BIO 100 Concepts of Biology
LAB REPORT GUIDELINES & CHECKLIST
NAME _______________
(Attach copy of this checklist to FRONT of your lab report for grading purposes.)
Title page (1 pt)
__ • checklist attached
__ • descriptive title of experiment
__ • student name
__ • lab section number & instructor’s name
__ • date of lab
I. Introduction (3 pts)
__ • provides background information on biological topic being investigated, cites sources properly (author, year) [1]
__ • clearly identifies hypothesis(-es) & prediction(s) based on hypothesis [1]
__ • gives clear rationale for making prediction(s) [1]
II. Materials & Methods (2.5 pts)
__ • gives concise summary of methodology in narrative form, NOT as a list or as instructions,
and cites sources for techniques and procedures, including lab handouts [1.5]
__ • explicitly states independent and dependent variables [1]
III. Results (5 pts)
__ • accurately displays data in graphical form as tables, graphs, or photos [1]
__ • summarizes and highlights key points in data [1.5]
__ • refers — by number — to table(s) and figure(s) where specific data can be found [0.5]
Tables and/or Figures.
__ • table and/or figure number [0.5]
__ • descriptive table or figure title and legend [1]
__ • axes or columns labeled, and units clearly identified [0.5]
IV. Discussion (4.5 pts)
__ • restates hypothesis & predictions [0.5]
__
__
__
__
• describes how results support or falsify hypothesis [1]
• speculates on the “why”; provides possible explanations for results [1]
• describes relationship of results to biological topic being studied [1]
• discusses problems or weaknesses with experiment, with ideas for improvement in future experiments [1]
Writing (4 pts)
__ • body text is double-spaced [0.5]
__
__
__
__
__
__
• has proper spelling & grammar [0.5]
• writes in passive voice appropriate for technical reports (omits personal pronouns: I, we, our, etc.) [0.5]
• has organized, logical flow [0.5]
• is accurate [0.5]
• clearly identifies what is speculative vs. what is fact (ideas strongly supported by evidence) [0.5]
• includes reference list of sources in proper citation format [1]
How to cite lab handouts.
Cite a lab handout as a book written by the assigning instructor, unless other authors are identified.
e.g. Wong, E. (2003) Protein Analysis Lab. BIO 100. Western Connecticut State University.
For all other sources, cite using the MLA format (see http://www.citationmachine.net)
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SAMPLE LAB REPORT [Be sure to attach checklist onto front cover page!]
The Influence of Diet on Gold Fish Growth
Alan H. Carmichael
BIO 100 Concepts of Biology
Lab Section 02
Instructor Dr. C. T. Smith
20 September 2011
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I. Introduction
Poor nutrition early in life is known to affect development of human children such that their bones do not grow to
optimal size (Patterson, 1985). Thus, adult body size can be impacted by childhood diet. Tropical fish and goldfish are
often fed a variety of foods, ranging from vitamin-supplemented products tailored for fish to plain bread crumbs. Though
various guidebooks suggest specialized fish foods (Arlen, 2001), there have not been any published studies that indicate
how various diets affect the growth characteristics of aquarium fish.
The experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that diet affects the body size of goldfish. Young goldfish were
fed foods of varying nutrient content, and body size measured as they grow. The prediction was that high-nutrient food
leads to larger goldfish body size, while poor-nutrient food results in smaller body size.
II. Materials and Methods
Eighteen small goldfish (average length: 2 cm +/- 0.2 cm) were obtained from a breeder (PetSmart). Diets 1, 2, 3, 4,
5, and 6 consisted of the following products, respectively: Tropifood Fish Starter (#32A16), Target Goldfish Food
(#693022394), PetSmart Tropical (#TR435-A88), Marine Products (#GD6590), Arnold’s White Bread (#A2479),
Wonder Bread (#B-68WT-28).
The Tropifood, Target, Petsmart, and Marine Products fish foods are vitamin-supplemented products (see appendix 1
for all product labels). The two bread products, Arnold’s and Wonder Bread, contained the lowest amounts of vitamins
and minerals. Three goldfish were assigned to each diet.
Fish were kept in aerated 5-gallon fish tanks at 72°F under constant low light. Each day, 10 g of the respective fish
food was administered to each tank according to the methods described in Arlen (2001). After 12 hours, visible uneaten
food was removed from the tank by suction.
At the end of each 7-day period in a month-long experiment, the length of each fish was measured, and average
length calculated. The independent variable was the type of fish food provided, and the dependent variable was body
length.
III. Results
The hypothesis stated that diet affects the final body size of goldfish. Six different diets were tested, ranging from
specialized tropical fish food to plain bread. Body length for goldfish were measured each week for each diet, and their
sizes averaged for each triplet in the group (Figure 1). The average length of each set of goldfish was plotted against
weeks on the specific diet to illustrate the rate of growth (Figure 2). Overall, fish that were fed commercial fish foods
(Diets 1-4) exhibited the greatest body length increase over the 4-week period, while Diets 5 and 6 (two types of plain
bread) produced the least body length increase.
