Writing does matter!.... Art of writing a scientific paper

Type "how to write a scientific paper" into any of the search engines and you will be drowned in a deluge of articles from the cyberspace telling you how to and how not to do it!There are any number of books offering similar guidelines.So why another epistle of the same genre?Well, this is an attempt at summarizing several of such commentaries gathered while trawling the web and the print media.While the specific recommendations vary, the basic theme remains the same in all of them."Publish or perish" has become the survival mantra of the scientific world -whether it is for advancement of careers or obtaining funds for sustaining research or other academic pursuits.This has resulted in a spate of articles of all hues crowding the mail boxes of publishers.Some would be of great scientific value, many are downright worthless in quality and content, while the majority are of average caliber.Good writing style and attention to detail can help salvage many lackluster papers, otherwise destined for the waste basket.Most of the scientific writings are often unpalatable for the average reader and are only read by people who have a specific interest in them.Further, writing a journal article could be a Herculean task for someone whose first language is not English.Many medical journals are crammed with lengthy, unclear prose which is likely to baffle the readers, even those familiar with the subject.The better a paper is written, the more readers it will attract and more citations it will receive.This is where the right style matters!