Title

Technical Writing Tips and Traps

Time

1:30 - 3:00pm

Location

1065 Kemper Hall

Abstract

What if you had a Nobel prize-winning idea but could not explain it to anyone? In this age of 140-character tweets and 30-second sound bites, good writing skills are still important – and scarcer and more valuable than ever. This seminar covers some principles of good writing and common pitfalls. Find out – ahead of time – what your professors are expecting when you turn in a written assignment.

Link to Technical Writing Handout with Appendices: https://itspubs.ucdavis.edu/files/general/pdf/2013-04-15_big-technical-writing-handout-w-appendices.pdf

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Patricia Mokhtarian is Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Graduate Adviser of the Transportation Technology & Policy Graduate Group, and Associate Director for Education at the Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.  She received her B.A. in Mathematics from Florida State University and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering/Management Science from Northwestern University.  Prof. Mokhtarian joined UC Davis in 1990, after a post-doc at UC Irvine, six years with the Southern California Association of Governments in Los Angeles, and two years in con­sulting.  Her research interests include travel behavior modeling; impacts of telecommunications on transportation, land use, and the environment; transportation/land-use interac­tions; responses to congestion/disruption; and attitudes toward travel.  She is an emeritus member of the Transportation Research Board committees on Telecom­muni­ca­tions and Travel Behavior (founding chair) and Traveler Behavior and Values, and has served on several National Academies study committees, most recently including the Committee on Development Patterns, Vehicle-miles Traveled, and Energy.  She is an Editor of Transportation, and a member of the Editorial Boards of Transportation Research Part A, Transport Policy, Transportation Letters, European Journal of Transport and Infra­structure Research, and International Journal of Sustainable Transportation.  She has published more than 120 refereed papers in international journals, and numerous other reports and articles.

Dr. Patricia Mokhtarian is Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Chair and Graduate Adviser of the Transportation Technology & Policy Graduate Group, and Associate Director for Education at the Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.  She received her B.A. in Mathematics from Florida State University and her M.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering/Management Science from Northwestern University.  Prof. Mokhtarian joined UC Davis in 1990, after a post-doc at UC Irvine, six years with the Southern California Association of Governments in Los Angeles, and two years in con¬sulting.  Her research interests include travel behavior modeling; travel demand forecasting; impacts of telecommunications on transportation, land use, and the environment; transportation-land-use interac¬tions; and responses to congestion/disruption.  She is an emeritus member of the Transportation Research Board committees on Telecom¬muni¬ca¬tions and Travel Behavior (founding chair) and Traveler Behavior and Values, and has served on several National Academies study committees, most recently including the Committee on Development Patterns, Vehicle-miles Traveled, and Energy.  She is an Editor of Transportation, and a member of the Editorial Boards of the Transportation Research Part A, Transport Policy, Transportation Letters, and International Journal of Sustainable Transportation journals.  She has published more than 100 refereed papers in international journals, and numerous other reports and articles.