”How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper”, can be accessed at gastel-torreon-presentation-final.pdf.  On each page, the first two slides are in the top ...

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News Item Magazine or Journal?

By Barbara Gastel | Feb 03, 2008

A few days ago, I lectured in Mexico. What a good experience! My host was knowledgeable and helpful. The audience was large and enthusiastic. And the interpreter was skillful and conscientious.

The interpreter read my PowerPoint slides several days before my lecture. She then discussed them with my host, who knew much about the lecture subject (writing and publishing scientific papers). From the conversation, my host realized that the ...

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News Item To Communicate, Not to Impress

By Barbara Gastel | Jan 23, 2008

Perhaps you’ve noticed that the AuthorAID Web site has been redesigned. I like the design:

  • Everything is easy to find.
  • The lettering is easy to read, even when my eyes are tired.
  • The color scheme is simple and friendly.
  • There are no flashing lights, cluttered pictures, or other unneeded items to distract me.

In short, the site was designed to communicate. It wasn’t designed just to impress.

Good ...

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