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Table 1: Average body length of goldfish each week over 1 month period on various diets. Each length
measurement is average from three goldfish. Diets consisted of the following products: Diet 1-Tropifood Fish Starter,
Diet 2-Target Goldfish Food, Diet 3-PetSmart Tropical, Diet 4-Marine Products, Diet 5-Arnold’s White Bread, Diet 6Wonder Bread.
Diet
Starting
average
length (cm)
Week 1
average
length (cm)
Week 2
average
length (cm)
Week 3
average
length (cm)
Week 4
average
length (cm)
Diet 1
2.1
+/- 0.1
Diet 2
2.0
+/- 0.2
Diet 3
1.9
+/- 0.1
Diet 4
2.0
+/- 0.2
Diet 5
2.2
+/- 0.1
Diet 6
2.1
+/- 0.1
2.8
+/- 0.2
2.4
+/- 0.2
2.9
+/- 0.2
2.8
+/- 0.2
2.2
+/- 0.2
2.2
+/- 0.2
3.3
+/- 0.3
3.1
+/- 0.2
3.5
+/- 0.4
3.3
+/- 0.2
2.4
+/- 0.1
2.4
+/- 0.3
3.5
+/- 0.2
3.2
+/- 0.3
3.8
+/- 0.2
3.6
+/- 0.4
2.6
+/- 0.2
2.5
+/- 0.1
3.8
+/- 0.3
3.5
+/- 0.2
4.1
+/- 0.1
3.8
+/- 0.2
2.7
+/- 0.3
2.6
+/- 0.2
Body Length
5
4
3
2
1
St
ar
tin
g
W
ee
k
1
W
ee
k
2
W
ee
k
3
W
ee
k
4
0
Diet 1
Diet 2
Diet 3
Diet 4
Diet 5
Diet 6
Time on Diet
Figure 2: Average body length of goldfish plotted against weeks on diet.
Diet 1-Tropifood Fish Starter; Diet 2-Target Goldfish Food; Diet 3-PetSmart Tropical; Diet 4-Marine Products; Diet 5Arnold’s White Bread; Diet 6-Wonder Bread.
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IV. Discussion
In this experiment, the hypothesis stated that the nutritional quality of foods, when administered early in animal
development, would affect the size of the animal at adulthood. To test this hypothesis, immature goldfish were fed a
variety of diets varying in nutritional quality. Several commercial tropical fish foods, most notably the Tropifood,
PetSmart, and Marine Products items, were high in vitamins and minerals. The Target product had lower amounts of
vitamins and minerals, but was still higher than that found in the two commercial bread products, Arnold’s White Bread
and Wonder Bread.
The data suggested that higher nutrition foods result in longer fish body size after a one-month period (Table 1,
Figure 1). The PetSmart product produced the fastest body length increase (115% after 4 weeks), followed closely by the
Tropifood and Marine Products diets (about 81% after 4 weeks). As predicted, the Target product produced a lower
degree of body length increase (75%). The two bread diets produced very low increases in body length (about 23% after 4
weeks).
One concern was whether fish were consuming all the food provided to them. If certain diets were unpalatable, then
fish might be undernourished from inadequate volume of food. This might explain the lack of growth rather than due to
the quality of the food. During the experimental period it was observed, however, that fish consumed nearly all the food
provided them (even the bread diets). No food was observed leftover after feeding, so the concern about food volume was
be discounted.
It was not clear which dietary components in the PetSmart product led to the rapid increase in fish body length. The
nutritional labels for the commercial fish foods indicated only the major nutrients found in these products, and there
seemed to be little difference between them. One ingredient that did stand out in the PetSmart product was the inclusion
of soy meal, a component not found in the other fish foods. Soy meal is a major protein source, but all the fish foods
indicated similar amounts of protein. Therefore, it may be some other trace chemical in the soy meal that affected fish
growth. For example, soy contains phytohormones (plant hormones) that mimic animal growth factors in some cases
(Hebert, et al., 1999). It would be intriguing to test the effect of purified phytohormones on the growth characteristics of
fish.
In conclusion, high-nutrient fish foods can significantly increase the growth rate of goldfish when administered
during early stages in fish development. The possible involvement of plant hormones needs to be further investigated.
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V. References
Arlen, J. (2001) Care & Maintenance of Goldfish. Random House, New York.
Hebert, S., F. Smyth, & H. K. Tomano (1999) J. Plant Physiol. 264:12-18. Effects of Phytosterols on Animal Cell
Cultures.
Patterson, B. (1985) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 410:2856-2863. Long Bone Development in Relation to Early Nutritional
Intervention in Children.
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