This course will involve independent study and writing of a research paper in the format of a journal article in the area of specialization. Organizational and stylistic skills of writing. Referencing a scientific document. Use of figures, graphs and tables to present data.

Student must be enrolled in the PhD in Physics Graduate Program. Student must have carried out a research project that their supervisor deems sufficiently complete to warrant writing a journal-style publication.

This course is an independent study. Watch for announcements by email and on the Brightspace site.

Maureen Reedyk (ext. 3877, e-mail: [email protected])

The last date for withdrawal from this course without academic penalty is January 16, 2026. For other important dates see the Faculty of Graduate Studies' sessional or important dates.

This is a project course

Component
Article Proposal	Due: October 12 2025. Brief introduction to the proposed topic in the form of an abstract. Choose a journal whose submission format you will follow. Download the article template from the journal webpage and replace the abstract section with your abstract. Submit electronically as a .pdf file to course Brightspace site under the 'Assignments' tab. The document containing the abstract you have written will be shared with your supervisor(s) who will be required to approve the topic.
Article Introduction	Due: December 7 2025. Revise the abstract based on comments received after its submission. Add to the document a complete introduction to your article with sufficient literature review. You may include original figures, and graphs. Include citations as needed. Submit electronically as a .pdf file to course Brightspace site under the 'Assignments' tab. Will be shared with supervisor(s) who are encouraged to provide feedback.
First Draft	Due: February 15 2026. A complete first draft of your article in the journal preprint style. Should contain journal-quality figures and tables with proper captions. Submit electronically as a .pdf file to course Brightspace site under the 'Assignments' tab. Will be shared with supervisor(s) who are encouraged to provide feedback via comments/suggestions/revisions for you to incorporate in your final draft.
Final Version	Due: April 12 2026. Submit in the journal preprint format electronically as a .pdf file to course Brightspace site under the 'Assignments' tab. Will be shared with your supervisor(s) who will be required to approve it to obtain a passing grade (SA) for the course.

To develop research, communication, and presentation skills through writing an original scientific article in journal format.

Students are expected to monitor their Brock email and the course Brightspace site.

• You are responsible to submit your work on time. No late work will be accepted.
• All submissions should be a proper word-processed document. Unless specified, you must submit as a .pdf file.
• You may submit components in advance of the deadlines if, for example, you are working towards submitting the paper to a journal expeditiously.
• Each initial submission of a component is to be your work, not a combined effort between you and your supervisor. Your supervisor may provide comments/suggestions/revisions following your submission of a component which you can incorporate in subsequent submissions. For example, if your supervisor provides comments/suggestions/revisions after you have submitted your abstract and introduction you may incorporate them in your first draft.
• The goal is for the final version to be as close as possible to a journal submission-ready article. Submission of the article to the journal is however not a requirement of the course.
• This article can form part of your PhD thesis document.

See the Campus Store for textbook costs, if any.
There are no ancillary fees for this course.

Academic misconduct is a serious offence. The principle of academic integrity, particularly of doing one’s own work, documenting properly (including use of quotation marks, appropriate paraphrasing and referencing/citation), collaborating appropriately, and avoiding misrepresentation, is a core principle in university study. Students should consult “Academic Integrity/Academic Misconduct” section in the Graduate Calendar to view a fuller description of prohibited actions, and the procedures and penalties. The University takes academic misconduct extremely seriously and will follow its strict procedures to the letter in all cases.

A helpful website explains Brock's Academic Integrity Policy. Please consult it, as all students are expected to know and abide by its provisions.

Courses may use phrase-matching software, to verify originality of your submitted work. If you object to uploading your assignments to the phrase matching software for any reason, please notify the instructor to discuss alternative submissions.

Be aware that it is the policy of the Department of Physics that any academic misconduct including (but not limited to) possessing, using or accessing unauthorized material in any form (including online) during final exams or assessments will automatically result in zero grade for the exam. Since most courses require a minimum passing grade on the final exam to complete the course, this will likely lead to a failure in the course.

Unless otherwise specified, the Department of Physics follows the following minimum penalty guidelines for cases of academic misconduct in the Faculty of Mathematics and Science (FMS). Please be aware that the Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, may assign different penalties than those listed here, depending on the details of individual cases. Also note that cheating on exams carries significantly higher penalties.

