LAB REPORT FORMAT
TITLE: Creative description of experiment
ABSTRACT: This section is very short (4-6
sentences). Include the purpose of the
experiment, briefly state how it was done (including tests used), and the identity
of your microbe.
INTRODUCTION: This section discusses the theory behind the
techniques used in lab to identify your unknown organism
METHODS/MATERIALS: The protocol used to accomplish this
experiment organized in numbered (or bulleted) steps
RESULTS: Set up a table of results – be sure to label!
DISCUSSION: Explain the results, including any experimental
error. Discuss your bacterium (i.e.
morphology, pathogenicity (or lack there of)…also include any treatments/means
of preventing infection)
REFERENCES: text book, journal articles, websites (see
below – MLA Documentation Style)
The lab reports should be about 8 pages long,
typed, double spaced, 1” margins and 12 font and should include the headings
listed above (i.e. abstract, introduction, etc).
**The
heading of “Title” does NOT need to
be included
Late
lab reports will not be accepted and a grade of zero will be given for that
assignment. Email submissions are NOT
accepted.
MLA Documentation Style
The Modern Language
Association (MLA) Style is widely used for identifying research sources. In MLA
style you briefly credit sources with parenthetical citations in the text of
your paper, and give the complete description of each source in your Works
Cited list. The Works Cited list, or Bibliography, is a list
of all the sources used in your paper, arranged alphabetically by author's last
name, or when there is no author, by the first word of the title (except A,
An or The).
MLA
documentation (similar to the APA style) calls for "in-text"
citations of sources of information to be listed within the text where they are
referenced, rather than in footnotes and endnotes, as some systems call for.
Basic
Rules
MLA
documentation covers literally thousands of technical details for the writing
and publishing of papers. There are a
number of overall rules and general guidelines, which are normally sufficient
for the preparation of most papers and lab reports at the undergraduate level.
In-Text
Citation of Sources
In general, MLA in-text documentation format uses the
author-date style of citation, with the author's name, followed by the year of
publication, cited within the body text of an article.
- Normally, an in-text citation
will be introduced with a "signal phrase" that includes the
author’s last name, followed by the year of publication in parentheses.
The page number in the source document, preceded by a "p.",
should appear in parentheses immediately after the quotation. Example: As
Smith (1998) observed, "There was only one way to go after that"
(p. 97).
- In cases when the author's name
is not in the signal phrase, enclose the author's last name, the year, and
the page number, in parentheses at the end of the quotation. Example:
(Smith, 1998, p. 263).
- If the work cited has two
authors, name both authors in the signal phrase and in parentheses at the
end of the quotation. For the latter, separate their names with the
"&" symbol. Example: (Hartwick & Rogers, 1999).
- For more than two authors,
identify all of the authors in the introductory signal phrase or in the
parentheses the first time they are named. Example: (Brendan, Donaldson,
Smith, & Warden, 1995). Later citations of the same work can use the
first author's name followed by "et al." Example: (Brendan et
al., 1995).
- If the author is an organization
with a long cumbersome name, use the entire name in the body text the
first time it is used, with the acronym for the organization enclosed in
parentheses, followed by the year. Example: (American Society of Strategic
Planners [ASSP], 1997). For later citations of the same work, use the
acronym followed by the year. Example: (ASSP, 1997).
Works
Cited List
- A list of all sources cited in
the paper must be included at the end of the paper. This list is entitled
"Works Cited" and must begin on a separate page after the last
page of text. This heading should be centered on the page and the
references are alphabetized according to the author’s last name.
Examples:
|
Book
Okuda, Michael, and Denise Okuda. Star
Trek Chronology: The History
of
the Future. Journal Article
Wilcox, Rhonda V. "Shifting Roles and
Synthetic Women in Star
Trek:
The Next Generation." Studies in Popular Culture 13.2 (1991):
53-65.
