--- name: thesis-dissertation-compliance source: https://app.decimal.ai/s/thesis-dissertation-compliance@1/SKILL.md source_sha256: 4637175531a2 --- # Thesis & Dissertation Formatting Convention ## Contract Enforces the structural, word-count, numbering, citation, and unit conventions of a formal thesis/dissertation submission guideline. Apply whenever drafting or formatting any thesis or dissertation section (abstract, acknowledgements, keywords, body chapters, tables/figures, references) — these are arbitrary house rules a general writing default does not follow. ## Rules ### 1. Word counts and section lengths - **Abstract: 300–500 words.** Not a 150–250-word summary. Must cover four things in order: objectives, methods, results, conclusions. - **Acknowledgements: 300–500 words.** Tone is sincere, optimistic, and rigorous — never casual or jokey. Name the specific people (supervisor, colleagues), the department, and any funding body. - **Keywords: exactly 3–5**, no more and no fewer. Each is a core noun or noun phrase drawn from the research topic. Placed immediately after the abstract. ### 2. Abbreviations and acronyms - **No abbreviations or acronyms in the title or the abstract.** Spell every term out in full there: write "polymerase chain reaction", never "PCR"; "magnetic resonance imaging", never "MRI". - In body text, define each abbreviation at its first use — full term followed by the abbreviation in parentheses — then use the abbreviation thereafter. Standard SI units are exempt. - Include a dedicated **List of Abbreviations** in the preliminary pages (front matter). ### 3. Table and figure numbering - Number **per chapter** as `Chapter.Sequence` in Arabic numerals. The first table in Chapter 3 is **Table 3.1**, the second **Table 3.2**; the first figure in Chapter 5 is **Figure 5.1**. - **Never number globally** as "Table 1, Table 2" or "Figure 1, Figure 2" across the whole document. - Every table and figure must be **referred to in the body text before it appears** (e.g. "as shown in Table 3.1"). - **Tables** get a brief descriptive title and abbreviated column/row headings; non-standard heading abbreviations are explained in a footnote. **Figures** get a legend/caption. - A reproduced or adapted table/figure must **cite its source beneath it** (e.g. "Source: Smith et al. 2019"). - Confine each table/figure to one page; if it must span pages, repeat the title and column headings on each page. ### 4. References and citations - Use **Harvard style (author-date)**. In-text citations are **parenthetical `(Surname Year)`** — never numbered `[1]` and never superscript. - The reference list is ordered **alphabetically by the first author's surname**. - Include **no fewer than 10 references**, spanning journal articles, books, and papers. ### 5. Units of measurement - Use metric units (m, kg, **L** — capital L for litre, never lowercase "l") and Celsius (°C). - Prefer SI concentration units (mmol/L, g/L); conventional units (mg/dL, mg/mL) are acceptable. - Use **one unit convention consistently** for a given analyte — do not switch between mg/dL and g/L for the same compound. ## Worked examples (BEFORE = the base's wrong default → AFTER = conforming) **Abstract length & content.** BEFORE: a tidy 180-word paragraph that just summarizes the topic. AFTER: a 300–500-word abstract whose sentences walk through objectives → methods → results → conclusions in that order. **Abbreviation in the abstract.** BEFORE: "We used RT-PCR to detect HBV in serum." AFTER: "We used reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to detect hepatitis B virus in serum." (No acronym anywhere in the abstract.) **Keyword count.** BEFORE: a comma list of 8 keywords, some full phrases. AFTER: exactly 4 — "coral reef bleaching; ocean acidification; thermal stress; calcification" — placed right after the abstract. **Acknowledgements length/tone.** BEFORE: "Thanks to everyone who helped, you know who you are." AFTER: a 300–500-word passage naming Dr. Patel (supervisor), the lab colleagues, the National Research Council (funding), and family, in a sincere, rigorous tone. **Table numbering.