Types of Scientific Literature

‘Keeping up with the literature’ is a common obsession of successful scientists. That ominous phrase ‘the literature’ generally refers to the published journal and review papers on a particular subject.

1 Journal papers and practical reports

    A journal paper reports the results of original research. As an undergraduate you will be required to write reports on laboratory and fieldwork; these correspond in purpose and style to journal papers. 

2 Literature reviews and essays

         A review paper presents the previously published facts and theories in a particular field but is more than a mere catalogue of previous literature. A good review is a critical summary or synthesis of the current knowledge in that field. It should highlight areas in which further research should be carried out and should stimulate readers to carry out this research. It should point out any deficiencies or inaccuracies in previous research. The author of a review is free to use his own interpretation and opinion, e.g. ‘I believe Brown (1980) is mistaken because ...’. Such interpretations must be supported by sound reasoning (note the word ‘because’) and  normally result from years of experience in the field.

Reference: http://sydney.edu.au/science/biology/learning/generic_skills/Scientific_Writing.pdf