bio lab quiz 4- condensed

effective communication

-a basic necessity in all professions -correct and clear sentence structure, grammar, spelling and punctuation

general format

-clear and concise. simple declarative sentences are a must! -proper format used -correct spelling and grammar -correct tense used for each section

introduction

-contains background information and gives a general view -relevant background information shall be properly referenced (last name of author, date of reference) -includes the hypotheses tested -provides a rationale for the procedures used -the significance of the experiment is mentioned government and university or academic instutions have reliable websites for resources! written in present tense!

abstract

-describe the hypotheses and how the experiment was done -clearly summarizes significant results and conclusions write after the report is completed! written in past tense!

materials and methods

-major procedures mentioned -specific, special materials mentioned -certain organisms mentioned -able to recreate the same experiment by reading the section -written in paragraph form and in past tense -any factors related to data analysis mentioned -independent and dependent variable identified -unusual uses of equipment described completely not a list of what is used and the steps taken! standard lab setting materials and methods must not be mentioned!

literature cited

-proper citation formats -works cited in the text shall be listed -works listed here shall be cited in the text journal and book are similar! webpage also!

title

-short and specific, but covers major aspects of research -clearly and exactly describes the research project -common and scientific name of organism included -parameters measured included -variable factors manipulated included write at the end of the lab report! do not use big fancy words! italicize scientific names of organisms!

mistake of students

-the end of an experiment is NOT the end of the research! -the writing and publishing of results is as much a part of science as the underlying research.

discussion

-written in paragraph form and in past tense -reported results interpreted correctly -results relate to the original hypotheses -conclusions are valid -unexpected results and possible reasons should be mentioned -weaknesses in the experiment design (not procedural errors) should be mentioned, as well as suggested improvements restricted creativity level! show how the results of the experiment relate to the bigger picture!

results

-written in past tense and paragraph form -tables and figures used to clearly present the data -all important results verbalized (any major differences) -tables and figures referred to in the description of the results -all tables and figures are properly numbered and labeled, tables above, figures below! -figures are clear enough to comprehend the results without referring to the verbal text graphs are better for trends and patterns, tables are better for specific data points! no raw data shown! don't put both a graph and table for the same data! do not state what data means! results encompasses what was measured, discussion refers to the biological process of interest.

scientific papers

-written to communicate research findings -provide enough information for another scientist to repeat and verify the work -provides continuity in the scientific process to make advances