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Writing A Scientific Report

This document outlines the key elements that should be included in a scientific report. A scientific report describes the process, progress, or results of technical or scientific research. It includes elements such as a title page with the report title, authorship, and date. It also includes a table of contents, abstract, introduction outlining the background and objectives, materials and methods, results, conclusion summarizing the findings, and references. The introduction provides context while the materials and methods, results, and conclusion sections describe what was done and the outcomes of the research.

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Elthea Rym
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1K views20 pages

Writing A Scientific Report

This document outlines the key elements that should be included in a scientific report. A scientific report describes the process, progress, or results of technical or scientific research. It includes elements such as a title page with the report title, authorship, and date. It also includes a table of contents, abstract, introduction outlining the background and objectives, materials and methods, results, conclusion summarizing the findings, and references. The introduction provides context while the materials and methods, results, and conclusion sections describe what was done and the outcomes of the research.

Uploaded by

Elthea Rym
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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WRITING A

SCIENTIFIC REPORT
C
A researcher should also know how to report his finding.

A scientific report is a document that describes the process,


progress, and or results of technical or scientific research or
the state of a technical or scientific research problem.
DIFFERENT ELEMENTS OF A SCIENTIFIC REPORT
ELEMENTS OF A SIMPLE SCIENTIFIC REPORT
1. Title page
The title page will include the following:

• Title of the report:


• Usually 4-12 words in length.
• Should be short, specific and descriptive, containing the keywords of the report.

Authorship:
• Include author addresses.
• Indicate the corresponding author and their contact details.

Date:
• The date when the paper was submitted.
2. Table of Contents

This holds the page


number of each
elements present in the
report.
3. Abstract
The Abstract is a self-contained synopsis of the report - an informative
summary of what you did and what you found out.
The Abstract should include the following:
• Objectives and scope of the investigation.
• A brief reference to the Materials and Methods.
• A summary of the results and conclusions - a brief but thorough
statement of the outcome/s of the experiment.

If there is a hypothesis, you may state what it is and whether it was


supported or refuted.
The following should not be included in the Abstract:

• Literature citations.
• Formulae and abbreviations, references to tables.

Although the Abstract comes first in a report, it is best to write it last,


after you have the results and conclusions.
4. INTRODUCTION
This provides a summary of the analysis to be undertaken. The purpose of this to put the
reader in the picture and place the research/experiment within a context.
The following may be included in the Introduction:
• Background about the analysis to be carried out.
• A brief review of previous research (relevant literature) to give a background -
paraphrase relevant facts from the scientific literature, citing the sources to support
each statement.
• Reason/s why the research was undertaken.
• Statement of the hypothesis (an idea or concept that can be tested by experimentation)
if there is one.
• An explanation of the different techniques and why they are used.
• A statement of the objective/s - what you hope to achieve.
The Introduction is the what and why of the experiment, and should
answer the following questions:
• What was the purpose or objective of the experiment/research?
• Why was the experiment/research conducted in a particular
manner?
• Why was it important in a broader context?

• The Introduction should not include any results or conclusions.


5. Materials and Methods
• A description of the materials and procedures used - what was done
and how. Describe the process of preparation of the sample,
specifications of the instruments used and techniques employed.
• should include such things as sample size, apparatus or equipment
used, experimental conditions, concentrations, times, controls etc.
• The Method must be written in the past tense and the passive voice.
6. Results
This section states what you found.
The following will be included in your Results:
• Pictures and spectra.
• Tables and graphs whenever practical.
• Brief statements of the results in the text (without repeating the data
in the graphs and tables). When writing about each picture, graph
or table, refer to it parenthetically e.g. (Figure 1).
• Include only your own observed results in this section.
7. Conclusion
• This is the summing up of your argument or experiment/research,
and should relate back to the Introduction.
• The Conclusion should only consist of a few sentences, and should
reiterate the findings of your experiment/research.
• If appropriate, suggest how to improve the procedure, and what
additional experiments or research would be helpful.
8. References
Cite any references that you have used, ensuring that each item in the
reference list has an in-text citation, and every in-text citation has a
full reference in the reference list at the end of your paper.

Ensure that the references are formatted according to the style


required by the journal (or your lecturer/supervisor), and be careful
with spelling (the author whose name you misspell may be asked to
review the paper!)

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