In science, the word ‘synergy’ denotes distinct elements that come together to produce a combined effect that is greater than the sum of its components. This concept certainly applies to the writing process of this book, which arose out of a long period of interaction and cooperation between the authors and resulted in the text that you are reading at this very moment. However, synergy applies to scientific writing as well. This is because it is a steppingstone process that takes students from sentence-level writing to paragraph structuring, to research paper section writing, to a complete research paper. Synergy also represents the synthesis of your ideas as you are embarking upon a research project. This is an effect that can be brought about through collaboration as you discuss your ideas with both your instructor and classmates through a process of inquiry-based learning. Finally, synergy is a concept that applies to scientific writing, which is delineated by its clear and straightforward prose style, adherence to systematic design and methodology, and analysis of data-driven results.
This textbook will outline the key components and core skills required to write a scientific research paper. By the end of this textbook, students will have a solid understanding of the essentials of scientific research writing.

Clements Nick

Nick Clements is an Associate Teaching Professor at Seoul National University (SNU) and a Coordinator in the College English Program (CEP). He holds a B.A. in Political Science from Stanford University and an M.A. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He conceptualized the premise and design of Synergy, and served as its lead author.

Williams G. Dylan

Dylan G. Williams served as the second author of Synergy. He is an Associate Teaching Professor and Coordinator of the College English Program at SNU. He holds a PhD in Education from The University of Manchester focusing on students’ perceptions of English Medium Instruction.

Yoonsook Mo is an Associate Teaching Professor and Coordinator of the Peer-Tutoring Program at SNU. She holds a B.A. in Chemistry from SNU and a PhD in Linguistics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Before joining SNU, she also worked at Beckman Institute as a postdoctoral researcher and taught at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology.

Joel Park is an Associate Teaching Professor, Vice President of the International Faculty Association, and Coordinator of the College English Program at SNU. He holds a B.S. in Biology and Minor in Chemistry and an M.S. in Natural Sciences from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.