Newspaper or Magazine Article
Di Rado, Alicia. "Trekking through
College: Classes Explore Modern
Society
Using the World of Star Trek."
1995:
A3.
Book Article or Chapter
James, Nancy E. "Two Sides of
Paradise: The
Kirk
and Spock." Spectrum of the Fantastic. Ed. Donald Palumbo.
Encyclopedia Article (well known reference books)
Sturgeon, Theodore. "Science
Fiction." The Encyclopedia
International
ed. 1995.
Encyclopedia Article (less familiar reference books)
Horn, Maurice. "Flash Gordon." The
World Encyclopedia of Comics.
Ed.
Maurice Horn. 2 vols.
Gale Reference Book (and other books featuring reprinted articles)
Shayon, Robert Lewis. "The
Interplanetary Spock." Saturday Review
17 June 1967: 46. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed.
Sharon
R. Gunton. Vol. 17.
ERIC Document
Fuss-Reineck, Marilyn. Sibling
Communication in Star Trek: The Next
Generation:
Conflicts between Brothers.
Communication
Assn., 1993. ERIC Document Reproduction Service
ED364932.
Website
Lynch, Tim. "DSN Trials and
Tribble-ations Review." Psi Phi: Bradley's
Science
Fiction Club. 1996.
www.bradley.edu/campusorg/psiphi/DS9/ep/503r.html>.
Andreadis, Athena. "The
Goes,
But Future Colonizers of Distant Planets Won't Be So Lucky."
Astronomy
Jan. 1999: 64- . Academic Universe. Lexis-Nexis. B.
Shayon, Robert Lewis. "The Interplanetary
Spock." Saturday Review
17 June 1967: 46. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed.
Sharon
R. Gunton. Vol. 17.
Memorial
Lib.,
infotrac.galegroup.com/menu>.
Click here for more on this paper....... |
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Notes
|
Some
additional suggestions:
If you
didn’t originate the work, it needs a reference! Also,
Write
accurately
Scientific
writing must be accurate. Although writing instructors may tell you not to use
the same word twice in a sentence, it's okay for scientific writing, which must
be accurate. (A student who tried not to repeat the word "hamster"
produced this confusing sentence: "When I put the hamster in a cage with
the other animals, the little mammals began to play.")
- Make sure you
say what you mean.
Instead of: The rats
were injected with the drug. (sounds like a syringe was filled with drug and
ground-up rats and both were injected together)
Write:The drug was injected into the rats.
Write:The drug was injected into the rats.
- Be careful with
commonly confused words:
Temperature has an effect on the reaction.
Temperature affects the reaction.
Temperature affects the reaction.
The erythrocytes, which are in the blood, contain
hemoglobin.
The erythrocytes that are in the blood contain hemoglobin. (Wrong. This sentence implies that there are erythrocytes elsewhere that don't contain hemoglobin.)
The erythrocytes that are in the blood contain hemoglobin. (Wrong. This sentence implies that there are erythrocytes elsewhere that don't contain hemoglobin.)
Write
clearly
1. Use
the active voice. It's clearer and more concise than the passive voice.
Instead
of: An increased appetite was manifested by the rats and an increase in body
weight was measured.
Write: The rats ate more and gained weight.
Write: The rats ate more and gained weight.
2.
Write in the third person.
Instead
of: I analyzed the samples
Write: The samples were analyzed….
Write: The samples were analyzed….
REPORTS WRITTEN IN
FIRST PERSON WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED AND A GRADE OF ZERO WILL BE ADMINISTERED
3.
Avoid dangling participles.
"After
incubating at 30 degrees C, we examined the petri plates." (You must've
been pretty warm in there.)
Write
succinctly
1.
Use verbs instead of abstract nouns
Instead
of: take into consideration
Write: consider
Write: consider
2.
Use strong verbs instead of "to be"
Instead
of: The enzyme was found to be the active agent in catalyzing...
Write: The enzyme catalyzed...
Write: The enzyme catalyzed...
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