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A writer peering ahead at an academic writing project should respect the task. It not only will require research and writing abilities, it will tax the writer’s endurance and concentration. Learning to become efficient and self-regulating as a researcher and writer is the reason for this series, “7 Ways to Pace Yourself through a Paper.” Each of the suggestions will be presented on the TPS Fan page before being compiled.
若您即將致力於學術寫作專題，應該好好重視這項工作。這不僅需要研究與寫作技巧，也仰賴毅力與專注。「按部就班寫作論文的七大步驟」將教您學會如何自律，提高研究與寫作的效率。每項建議都會刊登在 TPS 粉絲專頁，並在最後集結於 TPS 學術電子報中。

Way # 3 – Develop and employ systems
建議三：制定並善用有系統的方法

Writers of academic papers can be as guilty as any other kind of writer in believing that inspiration rules the creative process. While we should never underestimate how much inspiration can contribute to a creative enterprise, the fact is that perspiration and planning also are important to success. After all, creative geniuses whose brains deliver blinding flashes of inspiration often need their work systematically organized, edited, and prepared for publication.
寫作學術論文就像其他寫作一樣，如果你以為寫作主要仰賴靈感，那就大錯特錯了。雖然對於困難的創作來說，靈感確實不可忽視，但是要成功，辛勤工作與計畫也不可或缺。畢竟，創意天才即使腦中常閃現令人目眩神迷的靈光，但文章要發表，仍然需要有系統的組織、編輯與準備。

So even if you are a creative genius, your work will only be helped by becoming systematic in your approach to it. Like deadlines, systems are external aids through which a writer can channel his energy. Systems are like doors and stairs and sidewalks: They assist a writer in getting from Point A to Point E—the end. One such system is a work schedule. A writer who systematically works on a project for a set number of hours each designated work day is a disciplined worker.
所以，就算腦中靈感源源不絕，仍必須有系統地工作。有系統的方法就像截稿期限一樣，是種外在的機制，有助作者專注投入心力。有系統的方法就像一道道門、一節節階梯，以及一條條道路，讓你從起點甲地，通往終點戊地。時程規劃就是一種有系統的方法，讓你在每個固定的工作天，投入固定的時間，規律執行一項計畫，有紀律地工作。

Another system is organized research and note-taking. A researcher who flips willy-nilly through research volumes, making abstract notes on odd pieces of paper and in margins, is sure to waste time later revisiting the same text. The same is true of a researcher who doesn’t review his findings systematically each day to see where they are taking him. Such reviews can organize a paper in the mind. Being systematic is a key way to pace yourself and conserve your energy.
另一種有系統的方式，則是有組織地研究與作筆記。如果只是有一搭沒一搭地翻翻研究資料，隨便拿張紙或在書頁邊緣寫幾句模糊的筆記，之後必然得浪費時間修改這些筆記。同樣地，如果研究者沒有每天系統地回顧一下當天的發現，了解研究進展，日後也得多花時間。回顧研究發現能在心中組織論文。做事有系統，才能按部就班，節省心力。

Corrected sentence:
The librarians’ policy—they established it two years ago in ’10—forbids removal of the 16th-century Dutch manuscript; the academic researcher was red-faced mad about it.

These two sentences contain three punctuation errors. The first occurs in the second word—librarians’. The apostrophe—to show possession—should come after the final letter, s, because more than one librarian helped set the policy. (Note the plural pronoun “they” in the subsequent phrase.) The second error is the lack of a comma before 10. When a year is shortened to two digits—in this case, ’10 from 2010—a comma is required to indicate the missing numbers. (Otherwise there is nothing to indicate it is a year; the policy could have been created in Room 10.) The third error is the absence of a hyphen in the compound modifier “red-faced.” These little punctuation marks dispel confusion and add to the readability of the text.
這兩個句子共有三處標點符號錯誤。第一個錯誤出現在第二個字「librarians’」，所有格符號應該加在最後一個 s 後面，因為訂立規範的管理員不只一個人（可從接下來複數代名詞「they」看出）。第二個錯誤是數字「10」前面少了一撇，以縮寫代表年代時，就必須用一撇代表省略的數字，例如本句以「’10」代表 2010 年，否則會讓人看不出指的是年分，或許會誤以為這份規範是在「10」號室制定的。第三個錯誤則是複合修飾詞「red-faced」少了連字號。這幾個小小的標點符號有助釐清語意，讓句子更容易閱讀。

