Lab Report Format

SPECIFICATIONS FOR WRITING YOUR LAB REPORTS

After you have completed your lab work, you are required to prepare a report. The first step, as with any technical writing job, is to determine your audience and purpose. In EG, your purpose in to report on your experimental work and to explain the concepts learned during the performance of the lab.

Your audience is mixed. You are writing for your instructor, your TA, and your writing consultant.

When writing for a group whose technical expertise varies, you must prepare a document that is simple enough for the non-technical reader, but not so simple that it bores the reader familiar with the subject matter. This is tricky, but you will develop the skills to accomplish this over the course of the semester.

Writing lab reports for EG will help you prepare for other kinds of report writing you will encounter during your academic career and beyond. By repeating the process over and over, you will have the opportunity to incorporate your writing consultant’s corrections and suggestions into each succeeding report. By the time you get to Lab 10, you will be an expert!

Title Page

We start with the Title Page. It must include all of the following: the lab title, course name and section, your name, your group member's name(s), the date of the experiment, a group letter (if assigned), and the due date. All your reports must include a title page. It provides the reader with important identifying information.

Please Note: Your lab reports must be double spaced and include a footer on each page except the Title Page. Your footer must include your name, your section, the due date, and the lab number.

Abstract

The Abstract in EG is usually one paragraph long. It is a summary of your lab work and its significance. The abstract describes your objective, your results, and their significance and must always include these three elements. In other words, what you did, what you found out, and what it means.

Here is a sample Abstract:

In Laboratory 12, "Design Failure: Cause and Effect," the objective

was to design and build a lightweight container to protect a fragile object (a raw egg) from breaking when it was dropped from the fourth floor, a distance of about 60 feet. The most successful design was defined as the one that best protected the egg while costing the least money for materials. The result was that the egg cracked on the second drop; on the positive side, our

team's protective container cost only $0.15 in materials.

IMPORTANT: The abstract never states what you learned; just what you did.

Introduction

The Introduction is at least three paragraphs long. Sometimes it is much longer. This section gives the reader background information on the scientific principles and concepts used in the experiment. It provides context so the reader will understand your observations and conclusions better. Sometimes, you will be asked to research the topic more fully. You are not required to cite information correctly paraphrased from the manual, but you must cite other sources at the end of your lab report. You should never just copy material from the manual. Here is a sample from an Introduction:

Material

failure depends on the properties of specific materials and the way they are used. The most common and significant mode of failure is breakage under load. The effects of stress and strain contribute to material failure. When a force is applied to an object, internal forces in the material resist the tendency for the material to pull apart. Stress is a measure of this internal force. Strain measures the deformation, elongation or compression of the object. Engineers must take the properties and limits of each material into account when designing a product. Engineers also try to use the concept of minimal design,

which means meeting the project specifications as economically as possible.

Procedure

The Procedure section is a chronological list of the steps you took to perform the lab. Use your lab notes to write this section. The Procedure section must always begin with a list of the materials you used. Use full sentences please.

Some procedure sections are in the form of a numbered list, but in EG, it must be in the continuous narrative form and be in the past tense. The continuous narrative form uses full sentences, like a story. Remember you are describing something you have already done, so the past tense is the correct choice. The key to this section is repeatability. That means that someone else, following your instructions, could successfully perform the lab.

The available materials for insulating the egg were first studied.

They were: bubble wrap, cotton wrap, tape, small and large rubber bands, Styrofoam pieces, staples, plastic film wrap, and a 1.5 ft X 1.5 ft Styrofoam box. Next, possible designs were sketched, and the least expensive one was selected. The selected design used only a cardboard box, four small rubber bands, nine small pieces of

Styrofoam, plastic film wrap, and less than one inch of tape.

Data/Observations

The Data/Observations section summarizes your results. It is a combination of words and visuals and should include any tables or graphs you have prepared. Visuals must be accompanied by a description, in words, of their significance. Be careful to save any explanations of your results for the conclusion. In this section, merely state your results.

