Before researchers start work on a new topic, they need to look at the past work done in the same field. Of course, they cannot read all the work that has been published, so they make do with title scanning, a routine activity that involves checking lists of titles and deciding whether the content of the paper as a whole is important for their research. Thus, the title acts as a hook, and researchers often decide to read a paper (or at least move on to read the abstract) on the sole basis of the information provided in it.

Although the final project you write for your bachelor’s or master’s degree has no need to hook an audience – after all, you probably have a captive audience of only a handful of people (your tutor, supervisor and examiners) – you should still respect the function of the title. The title of your work will immediately reveal to your supervisor whether you have understood the demands and conventions of your chosen discipline. A good title attracts readers to your text, informs them of the content of your work and shows them that you are part of their community.

According to Viviana Soler, science titles come in four different types: nominal, compound, questions and full-sentence (Soler, 2007). The following subsections focus on the three types that are used most in natural sciences.