Words, like motor vehicles, need signposts and signals to keep them from running together. Punctuation frees words to move readers, to instruct and inspire them. The following example of writing either contains inappropriate punctuation or lacks marks that are needed. Note: The example may contain more than one punctuation error. The first TPS Fan to correct the writing sample as we believe it should be corrected will win a NTD200 eslite bookstore and shopping mall Gift Certificate.
文字就像汽車，需要交通標誌與燈號才不會打結，標點符號可以釋放文字，讓字句能打動、指引、啟發讀者。以下範例可能標點符號不正確，或少了必需的標點符號。注意，句中可能不只有一個標點符號錯誤。最先改正錯誤，並寫出最佳解答的一位 TPS 粉絲，將能贏得兩百元誠品圖書商場購物禮卷。

題目Contest Sentence:

The librarian’s policy—they established it two years ago in 10—forbids removal of the 16th-century Dutch manuscript; the academic researcher was red faced mad about it.

很多字詞並非表面所見的意思，字詞的組合會產生不同的解釋。這樣的慣用法，我們稱之為「比喻」。一個成功的比喻，作者本身必須相當瞭解字詞的源起。以下的句子為讀者介紹一個比喻及其來源。
Imagery buries itself in language and takes on new meaning. The transplanted and transformed sets of words are called “figures of speech.” For a figure of speech to be effective, however, a writer must first understand the original meaning of the phrase. The following sentence contains a common figure of speech. Its original meaning is explained.

“The young playwright and his lady were quite happy to waste the afternoon cleaning the grimy shelves together, becoming grimy themselves, for love is blind.”
「年輕的劇作家和情人興高采烈地浪費一個下午，一起清理髒兮兮的架子，自己也弄得髒兮兮，畢竟愛情是盲目的。」

Blindness is a matter of degree. A totally blind person discerns no light striking his pupils and lives in a totally dark world. People who are legally blind sometimes still see light and can make out shapes and shadows enough to function haltingly in a familiar environment. In either case, the absence of clear vision is a handicap that most people can only imagine. It affects all the senses, with smells, sounds, and tactile sensations becoming more pronounced to offset the loss of sight. Even physical movement is affected, with blind people moving very cautiously.
眼盲有程度區別，全盲的人完全無法分辨射進瞳孔中的光線，活在完全黑暗的世界裡。法律上宣判為眼盲者，有時仍可見到一些光線，能分辨形狀與影子，在熟悉的環境中摸索著行動。無論是哪一種，失去清晰的視力這種障礙，多數人都只能想像。這會影響所有的感官，嗅覺、聽覺與觸覺都會變得更敏銳，以抵銷失明的影響。連動作也會受到影響，失明的人動作會比較小心翼翼。

In saying that love is blind, the writer first of all is not being original. He is guilty of using a cliché. The phrase generally is attributed to English writer William Shakespeare, who actually used it in several of his plays. What is meant by it is that, like a person without sight, a person in love cannot always see the reality of a situation. The object of his love—whether it be a person, an object, or an abstraction—clouds his judgment and muddles his thinking. Some university researchers have shown that love can alter the way a brain functions as an analytical organ.
本句說愛情是盲目的，首先這句話並非原創，用在句中略嫌老套。這句話一般認為由英國作家莎士比亞所創，他在自己好幾齣劇本中都用了這句話。這句話的意思是，陷入愛情的人就像失明的人一樣，無法看清狀況的真相。他愛情的對象－無論是人、物或是抽象概念，都蒙蔽了他的判斷力，混淆他的思慮。有些大學研究者發現，愛情能夠干擾大腦的分析功能。

TPS的編輯教授在此歡迎關於學術文章的所有詢問，當然，其實他並沒有足夠的時間給你。他擁有終身教職的教授身份，也是著名的學術巨作作者。即便如此，他仍大方地接受你們的詢問。將關於學術方面的詢問寫在下方，你將獲得教授的親自指導，陶冶對學術的探索與啟發。
The professor awaits your query on academic writing, though in all honesty, he doesn’t have a lot of time for you. He is a tenured full professor and working on yet another magnificent academic tome. Even so, he has graciously consented to entertain your question. Submit it and prepare to be edified.

