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ESPM 174A – Applied time series analysis for ecology and environmental sciences

Guidelines for the final project
Instead of a final exam, the final assignment is to write a manuscript describing the investigation of a scientific hypothesis via time series analysis. It will follow the style of a scientific paper (see guidelines below). The project may be done alone or in pairs, may be written using a text editor (e.g., Microsoft Word), and should be submitted as a pdf. The assignment is due November 27^th 11:59 pm on bCourses. After submission, students will receive anonymous reviews from peers (guidelines for review will be received after submission).

Recommended structure: 

Length: 12-16 manuscript pages, including title page with abstract. Each table and figure will count as one page. All text sections, including title page, literature cited, figure and table captions (and any notes/footnotes) must be double-spaced in 12-point Times New Roman font. The manuscript should be assembled in this order:

1. Title page, including 200-word abstract (1 page)

2. Introduction (2 pages)

3. Methods (2-3 pages)

4. Results (text) (1-2 pages)

5. Discussion (2 pages)

6. Literature Cited (2 pages)

7. Table and Figures (2-4 pages, one element per page)

(NB: This is a recommendation; some wiggle room will be allowed if you need to go over or below the recommended limits of any section by ~½ page as long as you do not exceed a total of 16 pages. Please do not submit a cover letter, or any Supporting Information).

Format and conventions: We will be following the Ecological Society of America (ESA) guidelines for a Report paper in the Ecology journal. Below are the main requirements (adapted from ESA; for a more detailed version see ‘Manuscript format’ and ‘Conventions’ here):

· Use letter page size, 1-inch margin on all sides, 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing.

· Number all pages, starting with the title page; add line numbers to all pages.

· Title page should contain the following elements:

o Running Head. A running head of no longer than 40 characters should be provided at the top of the title page, identifying the topic of the paper.

o Title. Titles should be concise, informative, tell what the paper is about and what it found. It should contain key words necessary for digital search and retrieval. Avoid vague declarations (e.g., “testing the effects of...”); strive for information content (e.g., “drought leads to salmon decline”). The maximum length is 120 characters.

o Author(s).

o Abstract: The abstract should explain to the general reader why the research was done and why the results should be viewed as important. It should provide a brief (<200 words) summary of the research, including the purpose, methods, results, and major conclusions. Do not include literature citations. Avoid long lists of common methods or discursive explanations of what you set out to accomplish. The primary purpose is to allow readers to determine quickly and easily the content and results of a paper.

o Key Words: Following the Abstract, list between 6–12 key words/phrases. Each key word should be useful as an entry point for a literature search.

· Body of the Article:

o A brief Introduction describing the paper's significance should be intelligible to the general reader. The Introduction should state the reason for doing the research, the nature of the questions or hypotheses under consideration, and essential background.

o The Methods section should provide sufficient information to allow someone to repeat your work. A clear description of your experimental design, sampling procedures, and statistical procedures (in particular, time-series methods) is especially important. Do not describe commonplace statistical tests (e.g., a t-test) in Methods; instead, allude to them briefly in Results. If you list a product (e.g., a sensor), supply the name and location of the manufacturer. Supply complete citations, including author (or editor), title, year, publisher and version number, for computer software mentioned in your article.

o Results generally should be stated concisely and without interpretation—although you should state whether they are in agreement with your hypotheses.

o The Discussion should explain the significance of the results. Distinguish factual results from speculation and interpretation. Avoid excessive review.

o Acknowledgments: Acknowledgments, including funding information, should appear in a brief statement at the end of the body of the text.

o Literature Cited (and other citations): Avoid excessive citations; cite only essential sources. All journal titles should be spelled out completely. Provide the publisher’s name and location when you cite conference proceedings or other books. Because Internet sources typically have a short half-life, they may not be included in Literature Cited sections unless there is reasonable evidence of permanency (e.g., Dryad). As a general rule, any publication that has an ISSN or ISBN is acceptable, but should be referenced by name (the URL may be added, but is not essential). Do not list abstracts or unpublished material in the Literature Cited.

· Tables and Figures:

o Tables should appear in their own section after Literature Citations, and should be numbered in the order of their citation in the text. Tables should supplement, not duplicate, the text. Provide a short descriptive title at the top of each table; rather than simply repeating the labels on columns and rows of the table, the title should reveal the point of grouping certain data in the table. Statistical and other details should be provided as footnotes rather than appearing in the title. Do not repeat the same material in figures and tables; when either is equally clear, a figure is preferable. Do not include any class of information in tables that is not discussed in the text of the manuscript.

o Figures:

§ Export figures in high-quality resolution (e.g., 600 dpi for black and white or color line art). Make sure text in the figures is legible.

§ Number each figure with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.) in order of their citation in text. Label multipart figures with consecutive letters of the alphabet, using a lowercase letter (a, b, c, etc.). When possible, place this letter in the upper left corners of the figure panels. 

§ Define abbreviations in the figure legend. Symbol keys and scale bars should appear on the figures (not in the text figure legends).

§ Label all figure axes and include units. Units should conform to the International System of Units (SI).