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Writing A Lab Report

The document provides guidelines for writing a formal lab report, including sections for the title, abstract, introduction, materials, methods, results, discussion, conclusion, and references. The abstract should summarize the purpose, methods, results, and conclusion of the report in 200-250 words. The introduction defines the subject and purpose of the study, while the materials and methods sections list any equipment or reagents used and describe the procedures. The results section summarizes and presents the data in figures and tables with descriptions, and the discussion interprets the results in relation to previous research and the original hypothesis. Finally, the conclusion stresses the importance of the findings and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

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Taya Lewendon
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76 views2 pages

Writing A Lab Report

The document provides guidelines for writing a formal lab report, including sections for the title, abstract, introduction, materials, methods, results, discussion, conclusion, and references. The abstract should summarize the purpose, methods, results, and conclusion of the report in 200-250 words. The introduction defines the subject and purpose of the study, while the materials and methods sections list any equipment or reagents used and describe the procedures. The results section summarizes and presents the data in figures and tables with descriptions, and the discussion interprets the results in relation to previous research and the original hypothesis. Finally, the conclusion stresses the importance of the findings and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

Uploaded by

Taya Lewendon
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Writing a Formal Lab Report

TITLE …on cover page

Capitalize first and important words. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the, etc), prepositions or
conjunctions. No period at the end. (A preposition links a noun with the rest of the sentence)

On the cover page you must also include

Name: X

Date: X

In partial fulfillment of the course: X

For: Instructor’s name

ABSTRACT

Summary of report …written after report is done. 200 – 250 words.


It should answer the flowing questions: (Past tense, indirect speech).

a. What was it about?


b. How did you do it?
c. What were the results?
d. Conclusion …one sentence may be enough. (Did it answer your hypothesis if there was one?)

Font size: one font size smaller than the body.


Spacing: Single space
Columns: Must be JUSTIFIED.

INTRODUCTION

1. Defines subject of report.


2. Outlines scientific purpose(s) or objective(s).
3. Should answer these questions:
a. Why was this study done?
b. What knowledge already exists about this subject?
c. What is the specific purpose of the study?

MATERIALS

List reagents, apparati, equipment, etc, used. This could be your phone (specific make and model) if you
take pictures, or a ruler or other device used for measurements.

METHOD(S):

How did you use the materials? Describe using past tense.
RESULTS

Should summarize the data from the experiments. Must include a legend explaining any symbols,
abbreviations, etc.

Figure legends (descriptions of what is in the figure) should appear below the figures (figures can be
pictures, graphs, charts, diagrams, etc.). If figures have more than one panel, each panel should be
labeled with a letter (A, B, C, etc.) and descriptions for each can be in the legend below. Figures should
be numbered consecutively (Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3, etc.)

Table descriptions should appear above the tables.

Figures and tables …numbered separately and consecutively, should be referred to in the results section
text by number; e.g. Figure 1 shows…? As Table 1 indicates…Concentrate on general trends and
differences, not trivial details. Avoid discussing or over-analyzing the results – simply present what the
results are. The discussion is for further “discussing”. Do not simply put your figures and figure legends
here without any description. You need to write in sentence form what is shown in the figures in the body
of the results section, and refer to the figures as described above.

DISCUSSION

Not a restatement of results. Emphasize interpretation of data and relate them to existing theory and
knowledge. Here is where you would refer to prior similar studies and compare to their results, for
example. Should explain the logic that allows you to accept or reject your original hypothesis if you had
one (depends on the type of lab report). Suggestions for future experiments to gain greater understanding
based on synthesis of your results with those of others.

CONCLUSION

Stress the importance of the thesis statement or discovery made. It should give the report a sense of
completeness and finally leave a lasting impression on the reader.

REFERENCES

List all articles, books, or websites cited in this report. The places where you cite the article, book, or
website in your report should be indicated by the last name of the author and date of publication. For
example: (Smith et al., 2015).

The Reference list should be alphabetized by last names of authors, and I would like you to follow the
current APA guidelines (APA 7) for citations. Our Burman University Librarian Ms. Shiela Clarke will
present on APA style, and I have provided a simplified libguide for you to follow also on D2L.

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