Effective Writing Strategies for Engineers and Scientists

Donald C. Woolston, a native of Montana, has been teaching technical writing in the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering since 1981. As an Adjunct Assistant Professor, he holds a joint appointment in the Department of General Engineering and the Pre-Engineering Office. His teaching efforts focus on a senior-level technical communication class for mechanical, industrial, and civil engineering students, but he has also helped teach freshman-level engineering courses and a special seminar on the Strategic Defense Initiative. In addition, he is the faculty advisor to the student organization that publishes the Wisconsin Engineer magazine. He has a special interest in computers, especially their use as a writing tool; he worked for IBM one summer writing manuals. In cooperation with Patricia Robinson and another colleague, he recently completed a 15-program videotape series on technical writing for engineers. Professor Woolston's academic preparation includes a BA in psychology from the University of Montana, a PhD in physiological psychology from Duke University, and three years of postdoctoral training in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Neuro-physiology. His research into neural coding in the somatosensory and gustatory senses led to several publications in neuroscience journals, including the Journal of Neurophysiology. His interest in technical writing evolved from his interest in the communication aspects of neuroscience and his realization that he enjoys writing about research more than he enjoys the research itself. Married with two teenage children, Professor Woolston lives in Madison, Wisconsin, where he enjoys running, tennis, basketball, and other sports that make the long Wisconsin winters more bearable. Patricia A. Robinson is Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of General Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she teaches technical communication courses and directs the department's Technical Communication Certificate program. She also teaches seminars for technical writing practitioners and consults with industry. Professor Robinson is the author of Fundamentals of Technical Writing, and co-author of Writing and Designing Operator Manuals. Professor Robinson did not expect to become a professor of technical communication. She graduated from Oberlin College in 1968 with a BA in Religion and from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1978 with a PhD in Hebrew and Semitic Studies. The market for Hebrew scholars was very soft in 1978, so she decided to draw on her experience as writer, editor, and writing teacher, gained from a variety of pay-the-rent jobs held during and between stints in graduate school. In her spare time she is working toward an MS in Water Resources Management, which allows her to count the time she spends in a fishing boat as fieldwork. Gisela Kutzbach teaches the major technical communication course designed for senior engineering students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For the College of Engineering's Technical Writing Certificate Program, she has developed courses in computer-assisted publishing and in graphical analysis and design using microcomputers. In addition she conducts in-house and on-campus seminars to help engineers and scientists improve their writing skills. Professor Kutzbach was born in Berlin, Germany, where she received her BS from the Free University of Berlin. She holds an MS in meteorology and a PhD in the history of science from the University of Wisconsin. She has published extensively in the history of science, including a book on The Thermal Theory of Cyclones and, most recently, a historical analysis of the use of data graphics. During the past six years she has turned her attention from tracing the history of ideas and the thought patterns of scientists to tracing and improving the patterns and strategies engineers and scientists use to communicate their thoughts and findings. Professor Kutzbach is married and has three children.