Dyslexia Skills

Scientific Report
Writing

Trudi Wurr
2/5/2015
Contents
Title ......................................................................................................................................................... 2
Abstract or Summary .............................................................................................................................. 3
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 4
Materials and Methods........................................................................................................................... 5
Results ..................................................................................................................................................... 6
Tables, graphs and figures ...................................................................................................................... 7
Discussion.............................................................................................................................................. 10
References ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Acknowledgements............................................................................................................................... 11
Appendices............................................................................................................................................ 11

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Title
The main purpose of the title is to sum up your work in a single phrase or sentence.

 Avoid obvious phrases, like ‘The role of’, ‘Studies of’, ‘An examination of”, ‘An
investigation into’, ‘Research into’, and ‘An experiment on’. Titles with these
words are often too long or not descriptive enough.

‘Tamoxifen inhibits the G1 phase cell cycle progression of malignant human breast
epithelial cells in vitro’.

 This title is effective because it tells the reader where the work was done,
which species was studied, which type of cell was studied and how the
growth was blocked.

 Make it short and informative to catch the reader’s attention.

 Focus on concepts not specifics.

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Abstract or Summary
The main purpose of the abstract is to give a summary of the entire report for quick
reading of your reasons for doing the work, your methods, your findings, and your
conclusions.

According to Day, “the abstract should (a) state the principal objectives and
scope of the investigation, (b) describe the methods employed, (c) summarise
the results, and (d) state the principal conclusions.”

Or consider: context, aim, result, conclusion.

The abstract

 Needs to make sense when read independently of the rest of the report

 Should not include references to authors, tables, figures etc.

 Should not include new information that isn’t in the rest of the report.

 Is written in the past tense in a single paragraph.

 Gives information in the same order as the report.

 Only uses a sentence to describe the methods.

 Is generally around 200-300 words long.

 Should not start with the same sentence as the introduction.

 May be easier to write after you have written the full report.

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Introduction
The main purposes of the introduction are to:

state the research problem clearly,

establish your hypothesis,
provide justification for the work,
state the methods and results briefly, and
state the major conclusions.

The introduction

Starts big, then focuses on the specific question.

 Must include a clear hypothesis, based on current theory, which states what
you expect your experiment to reveal.

 Should include a literature review of what has already been published in

your area. This should start broadly to put your topic into a wider context, then
focus on your specific research problem.

 Ideally gives a good reason for doing the work e.g. having identified a gap
in knowledge. If this is not possible (i.e. non original work for part of a module)
you justify doing your experiments by giving current background information
about your research problem.

 Briefly states what methods were used in a sentence or two.

 Briefly states major conclusions and future implications – they are

discussed in more detail in the discussion section.

 Introduces your study species and explains why it is a good model system.

 Ends by outlining your question, and giving specific aims or predictions.

 Uses the present tense to talk about current problems, past tense for methods
and results and future tense for future implications.

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Materials and Methods

The main purpose of the materials and methods section is to provide an extensive
protocol for your experiment which can be repeated by others.

This section should be chronological and informative, providing:

 details of the experimental design,

 details of the controls used, including their purpose,

 details of the data recording techniques,

 exact quantities and purities of reagents,

 technical specifications of the apparatus,

 specific methods of the sample preparation,

 accurate nomenclature (names and terms)

 precise details of any subjects/samples included in the study, and details of

the sampling protocols including :

details of the study site (if data were collected in the field) – basic
information on location, habitat, weather

details of the study species/system – discuss only in light of its relevance

to your study.

 End by detailing your statistical analysis include sample size information, stats
package used, including the reason for their choice.

Additionally:

 if there are a lot of specifications in your methods section, it is sometimes

better to present them in a table.

 explain any assumptions that have been made in the experiments, and
give details of the units of measurement.

 it is unlikely that the methods you are using are new; therefore,
references should be cited for your techniques.

 include subheadings for the different techniques used in your work, such
as ‘Western blotting for SHP-1 in COS-7 cells’. Try to match the headings
in your methods section with those in your results section.

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Results

The main purpose of the results section is to present your data in a manner that is
easy to read and interpret.

 Present results in the same order as set out in the intro and methods,
using the same wording/ subheadings.

 Describe the relationships between the data without discussing the

implications – this comes in the discussion section.

 Follow each result with a statistic

e.g. (Paired t-test: t=3.35, n=74, p<0.001)

 Don’t give too many degrees of accuracy (2 decimal places)

 Be consistent e.g. P or p throughout

 P values of 0.000, should be reported as p < 0.001

 Don’t exclude results that don’t fit – but include suggestions for why
they were different in the discussion section.

 Qualitative data –where relevant, provide specific details of qualitative

data, such as appearance, location, texture and odour. For example, ‘a
small quantity of white, powdery precipitate appeared at the bottom of the
flask after 90 seconds’.

 Quantitative data - do not present all your raw data, a representative

sample is usually adequate. Interpret and analyse your data so that
others can understand it. Ensure that your statistics are meaningful, and
provide P values.

 Large quantities of data should be presented in tables or figures.

 Describe the important data from your tables and figures within the
text of the results, without repeating the numbers.