QUESTION: I sometimes must cite a researcher with an unusual first name and I don’t know if the person is male or female. I can’t even find a photo to help me. This is a recurring problem. How can I avoid such confusion?
有時候，我必須引用的研究者有個很特別的名字，我不知道對方是男是女，甚至找不到照片幫助判斷。這個問題常常發生，該怎麼避免這種窘境？

Life would be a bit simpler if there were a universal rule about the naming of boys and girls. But then we all would break it, wouldn’t we? That’s because naming a child is too personal a thing to be regulated. No, we must carry the names we are given and, more to the point, sometimes puzzle out the gender of a person with a seemingly androgynous name. You are on a good track in researching for a photo, though occasionally photos can deceive, too. LinkedIn and other professional networking Internet sites often will contain valuable ID clues, including a photo.
如果為男孩女孩命名有個統一的規則，事情就好辦了。不過要是真有規則，我們也會打破規則，對吧？為小孩命名是很私人的事，無法規範；我們得用父母給我們的名字，更重要的，有些名字看起來很中性，難以判斷性別。你找照片是正確的，雖然照片有時也會騙人。LinkedIn 等專業網站通常包含有用的身分線索，例如照片。

If a person is only cited in a brief footnote or other addenda, the full name can be used without elaboration. However, if the style of the report requires titles in front of names and the person in question has not earned a doctorate, then Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Miss is required; it indeed poses a problem when the person’s gender—and marital state!—is unknown. This is exacerbated if the person is quoted more than once within a report. The second usage of the person’s name in text typically calls for a pronoun, and the only choices you have are she/her and he/him. Dilemma!
如果只是在簡短的註腳或其他附錄中引用某人，寫出全名就可以了，無須進一步解釋。但是，如果你用的論文格式必須在名字前加上稱謂，引用的人又沒有博士學位，就必須寫出 Mr.、Mrs.、Ms.、或 Miss，如果不知道對方的性別－以及婚姻狀態－確實會造成問題。若一篇報告中引用同一人兩次，問題就更嚴重，第二次提到同一個人時，一般必須用代名詞，你只好寫成「她／他」，或「她的／他的」了，真令人為難！

Here’s what I would do: 1) Scour the Internet for journal articles by the person, which might contain pronoun clues or photos; 2) Explore online for articles in professional publications that might give more identifying information; 3) Check with your librarian and professor—a person of sufficient stature for citation should be known to peers in the field; and 4) Contact the person directly with this request: “I am citing your excellent work in my paper and am wondering how you prefer to be addressed in a second reference.” Then wait for an answer from her/him.
我的解決方法是：1) 在網路上用對方的名字搜尋期刊文章，文章裡可能有代名詞或照片；2) 搜索網路上專業期刊的文章，或許會找到更多身份的訊息；3) 詢問圖書管理員或教授。若對方成就足以受到引用，同領域的研究人員應該都會認識；4) 直接連絡對方，詢問：「我在論文中引用您傑出的研究成果，不曉得文中第二次提到您時，該如何稱呼比較恰當？」接著靜候她／他的回音。

Correct best answer: Replace “meakly” with “meekly.”

“Whatever happened,” the monk meekly asked, “to virtue, to integrity, to the reckless idea that selflessness cuts a wider swath through life than does self-centeredness?”

