A better word would be "essay". It's simply a written document proposing and explaining some idea. The essay will be read by its reviewers quietly, so the docum

A better word would be "essay". It's simply a written document proposing and explaining some idea. The essay will be read by its reviewers quietly, so the document needs to be clear and self-sufficient in presenting that idea. The essay will be discussed verbally too, but only after the reviewers have a chance to fully read the document and ruminate over it, typically for 30 minutes or more. The verbal discussion can elaborate on points made in the essay but isn't a substitute for them. This means that the quality of the writing needs to be high, and the hope is that high-quality writing facilitates high-quality thinking and presentation of ideas.