Formal Lab
General Comments
Missing the Point?
• Be clear on the purpose of your experiment.
• Make sure the purpose is addressed in every part
of your report.
Procedure
• Amount of detail – the Goldilocks amount
• what details are necessary to understanding the method
behind your experiment?
Six different test-tubes were filled up with different water to
sucrose concentrations, ranging from 0 mol.L-1 to 1.0 mol.L-1. Then
six pieces of potato were cut, blotted, and weighed to ensure they
were all the same mass. Then each piece was placed in one of the
six test-tubes. They were left to sit in the solutions over the weekend,
[a period of three days]. Once the weekend was over, the pieces
were removed from the test-tubes, blotted and weighed again in order
to see the change in mass.
Representing Results
• Table headings
• above table
• descriptive title is included
• Proper units included with all numerical values
Table 1. Percent change in mass of potatoes soaked in
sucrose solutions of different concentrations.
Test
Tube #
Solute
Concentration
(mol/L)
Initial Mass
I (g)
Final Mass
F (g)
Change in
Mass (F-I) (g)
Percent
Change in
Mass ((F-l)/I)
x100
1
0
1.1
1.3
0.2
18.18%
2
0.2
1.1
1.2
0.1
9.09%
3
0.4
1.1
0.9
-0.2
-18.18%
4
0.6
1.1
0.7
-0.4
-36.36%
5
0.8
1.1
0.7
-0.4
-36.36%
6
1.0
1.1
0.7
-0.4
-36.36%
• Figure captions
• below figure (graph, chart, picture)
• write about visible trends and important values
• Unnecessary clutter on figures
• title not required, because your figure caption should address this
• legends that aren’t needed
15.625
0
Percent change in mass (%)
0
0.25
0.5
0.75
1
-15.625
-31.25
-46.875
-62.5
Sucrose Concentration (mol/L)
Figure 1: In a lab done using potatoes drenched in a sucrose solution, the percent
change in mass of the potatoes shows a negative linear correlation to the sucrose
concentration of the prepared solutions. As sucrose concentration increases, percent
change in mass decreases. The isotonic point is equal to about 0.1765 mol/L.
Error Analysis
Worth mentioning
(but not discussing)
• systematic errors
• measurement
• observation
• environmental fluctuations
Worth discussing
• mistakes
• flaws or limitations in
experimental design
Citations
• Always in two places
• APA formatting
• Absolutely no direct quotes!!
Formal Style
• Do not use abbreviations
• “couldn’t”, “should’ve”, “i.e.”
• Past passive voice
• NO PERSONAL PRONOUNS
Overall Presentation
• Think about the audience:
• keep the language simple!
• don’t split up tables/figures over multiple pages
• Proof-read twice before submitting.