A-manual-for-writers-of-research-papers-theses-and-dissertations

follows:It appears that nonexperts assess risk not by assigning quantitative probabilities but by systematically usingproperties of their visual imagination. promise of claimThose four steps may seem mechanical, but they constitute the introductions to mostresearch reports in every field, both inside the academic world and out. As you read yoursources, especially journal articles, watch for that four-part framework. You will not onlylearn a range of strategies for writing your own introductions but better understand the onesyou read.10.1.5 Draft a New First SentenceSome writers find it so difficult to write the first sentence of a report that they fall into clichés.Avoid these:Do not repeat the language of your assignment.Do not quote a dictionary definition: Webster defines risk as. . ..Do not pontificate: For centuries, philosophers have debated the burning question of. . . .(Good questions speak their own importance.)If you want to begin with something livelier than prior research, try one or more of theseopeners (but note the warning that follows):1. A striking quotation:As someone once said, calculating risk is like judging beauty: it's all in the eye of the irrational beholder.2. A striking fact:Many people drive rather than fly because the vivid image of an airplane crash terrifies them, even though theyare many times more likely to die by driving on a highway than by hitting it from the air.3. A relevant anecdote:George Miller always drove long distances to meet clients because he believed that the risk of an airplane crashwas too great. Even when he broke his back in an automobile accident, he still thought he had made the rightcalculation. “At least I survived. The odds of surviving an airplane crash are zero!”You can combine all three:As someone once said, calculating risk is like judging beauty: it's all in the eye of the irrational beholder. Forexample, many people drive rather than fly because the vivid image of an airplane crash terrifies them, eventhough they are more likely to die by driving on a highway than by hitting it from the air, as witness GeorgeMiller. He always drove long distances to meet clients because he believed that the risk of an airplane crash wastoo great. Even when he broke his back in an automobile accident, he still thought he had made the rightcalculation. “At least I survived. The odds of surviving an airplane crash are zero!”