Experiment Report

EXAMPLE  LAB  REPORT                  

The  effect  of  X  on  Y     By      

NAME    

DATE    

COURSE  NAME  &  SECTION                

ABSTRACT  

The  abstract  is  a  one  paragraph  summary  of  the  entire  lab  report.  It  should  have  1   sentences  that  states  the  purpose  of  the  study,  1  that  states  what  was  done,  1  that   states  what  was  found  and  1  that  states  what  was  concluded                                

INTRODUCTION    

The  introduction  section  of  the  report  should  define  the  topic  and  explain  its   importance.  It  should  share  some  background  information  related  to  the  wide  range   of  research  that  you  used  to  help  you  design  your  experiment.  At  the  end  of  the   introduction  you  need  to  state  your  the  research  question  and  your  hypothesis.  It   should  me  no  longer  than  1  page  in  length.  MAKE  SURE  YOU  HAVE  APA   FORMATTED  IN  TEXT  CITATIONS  HERE!    

METHODS  

The  methods  section  should  explain  how  the  experiment  was  conducted.  You  do  not   include  a  materials  list.  It  should  be  should  be  written  in  a  narrative  format.  It   should  only  include  only  the  details  that  are  necessary  to  replicate  the  experiment   and  should  explain  why  the  procedure  was  done.  This  section  should  be  written  in   the  past  tense  and  should  not  discuss  any  results.  It  should  be  2-­‐3  paragraphs  in   length.  

Make  sure  you  include  a  photo  of  your  experiment  set  up  at  the  end  of  this  section   that  includes  your  name  and  the  date.  

RESULTS  

The  results  section  should  explain  the  results  of  the  experiment  without   interpretation  or  comment.  It  should  be  used  to  summarize  general  trends.  Each   trial  should  have  a  separate  paragraph  explaining  the  results.  Graphs  and  tables   should  be  used  but  not  as  a  substitute  for  a  written  explanation.  They  should  be   included  at  the  end  of  the  written  paragraph.  

 Make  sure  that  graphs  and  tables  have  a  description  that  would  allow  the  reader  to   understand  the  graphic  even  if  they  could  not  see  the  graphic.  

Example  of  incorrect  table/graphic  description:  Table  1.  Bacteria  counts  and  water   level  for  Blackwater  River  

Example  of  correct  table/graphic  description:  Table  1.  Bacteria  counts  and  water   level  for  Blackwater  River  in  the  summer  of  2015.  Bacteria  were  sampled  using  3   point  cross  sections  along  a  10  mile  stretch  of  the  Blackwater  River.  Samples  show   that  as  water  level  decrease  so  do  bacteria  counts.  During  higher  flow  levels  bacteria   levels  increase.  The  results  the  area  sampled  is  impaired  for  contact  recreational   use.  

Sample  Flow   Average  water  level  (cfs)   Bacteria  counts   (#/100ml)  

Low  water     45   39  

Normal     150   173   High  water   376   2256  

 

Figure  2.  Monthly  low  water  levels  on  the  Blackwater  River  in  2015  from  June   through  September.  Samples  were  taken  from  the  USGS  monitoring  station  on  the   Blackwater  River.  Water  levels  were  lowest  during  the  month  of  June  and  peaked   the  following  month  in  July.  Average  low  water  levels  were  45cfs.  

 

 

DISCUSSION  

The  discussion  section  is  where  you  interpret  the  results.  You  should  also  discuss   the  results  in  context  of  the  overall  experiment  as  identified  in  the  introduction  of   the  report.  You  should  tell  the  reader  why  the  data  looks  like  it  does  and  why  it  is   important  to  know.  Lastly  you  should  discuss  potential  modifications  for  the   experiment.  What  kind  of  changes  would  you  make  to  this  experiment  to  further   knowledge  of  transpiration?  This  is  not  to  correct  mistakes  but  usually  every   experiment  ends  with  more  questions  than  you  start  with.  How  would  you  address   those  questions  in  future  research?  

 

 

20   25   30   35   40   45   50   55   60  

June   July   August   September  

Monthly  low  water  levels  on  the     Blackwater  River  in  2015  (cfs)  

Monthly  low  water  levels  on  the    Blackwater  River  in  2015  (cfs)  

REFERENCES     You  should  have  a  variety  of  academic  references  (4-­‐6  different  sources)  listed  in   alphabetical  order  and  in  proper  APA  format  in  this  section.  Each  reference  should   match  an  in  text  citation  from  the  introduction  section.