Writing Assignment 1
In the realm of research and analysis, understanding the differences between primary research articles and review articles is essential. Primary research articles, also known as empirical research articles, are scientific reports focusing on new research data. They are based within a wider field but must examine a new aspect or niche of research within the established field. Typically, these types of articles are written about a study or experiment the author(s) themselves conducted and will undergo the peer review process before being published. A primary article’s audience is typically fellow experts and most commonly contains the following sections: introduction, methods, results, discussion, and references.
Review articles, on the other hand, are a type of secondary source which summarizes and interprets previously conducted research. Oftentimes, review articles will focus on a specific subject and cite multiple different primary research articles and scholarly sources. Notably, rather than simply describing the research process and results, as occurs in primary research articles, review articles focus more on the analysis and organization of prior research. These types of articles are written in more laymen terms than primary sources and focus on conveying information to scientists and non-experts alike.
Peer review articles and the peer review process can apply to any type of article, primary or secondary, and are imperative in the world of scholarly writing. The scientific peer review process follows the same general guidelines everywhere and takes months or years from start to finish. The process begins when a scientist makes a discovery, writes a report, and then sends in the research report to a scientific journal for publication. Next, the editor of the journal reviews the article to determine if it is something they would want to publish. After passing this first round of review, the peer review process officially starts. The article is sent to peers and experts 3 | B r e w e r for their critical analysis and scrutiny. These reviewers ask the author questions and analyze the content of the research overall before giving the editor their final recommendation. The editor has the final call, despite what the experts say, and it is only after this process that a research article can be published in a scholarly journal.
Differentiation and identification of both primary research and review articles is equally as important as defining each type. To practice this, I identified the given articles: Huntington’s Disease: Mechanisms of Pathogenesis and Therapeutic Strategies and Permanent inactivation of Huntington's disease mutation by personalized allele-specific CRISPR/Cas9. The content and structure of the Huntington’s Disease: Mechanisms of Pathogenesis and Therapeutic Strategies article suggests that it is a review article. Within the introduction, the authors directly state that it is a review of functions related to Huntington’s Disease and the content itself cites multiple studies and strategies rather than looking at one specific new strategy. Thus, the Permanent inactivation of Huntington's disease mutation by personalized allele-specific CRISPR/Cas9 article is a primary research article. It follows the structure of a primary research article that was outlined above and focuses on an original idea that has not previously been studied.
By: Joy Brewer
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