First offence:

Zero grade on the assignment, additional penalty of 100% of the weight of the assignment to be subtracted from the final grade, mandatory completion of the AZLS Academic Integrity workshop

Second offence:

Zero grade on assignment, additional penalty of 200% of the weight of the assignment to be subtracted from the final grade, 4-month suspension

Third or additional offence:

Zero grade in the course, 1-year suspension, permanent removal from major program.

Cheating on exams:

Zero grade in the course, including for first offenses.

All slides, presentations, handouts, tests, exams, and other course materials created by the instructor in this course are the intellectual property of the instructor. A student who publicly posts or sells an instructor’s work, without the instructor’s express consent, may be charged with misconduct under Brock’s Academic Integrity Policy and/or Code of Conduct, and may also face adverse legal consequences for infringement of intellectual property rights.

In the age of GenAI (e.g., ChatGPT), our expectation of you remains the same as it ever was: original academic work, following the instructions of the assignment determined by the instructor for this course for requirements, expectations, and parameters for completion and submission of your work for grading. Therefore, the use of GenAI tools and GenAI-generated content is not allowed (unless explicitly requested/instructed) as a resource or source for answers and discussion in submitted work. Unauthorized use of GenAI will be treated as an academic misconduct.

You probably won’t find much use of GenAI in this course anyway, even when writing something like a lab report. Why? GenAI doesn’t know what you did in the lab. GenAI may know a lot about the overall idea you were studying, but not how you demonstrated it. In your lab reports, your answers and discussion need to relate to what you did and the data you took.

Please be aware of all the important dates, such as the first/last days of classes, snow days and reading week, as well as the deadline for withdrawal without academic penalty. For the current academic term, this information can be found here.

Unless the instructor announces otherwise, students are expected to attend all lectures, discussion groups, seminars, laboratory periods and examinations of the courses in which they are registered and must submit all assignments in order to pass this course.

The University is committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for all students and will adhere to the Human Rights principles that ensure respect for dignity, individualized accommodation, inclusion and full participation. The University provides a wide range of resources to assist students, as follows:

1. If you require academic accommodation because of a disability or an ongoing health or mental health condition, please contact Student Accessibility Services at [email protected] or 905 688 5550 ext. 3240.
2. Medical Self-Declaration Forms (brief absence up to 72 hours)

   In the case of a short-term medical circumstance, if a student wishes to seek an academic consideration, please use the Medical Self-Declaration Form. The request is to be made in good faith by the student requesting the academic consideration due to a short-term condition that impacts their academic activities (e.g., participation in academic classes, delay in assignments, etc.). The period of this short-term medical condition for academic consideration must fall within a 72-hour (3 day) period. The form must be submitted to the instructor either during your brief absence or if you are too unwell, within 24 hours of the end of your 3 day brief absence.

   Medical Verification Form (extended duration)

   In cases where a student requests academic consideration due to a medical circumstance that exceeds 72 hours (three days) and will impact their academic activities (e.g., participation in academic classes, delay in assignments, etc.), or in the case of a final exam deferral, the medical verification form must be signed by the student and the health professional as per process set out in the Faculty Handbook III:9.4.1.

3. If you are experiencing mental health concerns, contact the Student Wellness and Accessibility Centre. Good2Talk is a service specifically for post-secondary students, available 24/7, 365 days a year, and provides anonymous assistance. Follow the above link or call 1-866-925-5454. For information on wellness, coping and resiliency, visit: Brock University (Mental Health).
4. If you require academic accommodation on religious grounds, you should make a formal, written request to your instructor(s) for alternative dates and/or means of satisfying requirements. Such requests should be made during the first two weeks of any given academic term, or as soon as possible after a need for accommodation is known to exist.
5. If you have been affected by sexual violence, the Human Rights & Equity Office offers support, information, reasonable accommodations, and resources through the Sexual Violence Support & Education Coordinator. For information on sexual violence, visit Brock's Sexual Assault and Harassment Policy or contact the Sexual Violence Support & Response Coordinator at [email protected] or 905 688 5550 ext. 4387.
6. If you have experienced discrimination or harassment on any of the above grounds, including racial, gender or other forms of discrimination, contact the Human Rights and Equity Office at [email protected].

For a full description of academic policies in the Faculty of Mathematics and Science, consult brocku.ca/mathematics-science/