Common mistakes in writing

[tthuem]

DONTs

• i.e. and e.g. not in brackets
• unclear reference: this, the line, the step, ...
• no topic sentences (incl. paragraph too short, missing coherence in paragraph)
• use of could, would if unnecessary
• too many brackets, brackets used for two meanings
• getting more detailed with every paragraph and closing a section/chapter without a summary
• complicated sentences
• synonyms
• unknown abbreviations
• duplication of information that is not made explicit (e.g., a repetition without referring to the fact that it is a repetition)
• reflexive use of verb "allow" (allow whom?) - similar words: contradict
• monotone sentence structure
• plural leading to misunderstanding (use singular instead)
• out of the blue: missing introductions/motivations of terms/concepts
• typesetting: bold font in paragraphs for emphasis (use \emph)
• style: use of references as parts (object/subject) in sentences (e.g., "as shown in [1]")
• overly complex word combinations: 4+ words
• wrong position of the words also/only/... -> changing the meaning
• inconsistent capitalization in titles (2 potential options)
• prefix, sentence (often the comma is missing)
• refering to subsection and subsubsection, unresolved overfull boxes (too LaTeX)
• line with single word or single line on next page (Schusterjungen und Hurensöhne)
• line of though (roter Faden)
• inconsistent tense
• use of "if" when "whether" is appropriate

DOs

• use as verb (simplifies understanding) and in next sentences as noun (simplication helps)
• use variables only prefixed by natural language term (e.g., feature f)
• use numbers with units whenever feasible to avoid confusion (e.g., 3 of 5 participants)
• reorder parts of each sentence such that they are easier to follow
• every claim needs (a) a reference, (b) an argumentation, (c) empirical evidence, (d) other evidence such as proofs

[pmbittner]

• inconsistent use of past and present tense
• too many footnotes: Footnotes should only be used to provide additional information that is not required to understand the text. It might only address a subset of readers.
• Telling details first and then why you need them. Instead, try to focus on the general idea first before getting specific.

[tthuem]

Above, I used the checkmarks to document what is already in the current lecture on academic writing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKy_I6OnPO8&list=PL4hJhdKDPIxjb6paLa_tuR2USpoV5M010&index=1