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Author: Martin Guzi (2023)
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The Use of Academic Research Databases

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Source: Foltýnek, T., Mach, J., Kozmanová, I., Holeček, T., Vorlová, H., Henek Dlabolová, D.,
Vorel, F., Válová, A., Tesaříková Čermáková, K., & Gojná, Z. (2021). How to Avoid Plagiarism:
Student Handbook. Karolinum - Charles University Press.
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Academic text
̶It presents findings to other researchers.
̶It is not emotional.
̶Nevertheless, it contains a story.
̶The story describes your exploration of the topic, how you collected data or conducted
experiments, and what your conclusions are.
̶The story also facilitates the reading of your text, and perhaps will motivate the reader to cite
your work or to follow up with his or her own research.
̶In the research part, it summarizes what we know about the topic so far.
̶It formulates questions and hypotheses.
̶It describes your own findings and compares them to existing knowledge.
̶It explains the methodology used, the collection of data and their analysis.
̶It makes correct and ethical use of the findings and texts by other authors.

Scientific information
at ECON MUNI
https://www.econ.muni.cz/en/library

What the library offers
Databases and subscriptions
Books, e-books, and e-magazines
Data
Magazines & newspapers
Help with academic writing
Study rooms
www.econ.muni.cz/library

Connection from Home (VPN)
Students might connect to the university network from home, from abroad, or from another
university. Computer connected to VPN (Virtual Private Network) will behave in the exact way as it
does when connected directly in the university network.
Recommended for frequent and intensive work with the resources.
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Electronic Information Sources for Science, Research and Teaching are only available to employees
and students of Masaryk University and solely for their academic needs.
https://it.muni.cz/en/services/vpn

Masaryk University library catalogue
katalog.muni.cz
Search for (English) books in MUNI library
- Some books are available via e-loan service (scanned book version)
You can ask the library to buy or scan a book on demand

Search all subscribed journals and books
discovery.muni.cz
-Search all subscribed journals, books,
-Search graduate theses and dissertations
-Search university books & acquired e-books
-Export quotations to different citation formats/managers
-Discovery search engine is similar to Google Scholar.

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Electronic Information Sources (portal EIZ)
̶https://ezdroje.muni.cz/index.php?lang=en
̶
̶List of available journals and books
̶Browse sources by discipline
̶List of resources at the Faculty
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̶
̶
̶
̶

The most important publishers
Cambridge UP
Oxford UP
Springer
Taylor & Francis
John Wiley & sons
ProQuest
SAGE
De Gruyter
EBSCO
Elsevier
MDPI (journal Sustainability)
https://beallslist.net/
Publishers with bad reputation

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Data sources
OECD iLibrary
̶Collection of OECD electronic resources
̶International statistical indicators
̶And some e-books & journals

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Magazines & Newspapers
The Economist Historical Archive
̶All content from 1843–2020
̶Key economic indicators available
̶Country & industry reports, supplements, and surveys
PressReader
̶Newspapers and magazines from around the world
̶120 countries, 60 languages
̶3 months archive for the most titles

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Literature study tips
̶Notice all interesting items
̶Read abstract and research result
̶Write down 2–3 sentences describing the paper
̶Use a citation manager like Citace PRO, Zotero
̶
̶Be disciplined
̶Evaluate the quality of publications (journals)
̶Stop reading when you're supposed to start writing
̶Cite all the ideas taken

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Author: Martin Guzi (2023)
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Effective Use Of Tables And Figures
In Academic Writing

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Figures and tables
̶powerful communication tools
̶increase the interest of readers in your work
̶efficiently present large amounts of complex information
̶reduce the length of the text
̶clear and well-organized visual elements speed up the comprehension and interpretation of the
study’s findings
̶…but poorly crafted tables and figures can confuse readers

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Best practices
̶Ensure that all your figures and tables are self-explanatory
̶Reader can understand tables and figures before reading the entire text
̶Table and figure titles should describe the contents of the table/figure and should ideally draw
the reader’s attention
̶Assign the numbers in the order in which each figure/table is first mentioned in the text
̶Refer to all figures and tables in the text, but do not repeat details
YES: “Treatment was effective in 24% of the cases, as shown in Figure 1”
NO:   “As Table 2 shows, 32% of the subjects chose Option 1, 12% chose Option 2, 10% chose Option
3, and 46% chose Option 4”
̶Ensure consistency between details in a table and in the text
̶abbreviations, group names, terminology
̶Write all values to the same number of decimal places

