phrases - Should I use present or past tense when referring to a (scientific) paper?





What (grammatical) tense to use when doing reference in a paper?



In the two examples below, which tense is preferred?


"Smith (2001) noted that ..." or
"Smith (2001) notes that ..."


"The paper established ..." or
"The paper establishes ..."


If both forms are equally valid, is it customary to use both forms within a text, or should I stick to one form?




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