How would you go about writing an abstract for a Math paper? I know that an abstract is supposed to "advertise" the paper. However, I do not really know how to get started. Could someone tell me how they go about writing an abstract?



How to write an abstract for a math paper?
1. Avoid notation if possible. Notation makes it really hard to search electronically.
2. Put the subject in context, e.g., "In a recent paper, T. Lehrer introduced the concept of left-bifurcled rectangles. He conjectured no such rectangles exist when the number of bifurcles $n$ is odd."
3. State your results, in non-technical language, if possible. "In this paper we show the existence of left-bifurcled rectangles for all prime $n$."
4. Mention a technique, if there is a new one: "Our methods involve analytic and algebraic topology of locally euclidean metrizations of infinitely differentiable Riemannian manifolds".
5. Never, ever, ever, cite papers in the bibliography by giving citation numbers; the abstract is an independent entity that should stand on its own.


