Academic writing, a necessary vehicle for transmitting knowledge, manifests itself in an extraordinary range of formats, from the expansive landscape of the Humanities to the complex core of the Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Thus, this wide area of scientific communication follows various methodologies, stylistic variations, and organizational ergonomics, which differ from one discipline to another to fulfill its special demands and purposes. However, despite the surface differences, there is a shared basis of principles—a resolution that leads to comprehension, innovation, and a contribution to a broader dialogue with society outside academic circles. This essay is dedicated to exploring key aspects shared and distinctive to academic writing in the Humanities and STEM, whereby learning how both approaches not only grasp subjects in-depth but also focus on a broader sphere of knowledge. In doing so, we investigate these dimensions, discovering that they are interrelated, and they both try to define the complex world we live in in different and complementary ways.
Similarities
One key similarity lies in the research foundation: a thorough peer-review process. Both the Humanities and the STEM fields rely on the fact-checking of fellow researchers to guarantee the quality of scholarship and its validity. This is an essential part of research that allows us to remove the errors from the approach, argument, and evidence the author brings, gradually boosting the scientific knowledge. Additionally, Academic writing across different fields also has one common angle: the organization of papers. Both disciplines usually have a formal format, and the chosen authorship may differ based on the research question and the target audience. Another similarity across disciplines is the structure of academic writing. Both fields often utilize a formal structure, though the specific format may vary depending on the research question and intended audience.
Differences
Organizational Structure
STEM fields frequently employ the IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion) structure for research articles, ensuring clarity and a logical flow of information that facilitates the replication of experiments and builds upon existing knowledge (Perkovic et al., 2023). The structure might be more flexible in the Humanities, but strong organization remains paramount for guiding the reader through the analysis (Perkovic et al., 2023).
Methodologies
In the field of Humanities, the role of qualitative approaches, which allow for the detailed examination of such vital areas as human experience, cultural dynamics, and historical narratives, is hard to ignore. These methods deal with problems like critical thinking, interpretive methodologies, and theoretical exploration employed to discern the intricacies of the psyche, behavior, and social development. “Fantastic Fungi,” Directed by Louie Schwartzberg (2019), gives a visual illustration of the philosophical and cultural aspects of fungi in the real world that actually question our wisdom and gives insights into how we understand life and coexistence. The core of the humanities research lies in an analysis of the write-ups of the human and social aspects employing an interpretative method. It would help define the deep existing human and social patterns that comprise the whole global essence.
However, STEM disciplines use quantitative research techniques as their main supporting methodologies. These are closely associated with reports of empirical facts, statistical analysis, observation, and scientific methods. This principle is well demonstrated by the studies that investigate the utilization of mushrooms, as they are mentioned in “Fantastic Fungi”, where there is a focus on quantifiable outcomes, high-quality research, and establishing the validity of theoretical propositions. It follows the STEM approach, which emphasizes the STEM field’s objective to progress scientific understanding through measurable, reliable investigation.
Representing these different approaches helps us understand that humanities and STEM education supplement each other and always offer unique approaches to understanding the world. Humanities enrich our perceptions of human nature through their interpretive function. At the same time, STEM presents a dynamic blend of fact and matters, eventually resulting in tech and scientific advancements. Here, these approaches show their variety and ability to reinforce each other’s essential principles, making them complementary, no matter how different the disciplines.
Style and voice
The disparity in the field of Humanities in terms of tone and voice regarding EM areas is distinctive, as are their contrasting ends and methods. Humanities research is the ideal approach for an in-depth study of theories, cultural criticisms, and philosophical concepts, with narrative and analytical styles as key features. It is also demonstrated by Graff and Birkenstein (2018) that textual work is predominantly placed in the context of contemporary academic discussions, thus proving that dialogical engagement is preferred.
In STEM disciplines, a more precise, objective tone is used, in which the passive voice is frequently employed to emphasize research findings and have them as the main element, removing the personality and self-expression of the researcher. This stylistic approach reinforces the STM culture of clarity, brevity, and the pure showing of data and the results, in this case, in a simple way that does not contain the author’s opinions. The essence of Joel D. Benson’s (2017) “Science and the Humanities” argument is drawn in that it shows how the combination would excellently make clear communications of technical and scientific information so that the research results rather than the researcher would be the main focus. To a great extent, such a difference in the presentation of information testifies to the fundamental differences in the construction of knowledge, its demonstration, and interpretation across the disciplines that concern the object of scientific inquiry.
Benefits of Research/Writing in Different Fields
Research in STEM and Humanities appeared to be two distinct threads of human knowledge. However, these two fields of knowledge weave together to become a beautiful piece of a tapestry. STEM interacts with the physical, revealing the universe with tools of examination and investigation. “Fantastic Fungi” exemplifies this. Scientists are interested in the mushroom’s action in the fight against cancer using numeric research methods for efficacy evaluation (Louie, 2019). Such understanding can improve human health.
However, the Humanities strive to master the abstract and deal with human experience and social settings. In addition to that, “Fantastic Fungi” sheds more light on the subject and poses questions like whether mushrooms can be a gateway to better understanding the universe and whether they shed some light on why we exist. These qualitative aspects remain with us forever and come in handy in understanding the world beyond the phenomenal.
Joel (2017) asserts that unlike the sciences, which are tasked with subjective analysis, the humanities are responsible for underscoring ethics and context in scientific efforts. Ultimately, STEM and Humanities are complementary because they build a fuller picture of who we are, why the universe works, and our place in it (Joel, 2017). This brings knowledge together melodiously, with effects that can be felt at various levels and touch you on the deeper layers like a good song would.
In conclusion, despite many common features in academic styles of Humanities and STEM fields, mainly the peer review approach and the structured structure, their styles, the voice, and the objectives differ too. The key things in STEM writing are objectivity and precision, while Humanity requires a more subjective and interpretive approach. Gradually, each method will do its part to broaden our horizons using the process of scientific experimentation as the first and then our personal experiences as the second.
References
Birkenstein, C., & Graff, G. (2018). They say/I say: The moves that matter in academic writing. WW Norton & Company.
Joel, D. B. (2017). STEM and the Humanities. Open Access Library Journal, 4(05), 1–5.
Louie, S. (2019). Fantastic Fungi. Documentary. https://www.netflix.com/ke/title/81183477
Perković Paloš, A., Mijatović, A., Buljan, I., Garcia-Costa, D., Álvarez-García, E., Grimaldo, F., & Marušić, A. (2023). Linguistic and semantic characteristics of articles and peer review reports in Social Sciences and Medical and Health Sciences: analysis of articles published in Open Research Central. Scientometrics, 128(8), 4707-4729.
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