The container and the egg survived the first test. However, the design

failed during the second test because one rubber band snapped, and the egg was completely demolished. The holes in the sides of the box had been made to reduce the effects of impact with the ground, much the way indents in the soles of Adidas sneakers lessen the impact on surfaces for runners; however, they were a failed strategy. It was speculated that the holes ended up allowing more air to pass through the container, which resulted in greater impact as the box

slammed into the ground.

Discussion/Conclusions

Your report ends with a Discussion/Conclusions section. Here you provide an explanation of your data and analyze your results. If the lab was successful, tell why. If it failed, suggest ways to improve your design to achieve the desired results. Some of the questions posed in each lab should be answered here (some will be answered in the Introduction). Here is a sample Discussion/Conclusion:

The design failed for a number of reasons. The rubber band snapped

because the fracture stress point of the rubber band was reached. The design could be improved with the use of a stronger rubber band. It was observed that the holes in the sides of the box, designed to reduce the effect of impact on the egg, may have resulted in added risk. Air resistance may have been decreased, resulting in the final smashup. The team speculated that increasing air resistance by adding “wings�? to the box, or a small parachute, would have produced a better result. The design would be improved by leaving the sides of

the box intact.

Original Data

Include a section to the end of your report called Original Data. This section is for all documents that were signed by your TA. You are not required to include any text. If you are confused about what to include, ask your TA.

Remember: some of your reports are written as a team. All members of the group receive the same grade and should know what the report says and be able to discuss it.

If you are not sure about any element of your report, you may ask your Writing Consultant for help. You may also visit the Writing Center (JAB373), where tutors are available to assist you. Many of them double as WCs and are well equipped to get you started.

Remember: Your lab report should tell what you did, why you did it, how you did it

Lab Report at a Glance

1. Title Page
• Lab number and title, course name and section, your name, your group member's name(s), date of experiment, a group letter (if assigned), and the due date.
2. Abstract
• What was the experimental objective of the lab? What did you do?
• What were the results of the lab? What did you find out? What is its significance? What does it mean?
3. Introduction
• What was the background (or context) of the experiment?
• What were the specifications for the experiment?
• Include any formulas you will use here.
• Describe any special equipment used.
• What scientific principles were used?
4. Procedures
• What materials were used?
• What steps were performed in the lab? How were they done?
• Use your lab notes, no numbered lists, past tense please.
5. Data / Observations
6. What were your findings?
7. Describe the results verbally.
8. Include tables and graphs (visuals) where appropriate.
9. Discussion / Conclusions
• What worked and did not work? Explain any experimental difficulties.
• Link the discussion to your objectives.
• What improvements (if any) can be made to the product or design?
• Can you suggest future work?
10. Original Data
• Must be signed by your TA

What the Writing Consultants Are Looking For

This is the rubric the Writing Consultants will use to grade your work:

1. Organization and Format:
• Is the information separated into the appropriate sections?
• Do the sections work together?
• Is the information in each section sufficient for its purpose?
• Abstract: experimental objective, result
• Introduction: context, specifications, concepts, applications, formulas
• Procedure: materials, essential steps
• Data/Observations: visuals graphs, charts; verbal discussion of results
• Discussion/Conclusions: analysis of results, improvements
• Are the lab notes attached?
• Are tables, diagrams, and graphics used to illustrate the report? Are they labeled and clearly presented in the proper section, and are their important features explained in the text?
2. Professional, Logical, and Objective Writing Style:
• Is the experiment described with precision? Are the appropriate scientific terms used?
• Has the writer employed a professional writing style (no “empty�? phrases, contractions, “you,�? slang, or jargon)?
• Are sentences constructed to emphasize the action taken, rather than the person taking the action (avoid first-person pronouns)?
• Has the writer organized the information appropriately into paragraphs with transitions to indicate the paragraph's relationship to the whole?
• Does the visual format of the report help to communicate the information professionally? Is the report proofread and presented neatly?
• Were secondary sources consulted, incorporated into the text, and cited properly?
3. Correctly Written English
• Is the report written in complete sentences?
• Is the word order within each sentence consistent with standard English?
• Are singular and plural forms used correctly (agreement)?
• Has the writer chosen the right words for his/her meaning, and spelled them correctly?
• Has the writer chosen the correct verb tense and used it consistently?
• Are the sentences punctuated correctly?
• Are articles (a, an, the) used correctly?




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