** BEFORE: "Table 1 shows enzyme activity… Table 2 shows protein yield." (Chapter 3). AFTER: "As shown in **Table 3.1**, enzyme activity… **Table 3.2** reports protein yield." Each referenced before it appears; each has a brief title. **Figure numbering.** BEFORE: "Figure 1: survival rates… Figure 2: tumor growth." (Chapter 5). AFTER: "**Figure 5.1** plots survival rates by treatment group… **Figure 5.2** shows tumor growth over time." Each has a legend; each is cited in the text first. **Adapted figure source.** BEFORE: a reproduced metabolic-pathway figure with no attribution. AFTER: the figure numbered **Figure 4.1**, with "Source: adapted from Garcia and Lee (2021)" beneath it and a legend. **In-text citation style.** BEFORE: "Soil microbial diversity declines under monoculture [12]." AFTER: "Soil microbial diversity declines under prolonged monoculture (Okafor 2020)." **Reference list.** BEFORE: 6 sources in numbered order of first mention. AFTER: ≥10 sources ordered alphabetically by first author's surname, each in Harvard author-date form. **Units.** BEFORE: "glucose ranged from 90 mg/dL to 5.0 g/L." AFTER: "glucose ranged from 5.0 to 7.8 mmol/L" — one consistent unit, capital L. ## Edge cases & exceptions - **Standard units in body text** (kg, mL, °C) do **not** need definition on first use, even though other abbreviations do. - **Original vs. adapted** tables/figures: only **reproduced or adapted** items need a source line; your own original data does not. When in doubt about "adapted," cite. - **A single table in a chapter** still uses chapter.sequence: the lone table in Chapter 4 is **Table 4.1**, not "Table 4" or "Table 1". - **Mixed tables and figures in one chapter** keep independent sequences: a chapter can have both Table 3.1 and Figure 3.1 — figures and tables are numbered separately. - **Acronym defined in the body** may still appear in the body, but it must be spelled out at first use; the prohibition is specifically on the **title and abstract**. - **Keyword phrases** count as one keyword each ("ocean acidification" is one of the 3–5, not two). ## Do / Don't - **Do** write the abstract at 300–500 words covering objectives→methods→results→conclusions. **Don't** stop at a 150–250-word teaser. - **Do** spell out every term in the title and abstract. **Don't** let a single acronym (PCR, MRI, HBV) slip into them. - **Do** number as Table/Figure `Chapter.Sequence`. **Don't** number globally (Table 1, Table 2). - **Do** reference each table/figure in the text before it appears. **Don't** drop a table in with no textual call-out. - **Do** cite reproduced/adapted exhibits beneath them. **Don't** paste a borrowed figure with no source. - **Do** cite in-text as `(Surname Year)`. **Don't** use `[1]` or superscript numbers. - **Do** order references alphabetically by first-author surname with ≥10 entries. **Don't** order by citation appearance or list fewer than 10. - **Do** keep one unit convention per analyte with capital **L**. **Don't** mix mg/dL with g/L or use lowercase "l". ## Common mistakes (the base's wrong defaults) - Writing a short 150–250-word abstract because that "reads cleanly". - Using PCR/MRI/HBV in the abstract because acronyms are conventional in science writing generally. - Numbering tables and figures 1, 2, 3 across the whole document. - Forgetting to mention a table/figure in the running text before it appears. - Defaulting to numbered `[n]` or Vancouver-style citations instead of Harvard author-date. - Listing references in order of first appearance instead of alphabetically. - Giving fewer than 10 references for a literature review. - Providing more than 5 (or fewer than 3) keywords. - Mixing unit systems (mg/dL and mmol/L) for the same analyte, or writing "l" for litre. ## Quick checklist - [ ] Abstract 300–500 words, objectives→methods→results→conclusions, zero acronyms. - [ ] Acknowledgements 300–500 words, sincere tone, named people + funder. - [ ] Exactly 3–5 keyword nouns/phrases after the abstract. - [ ] Tables/figures numbered Chapter.Sequence (Table 3.1, Figure 5.1), never global. - [ ] Each table/figure cited in text first; tables titled, figures captioned; sources for adapted. - [ ] In-text citations `(Surname Year)`; reference list alphabetical; ≥10 entries. - [ ] Metric/SI units, capital L, one convention per analyte; List of Abbreviations in front matter.