2O1SCI skills for Science

2016/17
Week 2: Session 2: Scientific Report
writing (1.0)

Learning Outcomes
Understand the general lay out of a laboratory
report
Understand the content that should be included in
an Introduction, methods section, results section,
discussion and conclusion
Understand that there are guidelines for referencing
that must be used in academic work
Understand that plagiarism is very serious and is
monitored very closely at the University

Format of a lab report

Follow the format and use the titles

Title
Introduction: V. important
Methods:
Results:
Discussion: V. important
Conclusion: important
References:

Introduction
Introduce the area: Titration, acids, bases, indicators, pH,

SD.

Background to what you are investigating use journal articles/books

every time you say something that hasnt come from your head
REFERENCE
Outline the scientific purpose or objectives for the research
Gives the reader sufficient background to understand the rest of the
report. The information that you will use in your discussion, introduce it
here first.
Dont go off on a tangent, stay focused!
If you dont use it here, you should not introduce it in the later section
Discussion.

A good Introduction will answer the

following
Why was the study performed? In this case
Why are titrations performed? What is titration?
What are bases and acids? Extra information
about the bases and acids used.
Derived from literature

What knowledge already exists about this

subject? In this case What are the different
types of indicators and how are they chosen?
Review the literature, mention any
confirmations and conflicts, Derived from
literature

What is the specific purpose of the study?

Aims & hypotheses

Introduction
Why was this study performed?
Answers to this question may be derived from
observations of nature or from the literature.
What knowledge already exists about this subject?
The answer to this question must review the literature,
showing the historical development of an idea and
including the confirmations, conflicts, and gaps in
existing knowledge.
What is the specific purpose of the study?
The specific hypotheses and experimental design
pertinent to investigating the topic should be described.

Introduction
Do not quote word for word using quotation marks- instead
put into your own words and include a summary such as in the
examples below:
O2 consumption is known to increase with exercise intensity
(Jones, 1999)
Jones et al. (2009) found a plateau in O2 consumption at
maximal intensities in 9 out of 10 participants

Introduction
Do not use the first person i.e. I / we will look at
Throughout your report (and essays etc) use structured
paragraphs not a series of sentences each starting on
different lines.
Each paragraph should make a point and then expand on it.
References have to be used APA/Harvard reference
system.
Justify your study/methods but dont explain your methods.

Introduction
Only use abbreviation once the term has been written out
fully in the first instance and the abbreviation in brackets.
e.g. the Borg scale was used to determine ratings of
perceived exertion (RPE) the abbreviated term- RPE -can
then be used throughout the report.
End finally with the aim and hypothesis of the study.

Method
Is written in paragraphs, not bullet points or list.
Make sure you:
Name chemical compounds and if relevant the formula, the
concentration, and other conditions like T and P.
If using electronic apparatus, name and model.
If using software, name and name of method.
Name the apparatus used.
If using formulas, report the formulas.

Method
DO NOT repeat your lab file
DO NOT tell me I added a drug or I measured HR using a
machine which told us.....
I will get annoyed, speak to me as though you wanted to
impress me, whilst explaining things clearly and concisely,
Me too!!!
DO NOT repeat yourselves, check your work to ensure you
havent already said that in a different way!

Method
You should state (following your own brief
explanation of what you did) that:
All specific procedures were followed according to
the level one Chemistry laboratory manual,
Coventry University

To ONLY state this as the whole method

section is not acceptable and will not get you
any marks!

Results
This section must summarise the data
from the experiment/ investigation
without discussing their implications
The data should be organised into figures
and tables
Data in one format (e.g. Table) should not
be replicated in another (e.g. Figure)
Figures and tables should be numbered
separately and should be referred to in
the text by number (e.g. Figure 1 shows
that HR increased linearly with exercise
intensity..)
No raw data

Results
Titles:
Figure titles go underneath the figures, dont have a
duplicate title within the figure as well. You can move
the one that automatically comes up to the bottom of
your figure, before pasting it into your Word document
Figures looking for a relationship = scatter plot
Figures plotting a variable over time/ intensity = scatter
plot but join the points up with lines (linegraph or scatter
is acceptable)
Table titles go above the table

Results
Check your decimal places on figures, format so they
relate to what you have on the instruments that
measure your data in the lab
Check your units, they should always be on the axis
labels. No units..., you will miss marks.

