Quiz: Lab Reports

Lab reports should be written in first person. True False

False: Lab reports should be written in 3rd person, past tense.

A lab report is an example of technical writing and is often used in engineering and the sciences. True False

True

In science, the language used in writing is impersonal and objective. True False

True

Lab reports generally have seven main parts: 1) Title 2) Abstract 3) Introduction 4) Materials and Methods 5) Results 6) Discussion or Conclusion 7) References or Works Cited True False

True

Tables are easy to read and convey a lot of information to the reader in an efficient way. True False

True

The main reason for writing a lab report or scientific paper is to communicate the results of a scientific study to the public (or your teacher). True False

True

Imagine you did an experiment in which you grew five different groups of rose bushes, and each group received a different amount of fertilizer. Which of the following would be the best title for this lab report? a) The effect of fertilizer on the growth of rose bushes. b) Rose bushes with large amount of fertilizer grow better than rose bushes with small amount of fertilizer. c) Plants and fertilizer.

a) The effect of fertilizer on the growth of rose bushes.

You did an experiment in which you added 20 mL of water to a test tube. How would you describe this in your lab report. a) John added 20 mL of water to a test tube. b) 20 mL of water is added to a test tube. c) 20 mL of water was added to a test tube.

c) 20 mL of water was added to a test tube.

Properly documenting sources used for research is important because it ensures that: a) Credit for information originally provided elsewhere is given, b) Plagiarism (passing off the ideas or words of another as one's own) does not take place. c) Both of the above statements are true.

c) Both of the above statements are true.

Which of the following examples do you think best illustrates the concise language you should use in a lab report? a) The plants exposed to full sunlight showed amazing amounts of growth after a couple weeks. b) The entire lab group laughed when the water spilled out of the test tube. c) The plants exposed to full sunlight grew an average of 3 cm in 14 days, while the plants left indoors grew only 0.5 cm on average. the plants grew.

c) The plants exposed to full sunlight grew an average of 3 cm in 14 days, while the plants left indoors grew only 0.5 cm on average. the plants grew.