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Well-designed figures
̶Use numbering of graphs and tables according to chapters (e.g. Figure 2.3)
̶Label all elements in the figure
̶Specify units wherever quantities are listed
̶Use a note at the bottom to explain the key message of figure (abbreviations)
̶Ensure image clarity: check that labels are legible against the figure background; and ensure that
images are sharp.
̶Always indicate the source (e.g., author, own elaboration, Based on …)
̶Use software for drawing diagrams (Powerpoint, GeoGebra, InkSpace)
̶Save nature - grey colour or raster instead of black.
̶Do not use pie charts and 3D graphs.
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http://osiprodweuodcspstoa01.blob.core.windows.net/sk-sk/media/6f444128-f10a-41fd-b1d4-0b2ae46f5c77
.gif Príklad dvojrozmerného a priestorového rozloženého koláčového grafu

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Table or Figure, which is easier to understand?
•Figures make your data easy to understand
•Figures quickly illustrate key trends and the orders of magnitude
•Choose an appropriate figure to make your data visual
•There is no one size fits all approach to visualize your data
Table Vs chart: which is easier to understand?

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https://www.powerusersoftwares.com/post/infographics-how-to-choose-the-best-chart-type-to-visualize
-your-data
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Infographics: how to choose the right chart to visualize your data

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http://www.deepdive.co.za/index.php/item/18-choosing-the-right-chart-type.html
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Chart Selector Guide

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Definujte zápatí - název prezentace / pracoviště
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Definujte zápatí - název prezentace / pracoviště
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The color and grayscale version of the same figures:

Popis grafu pod grafov



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Well-designed tables
̶Present information in clear and appropriate categories and title columns/rows accurately and
descriptively
̶Consider the number of decimal places for numbers.
̶Ensure sufficient spacing between columns and rows
̶Limit the use of borders or lines in a table
̶Use simple tables, single lines, avoid shading or multiple line types
̶Do not use vertical borders, do not use borders around every cell
̶Always cite the source of information
̶Use table “Note” to explain general information, why a cell is blank, abbreviations, or specific
note indicated by superscript
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Source: APA Manual 7th

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Example of tables
from academic papers

Dustmann2005
Glitz2012

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Example of tables
from master theses

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Referring to Tables and Figures in the Text
̶In the text, refer to every table and figure by its number
̶Do not write “the table above” (or “below”)
̶Do not write “the figure on page 32.”
̶As shown in Table 1.1, the demographic characteristics . . .
̶Figure 2.1 shows the event-related potentials . . .
̶. . . of the results of the testing (see Table 3.3).
̶. . . of the comparisons (see Figures 4.2 and 4.3).
̶Place a table or figure at the beginning/end of a page rather than in the middle
̶Tables and figures that are not essential to the text may be placed in appendices
̶“see Table A1 in the Appendix”
̶

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Definujte zápatí - název prezentace / pracoviště
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Some bad examples

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Zly priklad, tabulky s presnostou na 9 desati. Miest

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https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CHK0GWwUAAAffdU.png
Bad example


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3D graphs are seductive, confusing and illegible
Textové pole: What is the problem? The third dimension is useless because the data has no third
dimension. The foreground slices appear larger compared to the background slices. It's called
perspective and it distorts the perception of proportions. So what's the purpose of those colored
bands in the back? It would have been enough to make a simple horizontal bar chart, in which the
cities would be nicely sorted according to the occurrence of covid-19.
What is the problem? The third dimension is useless because the data has no third dimension. The
foreground slices appear larger compared to the background slices. It's called perspective and it
distorts the perception of proportions. So what's the purpose of those colored bands in the back?
It would have been enough to make a simple horizontal bar chart, in which the cities would be
nicely sorted according to the occurrence of covid-19.
Occurrence of Covid-19 in Slovak districts

Takle ne!

3D grafy su naozaj zbytocne

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How to present your thesis research
You are presenting to a committee that evaluates your thesis. There is little time to explain the
details, instead you should focus on the essentials such as
̶What is the aim of the research (research question/ hypothesis)?
̶What sources have you drawn on
̶What is your approach to answer your research question
̶What problems you encountered in the process
̶What did you find
̶What are the conclusions of the thesis
̶What is the added value of the work or what is your contribution
̶Avoid describing the structure of the work or focusing on general details
̶Prepare slides for the questions in the review