Junior Academy Abstract Guidelines

The abstract is a brief summary of your project.  The length is generally one to two paragraphs.  All of the information in your abstract must be found somewhere else in your paper.  So, even though this is the first section of your paper, you will probably write it last.  Like the title, the abstract should be short and sweet.  Your abstracts must have less than 200 words so choose your words carefully.

A proper abstract contains three components: what was done and why, what was found out (i.e., result), and what it means.

 
  Writing a good abstract will take practice.  Find some examples of abstracts in journals or books to see how others have written them.  Ask people to read your abstract and suggest improvements.
Specific formatting requirements for  abstracts:
  1. Text of abstracts must be 200 words or less.
  2. Use the same font style and size (10 or 12 point) throughout; do not use bold. Italics should be used only for scientific name of organisms and other expressions that conventionally appear in italic type.
  3. The address should contain the name of the author‘s institution, the name of the city,  state  and zip code.
  4. In multi-authored abstracts, the name of the presenter of the paper should be followed by an asterisk.
  5. Use standard, well-known abbreviations when the use of abbreviations is necessary. When using abbreviations for chemical compounds, spell out the name in full at the first mention and follow with the abbreviation in parenthesis; use the abbreviation thereafter. Do not abbreviate compounds in the title of the abstract.
  6. Scientific names of organisms should be in italics (not underlined). Spell out generic names the first time they are used; afterwards these names should be abbreviated to the first letter (plus a period) when followed by a specific epithet unless confusion results with another abbreviated generic name in the abstract
SAMPLE ABSTRACT: 
[from KAS Annual meeting abstracts 2020]
The Collecting Curve: Vascular Flora of the Central Kentucky Wildlife Management Area. 
Nick Koenig and Melanie Link-Perez, Eastern Kentucky University

The Miller Welch Central Kentucky Wildlife Management Area in Madison County, Kentucky, is 747.5 ha (1847 acres) with roughly 60% open land and 40% forested with scattered streams and ponds (Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources). The Wildlife Management Area is a popular resource for shooting sports, hunting, hiking, bird dog training, and many other outdoor recreational activities. A vascular flora was conducted during 2019 and 2020 to document the plant biodiversity in the area. After being identified, mounted, databased, and imaged, all specimens will be deposited in the Ronald L. Jones Herbarium at Eastern Kentucky University. Much of the collecting in the 2020 year were targeted searches when compared to the 2019 collecting trips. In total, there were over 800 collections made during the two growing seasons and identification is still underway to generate a final species list and eventual publication of results.