Formal Analysis - Eli Quinn Section 105 Scientific Report Compared to IMRAD Concept In the article"Ontogeny of Swim Performance and Mechanics in

Eli Quinn Section 105 February 27, 2007 Scientific Report Compared to IMRAD Concept In the article “Ontogeny of Swim Performance and Mechanics in Bottlenose Dolphins,” published in the Journal of Experimental Biology , authors Shawn R. Noren et. al discuss their results from an experiment done on the swim performance and effort of independently swimming bottle nosed dolphins. The article begins with a summary that explains the reasons for conducting their experiment; which was to find mean and maximum swim speeds of young and mature dolphins. After the summary in the beginning follows four sections which the information documented is given to readers. These four sections include the Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and the Discussion at the end to conclude the experiment. The way Noren et. al wrote their report is much like the IMRAD concept introduced in Judy Kirscht and Mark Schlenz’s book Engaging Inquiry , but with minor differences. Although this report seems to follow the IMRAD concept generally, there are slight differences in the way the authors decided to approach their report. In analyzing the text of the report from Noren et. al and comparing it to the IMRAD concept, there are definite similarities between way the authors decided to organize their results and the standard setup of IMRAD. The IMRAD concept’s setup shows that the beginning of the report should begin with a title that is, “descriptive rather than rhetorical, that is, they are designed to give information, not attract attention” (K&S 33). The article from Noren et. al begins with a title that is formal and straight to the