Lab Reports - Collier's Classroom
Lab Reports
Semantics
No personal pronouns (i.e. I, me, us, you, our, etc.)
Not: I massed the sample.
Instead: The sample was massed.
Rationale: The focus of the paper is the experiment, not you.
Less is more.
Do not repeat thoughts.
Be concise.
This is not creative writing, but scientific writing.
Be direct with thoughts and ideas.
More Semantics
12 Point Font
1 Inch Margins
Everything is double spaced, except the abstract (single spaced)
Times New Roman or similar font
Individually completed (unless specified)
Well written papers generally are 4-7 pages
Other Things
Avoid get/got
Do not say “Thank you”
Transition between paragraphs
No new ideas in conclusion paragraph
Grammar is vital
Learn to use commas
Proofread
Parts of the Paper
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Procedure
Results
Discussion
Title of paper and each section title should be in bold font.
Header
Page One: In top right corner, as a header, have your full name, course, and date single spaced.
Karen Collier
Honor Chemistry
September 29, 2014
Other Pages: First Initial and page number in top right corner.
K. Collier 2
Title
Should explain the purpose of the experiment.
Okay to be creative, but not so abstract no one will understand.
The Sticky Truth: The Percent of Sugar in Bubble
Gum
The Heat is On: The Effect of Temperature of
Heart Rate after Exercise in High School Students
As a last resort, if you cannot think of anything else, restate the name of the experiment.
Abstract
A single paragraph that provides enough incite into the paper to have the reader determine if they wish to read it.
Scientific Method in a concise statement.
Observation: What is the problem?
Hypothesis: What is the expected outcome?
Procedure: One to two sentence to have reader understand the premise of experiment.
Result: Raw information.
Tobacco plants grew at faster rates with fertilizer.
Conclusion: One or two sentences of what the results mean and was the hypothesis supported.
Introduction
Has nothing really to do with the experiment.
Provides reader with background information needed to understand the science behind the experiment.
Depending on writing style, introduction is usually about 1 to 2 pages.
It is the science behind the experiment.
Explain the functions of the circulatory system.
What is molar mass, and how is calculated?
Do not copy the textbook or have choppy sentences.
Procedure
Use complete sentences in paragraph form.
Do not use I, we, us, etc.
Explain how to exactly replicate the experiment, but do not say Step 1.
Be care of being redundant. If a procedure is completed multiple times:
In trial two, the baking soda is replaced with corn starch, and the previous procedure is repeated.
Do not include any data or results in this section.
Results
Short paragraph that highlights what you want the reader to focus on: maximum values, minimum values, trends, averages, and outliers.
Do not explain why here; that is discussion.
Graphs
Use Excel or similar computer program.
Graphs are included after the discussion and labeled Figure 1, Figure 2, and referred to in the results paragraph.
Title: explains the graph.
Effect of Temperature on Mood in Middle School
Students
Label Axis and Use Units
Generally, use a scatter plot for trends. Bar graphs are for comparisons.
Do not use both a data table and a graph. If you can graph it, always go with the graph.
Discussion
Why did you do this experiment?
Explain what your result imply.
Was your hypothesis correct?
If not, what do you think the answer was?
Errors and how to improve or eliminate those.
Improvements or modifications of interest that could be done to the experiment.
How does this relate to the real world?
Make a connection with the experiment to some aspect outside the classroom.
Conclusion Paragraph: Sum up the entire paper/experiment in a paragraph.
Do not introduce new ideas in last paragraph.