Monks generally are meek. They are not meak, which is a hook attached to a long handle. It is possible the writer was suggesting that the inquiring religious leader meant his statement to be a hook with which he might drag his listener into a more virtuous lifestyle. But that is too obscure to be effective language. To be meek is to be slow to react to a personal affront, to patiently endure, to be quietly wise. These markers generally characterize monks and many other religious leaders. While a poor speller might not have noticed the word difference, that is no excuse.
僧侶通常很 meek（溫順）；他們並不是 meak（長柄鉤）。作者可能想暗示，這位提問僧侶的話，就像一把鉤子，可以鉤住聽者，將他們帶往更有美德的生活方式。但這種用法太隱晦，難以理解。溫順表示對加諸個人的羞辱不會迅速反應，耐心容忍，並有沉靜的智慧。僧侶與許多其他宗教領袖多半都有這些特質。拼字技巧拙劣的人大概沒有注意到這兩個字的差別，不能找藉口。

撰寫學術文章時，每字每句都需要謹慎著墨。改變幾個字就會使完整的一句話變得令人摸不著頭緒。下列的句子中，為使這句話能完整且有意義的表達，請選出你認為會令人感到困惑的字，我們將提供7-11/星巴克咖啡NTD200元禮券，給予挑出混淆字，並寫出最佳替代字的第1位粉絲，最適的解答與獲獎的粉絲姓名，將於明天公佈於本TPS的專頁。請將你的答案寫在下方，獲得免費購物禮券的幸運兒可能就是你哦!
Every word is important in a well-written academic paper. Changing just a word or two can turn a clear sentence into a confusing one. Tell us what word you would change in the following puzzling sentence to render it more meaningful. The first best answer will receive a NTD200 7-11/Starbucks Gift Certificate.

題目Contest Sentence:
“Whatever happened,” the monk meakly asked, “to virtue, to integrity, to the reckless idea that selflessness cuts a wider swath through life than self-centeredness?”

並非所有與學術議題相關的文章，就能稱之為「學術文章」。本篇專欄將節錄不同學術議題的內容，分析常見的寫作錯誤，並分享潤修與寫作的技巧。
Not all articles written on academic topics are written in proper academic English. In this "This is not academic writing" column we examine short excerpts from academic texts to illustrate common writing errors and explain how to correct them.

Unacceptable 不被認可的文章

“The youngish design team began the project with the cocky attitude of industrial designers who’ve done it before. The future car was assembled only in their minds, but they knew what they wanted. Studying the computer picture of a bare chassis, the young designers began to make some very critical choices. With the click of a mouse, the bolted subframes were neatly fused to the main chassis in a true all-in-one package that makes the rattles go away and the chassis more rigid. The team leader looked around the room for any objection to his design change and didn’t find any, just nods of agreement.”

There is no shortage of improvements to be made with this passage. The first sentence alone contains three shortcomings: 1) “Youngish” doesn’t tell us if the team is actually young or just younger than some other teams; 2) “cocky attitude” overstates the case and is pure slang; and 3) “who’ve” is a contraction, which is unacceptable. In the next sentence, now the designers are described as “young.” They also make “very critical” choices. The “very” is superfluous; “critical” is sufficient description. The subframes were “neatly” fused, which either means some welding work is not neat, or that the writer is being wordy. I suspect it is the latter.
這段文章該改進的地方還不少，第一句話就有三個缺點：1) “Youngish”（年輕的）不知道是說設計團隊實際上年齡很輕，或只是比其他團隊年輕；2) “cocky attitude”（趾高氣揚的態度）略嫌誇大，而且表達也太俚俗；3) 用 “who’ve” 縮寫也不恰當。到了下一句話，設計師又成為 “young”（年輕的）了，他們還下 “very critical”（極為關鍵）的決定，其實 “very” 是多餘的，用 “critical” 形容就夠了。形容副車架焊接 “neatly”（工整），也許表示有些焊接做得不夠工整，也可能是作者太囉嗦；我認為應該是後者。

Acceptable 認可的文章

“The youthful design team settled into the project with the serene confidence of more veteran industrial designers. The future car was only envisioned at this point, but they knew what they wanted. As they studied the computerized rendition of a bare chassis, the novice designers began to make critical choices. With a mouse click, the bolted subframes were fused to the main chassis in a true monocoque configuration that reduces rattles and reinforces the rigidity of the chassis. The team leader looked around the room for any objection and found none.”

