Comments on: A Primer To Understanding Scientific Papers

By: Sydney Nix

Sydney Nix — Mon, 05 May 2008 23:51:06 +0000

STATEMENT: Equipment crucial to our experiments is not available,and important experiments must be delayed until the equipment can be obtained.

REALLY MEANS: We can’t find the 50-ml beakers.

By: csrster

csrster — Mon, 05 May 2008 07:42:12 +0000

I’ve always liked “Accidentally strained during mounting” as yet another euphemism for “Dropped on the floor”.

By: Rasmus

Rasmus — Mon, 05 May 2008 05:10:34 +0000

My favorite is missing from this particular version.

“Samples were treated with extreme care” = NOT dropped on the floor.

By: Florence Liger

Florence Liger — Mon, 05 May 2008 01:47:06 +0000

My mother being a researcher, it sure reminds me a lot of the stories she told me! Like: “oh, why is there Magnesium in the analysis?” “… eeeer…. I think we’ve dropped chocolate on the sample…”

By: Eric

Eric — Mon, 05 May 2008 00:36:32 +0000

This just floated through my lab last week! I use this as an interpretation guide when I am critiquing manuscripts! :)

By: Rosie Redfield

Rosie Redfield — Sun, 04 May 2008 23:08:39 +0000

The original source is:

A glossary for research reports From Metal Progress 71, 75 (1957)
C D GRAHAM, JR. You can read it here.

It was reprinted in “A Random Walk in Science”, a 1973 collection of humorous science writing by RL Weber and E. Mendoza, and from there has made its way around the world, changing a bit each time. I’ve used comparison of different versions as an example of the different kinds of mutations that can arise (insertions, deletions, substitutions…).