Reading Discussions in Marine Biology

During our discussion sessions, you will discuss with your peers your own critical analysis of papers from the scientific literature or popular press.

Reading discussions sessions give you the opportunity to explore major concepts in marine biology, analyze the research approach, critically review the results and conclusions of research papers, and to put it all in your own words and present your views in an open discussion. This is the essence of the scientific process. What follows are keys to success in preparing for reading discussions.

How to Read a Scientific Paper

This will be the first time that many of you are required to read and evaluate a scientific article. A scientific article usually follows a set format with five sections.

1. The abstract is usually a short paragraph that briefly summarizes the questions addressed, major results, and conclusions of the paper. This section allows the reader to get a quick impression of what the article contains.
2. The introduction provides background information: the author reviews the pertinent literature, presents the scope of the problem, and addresses the major questions to be answered.
3. The methods section describes the study organisms, experimental design, and statistical analyses used.
4. The results section reports the data (often with tables and graphs) obtained and the results of statistical tests.
5. The discussion section gives the author the opportunity to restate the major conclusions of the research, places the results in context of previous research, and discusses the theoretical implications.

The best approach to reading these articles is to (1) read the abstract if there is one, (2) briefly skim the introduction, (3) look over the tables and figures, (4) skim the discussion, and (5) return to the beginning and read the entire article more carefully. This way you will have a preview of the major points before you start. Make notes as you read in preparation for writing a synopsis of the paper.

In any scientific article, there will be some parts that you might not be able to understand because the methods or analyses are too detailed, specialized and unfamiliar. Rather than getting bogged down in these details, it is more important to determine the major objectives of the paper, and to evaluate, to the extent that you can, whether the data and results support the author’s conclusions.

As you read the paper, think about the conclusions that the authors are trying to make. In the end, you should be able to answer this question: “Do I believe that the data presented support the conclusions described by the authors?”

How to prepare for discussion

It is impossible for all but the most experienced marine biologists to understand everything in a research paper. However, with some effort, it is possible to contribute to a discussion of confusing and/or interesting concepts, research approaches, ways to improve a study, and the implications of the paper. The more prepared you are before the discussion session, the easier it will be to contribute.

There are three keys to preparing for a discussion:

1. Read and re-reading the paper several times before coming to class.
2. Take notes on key points
3. Write a synopsis of the paper. Most of us are not able to synthesize discussion points without working them out on paper first. One particularly useful format that helps with preparing for a discussion is a Discussion Reading Report.