A writer peering ahead at an academic writing project should respect the task. It not only will require research and writing abilities, it will tax the writer’s endurance and concentration. Learning to become efficient and self-regulating as a researcher and writer is the reason for this series, “7 Ways to Pace Yourself through a Paper.” Each of the suggestions will be presented on the TPS Fan page before being compiled.
若您即將致力於學術寫作專題，應該好好重視這項工作。這不僅需要研究與寫作技巧，也仰賴毅力與專注。「按部就班寫作論文的七大步驟」將教您學會如何自律，提高研究與寫作的效率。每項建議都會刊登在 TPS 粉絲專頁，並在最後集結於 TPS 學術電子報中。

Way # 2 – Embrace deadlines and use them
建議二：善用截止期限

Every project of every kind—physical or intellectual—has a starting date and a finishing date. The author of a paper can’t begin until a topic is assigned or approved, at which point the clock starts ticking. A date to turn in the paper also is given, which is when the work must be completed. While these two mileposts are helpful in guiding the overall progress of a paper, they are too far apart to keep a writer on course. Interim deadlines are the critical benchmarks.
所有類型的每個專題，無論是必須動腦或動手，都有開始與截止的日期。題目被指派或通過核准後，就能開始寫作論文，從那時候起時鐘就滴滴答答開始計時了。繳交論文的日期，也就是工作該完成的時候。開始與截止就像兩個里程碑，有助引導論文的整體進展，但這兩個時間相距太遠，無法幫助論文寫作按計畫進行。期中截止期限反而是更重要的指標。

The midpoint deadlines may vary according to the kind of paper being written. They also might be assigned by a professor with the expectation that the writer will show evidence at each checkpoint of continuing progress. Or a self-reliant writer might take the initiative to establish interim deadlines of his own. Whichever is the case, the interim goals—research done, outline created, first draft completed, and so on—can keep a writer steadily moving ahead.
隨著寫作的論文類型不同，期中截止期限也不一樣。期限可能由教授訂立，希望學生在每個時間點證明論文有持續的進展；若是獨立寫作論文，作者也可以主動訂立自己的期中截止期限。不論是哪一種期限，目標或許是完成研究工作、寫出大綱、完成論文初稿等等，都能讓寫作者不斷向前邁進。

A seasoned writer will see these interim deadlines as stepping stones, as helpful indicators of a project being on schedule… or not. They let a writer know when he can take a breather from the project or when he needs to put in some overtime. By maintaining a steady pace, the writer will not have to make up ground in a hurry. That kind of crunch-time research and writing should be avoided because it never results in a writer’s best work. Use interim deadlines to pace yourself.
對經驗豐富的作者來說，這些期中截止期限就像踏腳石，是種有用的指標，能知道專題是如期進行，或是進度落後。作者可以從中知道自己可以喘口氣休息一下，或者需要再加把勁。如果有穩定的進展，就不必匆匆忙忙趕進度。論文研究與寫作應該避免急就章，因為這種結果必然不理想。期中截止期限能幫助你按部就班進行。

Answer: We believe the sentence is best completed this way:

“The towering new skyscraper reached heavenward on its steely spine, around which the structure swayed like bamboo stalks in the wind.”

The sentence is about the architecture and stability of a modern tall building. One method to provide structural integrity to such buildings is to give them a core of steel beams that provides rigidity and yet has the capacity to flex in the event of tectonic or atmospheric events. In completing the sentence, the writer is asked to describe this flexing. An allusion to just about any vertical living plant might do, but the bamboo seems particularly apt because some varieties grow upward as a single stem before flowering, not unlike skyscrapers that reach high before being adorned with exterior materials—except that bamboo rise a lot more quickly.
本句形容現代摩天大樓的結構與穩定性，這類建築要保持結構完整，一個方法就是以鋼樑為建築骨幹，除了堅固，在地震與氣候變化時還可以彎曲。完成這個句子必須傳達出這種彈性；任何垂直生長的植物都可以用來比喻，不過竹子特別適合，因為有些品種的竹子開花前，會以單一莖幹向上生長，與摩天大樓先向上蓋，然後再修飾外部的狀況並無二致－只不過竹子往上長的速度快得多了。