Discussion

This section should not just be a re-statement of your

results, here is your opportunity to show your
understanding of the topic, answering the why and how
questions

This section should emphasize

interpretation of the data, relating them
to existing theory and knowledge, no
new info here pls.
Suggestions for the improvement of
techniques or experimental design should
also be included
You should also suggest future
experiments that might clarify areas of
doubt in your results or that might take

Discussion
In writing this section, you should
explain the logic that allows you to
accept or reject your original
hypotheses

Discussion
You should mention any limitations
to the study in this section
e.g. if only one subject was used
Limitations are possible shortcomings
or influences that can not be
controlled (Thomas & Nelson, 2001)

Discussion
We do not generally discover things in science. Leave
this to the explorers (observe or report are more
appropriate terms)
Finally SPELL CHECK and PROOF READ your work.
(i.e. some mistakes will not be picked up if the wrong
word has been used e.g. trials / trails, of / off).

References
Use references and cite them in your text (Surname of
Author, Year)
N.B. you do not write the title of the article, the initials of
the author or the page number. This is all given in the
reference list.
You must also provide a full reference list at the end of the
report, stating the full reference of any articles/ books/
websites etc that you have cited in your text. See final
slide.
Use the Harvard referencing system see on moodle, I
am not going to go through all the cases, is tedious and
you can do that alone.

World Wide Web page

Young, C. (2001) English Heritage position statement on the Valletta
Convention, [Online], Available:
http://www.archaeol.freeuk.com/EHPostionStatement.htm [24 Aug 2001].

Top tips/ advice

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Get someone to proof read your work before you hand it in

Get a journal article and look at how they write- particularly their methods
and results sections
Book an appointment at the Centre for Academic Writing (CAW: next to
the library) for more help with writing technique/ referencing etc
Practice writing essays as part of revision
Writing lab reports will help to prepare you for your 3rd year project- make
sure you READ the feedback given on your reports to HELP with future
reports
Thomas & Nelson (2001) = a good book!
Use the Harvard referencing system

Top tips/ advice

8.
9.
10.
11.

Use journal articles

Use textbooks
Avoid websites
Start your work well before the hand-in date
and make use of the service we offer
whereby you can show a member of the
module team one draft copy before you hand
it in for on-the-spot feedback
12. Do not copy the work of peers, snippets from
internet websites/ books/ articles without
referencing them, or from anywhere else!!
PLAGIARISM is taken very seriously..

How information can be

presented?
When you have completed all your data
collection, analysed the data and
written about it
What next?

There are a number of different formats

in which data can be presented

Thesis
Journal articles
Rapid communications
Abstracts
Review articles
Books

Thesis
A thesis is normally created in part
fulfilment of a qualification
Examples include:

Final year project

Masters by research (MRes) and Master of
Science (MSc)
Master of philosophy (MPhil)
Doctor of philosophy (PhD)

Thesis
Thesis structure would normally include:

Generic introduction
General methodology
Results
And discussion

Why is a thesis used?

It is able to evaluate the students

understanding of the area under investigatio
Evaluate experimental design
Evaluate data presentation
Evaluate the students ability to review and
explain their data using previous
research/knowledge

Journals
Concise but detailed
overview of a single or
set of experiments
Use of a number of other
references to support
their observations
Originality never
been done before
Enable replication of
study
Constant reference to
validity of experimental
set up

Review articles
Similar format to journal articles
Significant difference is no new data
Summary of data from a number of
sources to give a general or an
updated overview of a particular area
Very useful for readers who want to gain
knowledge of work occurring in the
arena in one article
The supermarket of journal articles
It is also a way in which you can promote
your lifes work

Books
Very useful way of combining the
knowledge gained over a number of
years into one easy to read format
Introduction to a particular topic
Books can be geared to target a
particular population or level of
understanding
Figures, tables and illustrations are used
more in this format to explain the text

Rapid communications and

abstracts
Rapid communications are
generally less detailed and
shorter than normal journal
articles
The aim is to
communicate novel data
quickly
Abstracts have a similar
aim
Rapid communication of
novel data
Very little detail
Outline of why, what, how

Displaying data
Depends on what
you are trying to
show
Tables

Designed to give
the raw data
Helps the reader
see exactly what is
being shown
between a group
and another
Should the same
data in a table be
shown in a graph?

Tables vs Graph
Weeks
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Time
(sec)
12.52
12
11.45
11.56
11.02
10.89
10.64
10.5
10.42
10.02

14
12
Time (sec)

10
8

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Weeks of training

Which one is more effective at

showing the effect of training at
reducing 100m times

Graphs

Figures
There is a saying that a
figure speaks a 1000
words
Figures are very useful
for important information
without the need for text
Flow diagrams

Complex interactions such

as shown to the right, can
be easily depicted in a
figure

ROS

NF-B

Inflammation
Response

ERK1/2
ASK1/2

P38

JNK

Transcription
Factors

APOPTOSIS
NECROSIS

Cell
Survival

Inhibits
Bcl-2