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Tables, graphs and figures

tables
can represent quantitative data
can represent qualitative data to allow direct comparison between elements.
represent precise numerical data

graphs
can represent quantitative data
identify a trend

Labelling figures and tables

Titles

 Use a brief, descriptive phrase.

 The title for a table is usually above the table, whereas the title for a figure
is usually below the figure.

 Generally, figure titles and table titles should be in bold fonts; however the
font should not be larger than the font of the text.

 If you use the ‘Insert Caption’ option in MS Word, it will position the caption in
the appropriate place and enable you to make tables of figures/tables
automatically.

Numbering

 Graphs, and any other figures, are generally labelled as ‘figures’ within a
scientific report or paper.

 Each figure or table in your report should have a number, which precedes the
title.

 Number your tables and figures separately, for example, Table 1, Table 2,
Figure 1, and Figure 2. MS Word allows you to specify a label of ‘table’ or
‘figure’.

 Check that your tables and figures appear in the correct order. Using the
Insert Caption option in MS Word will mean tables or figures are automatically
renumbered if you insert others beforehand.

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Legends

 Include a legend consisting of a few lines. It should provide brief details of the
experiment associated with that particular table or figure. This helps the
table or figure to stand alone.

 Symbols can be used within a graph to indicate different elements within a

scatter graph or line graph, or to show which data points are statistically
significant.

 Symbols are usually defined within the graph itself if there is space, or are
defined in the legend at the bottom of the graph, directly after the title.

 A single asterisk is typically used to denote a statistical significance of P <

0.05, and a double asterisk is typically used to denote a statistical significance
of P < 0.01.

Design of tables

 Arrange your tables such that similar elements read vertically, not
horizontally. This will make your table easier to read.

 Use as few vertical and horizontal lines in a table as possible.

 Do not provide standard conditions for your experiments in a table unless they
vary for the data that is included in the table.

 Only give significant figures in a table, and ensure that there is consistency
in terms of figures, notation, and symbols.

 Ensure that units for numerical data are included in a table.

 Only include noughts in a table if there are actual zero readings – you can
use dots or dashes to indicate that there is no data for a particular cell in a
table. Alternatively, the abbreviations ‘ND’ (no data) or ‘NT’ (not tested) may
be used, but ensure that these abbreviations are defined in the legend.

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Design of graphs

The best graphs are the simplest graphs.

 In terms of size, a good graph strikes a balance between its legibility and its
size. A graph should be small but clear.

 Show error bars whenever possible. Indicate in the legend whether your error
bars are plus or minus the standard deviation or the standard error (± SD or ±
SE). Your error bars can significantly change the interpretation of your
results. Also, your results will be taken more seriously if you can show the
degree of error in your measurements.

 Limit your use of colours and patterns. Most scientific journals only publish
black and white graphs.

Choosing the right type of graph

 Line graphs are effective for showing trends.

 Bar charts are effective for showing relative proportions.

 Pie charts are effective for showing proportions of a total.

 Combined charts are effective for showing correlations, for example, a few bar
charts or line graphs may be combined, or a bar chart and line graph may be
combined.

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Discussion

The main purposes of the discussion are to:

discuss the relationships between your results,

discuss how the results relate to your initial objectives and hypotheses,
describe the shortcomings of your work,
describe the implications of your work,
provide major conclusions supported with evidence, and
suggest future applications of your research findings.

 Start with a summary paragraph, reiterating your question and main findings.
This may be all someone reads!

 It is important to discuss your initial hypotheses in terms of whether your

results provide adequate support for them.

 Include anomalies or negative results – try to explain them based on the

theories you have learnt.

 Discuss how your results are similar or different from published

findings, and attempt to explain any differences, with support from
references.

 If it is impossible to find a good explanation for your results – simply admit it. It
is better to admit uncertainty, rather than create poor, unsubstantiated
excuses.

 State all of your conclusions, and build on them by providing evidence from
your data and from the literature.

 End with a concluding paragraph to summarise the key findings and their
implications.

 Most of the discussion should be written in the present tense. When you
discuss your data, write in the past tense, and when you discuss future
implications of your work, write in the future tense.

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References

The main purposes of the references are to:

acknowledge sources in order to avoid plagiarism, and

strengthen your arguments with support from the existing literature.

Every piece of information that is included in your report, excluding your original
data, should be referenced, preferably from peer-reviewed sources. Make clear
how the information is relevant.

Acknowledgements

The main purpose of the acknowledgements is to thank those who were directly
involved in your work.

Remember, in most reports this section tends to be very brief, a few lines at the
most. Identify those who provided you with the most support, and thank them
appropriately.

Appendices
The main purpose of the appendices is to present additional data that is too
extensive to be included within the main body of the text.

Appendices are not included in all scientific reports; however they are frequently
included in the back of theses.

Adapted from ELE resource for module BIO2422 by Lena Wilfert and Josie Orledge and Scientific
Report Writing from the Skills Team, University of Hull www.hull.ac.uk/skills

The Hull guide made extensive reference to this book -

Day, R.A. (1998), How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, Westport: Oryx Press.

There is a copy in the library at Penryn. Shelf number 808.0665 DAY

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