Write a lab report including all the information below.
Also includes the graphs and photo with descriiptions for each.
Find Independent and Dependent variables. You can do need the independent and dependent variable in the graphs.
Lab Report Writing Instructions
All scientists publish reports of their findings. By doing this, a scientist’s research is reviewed and critiqued by other scientists, and their findings are disseminated to the public. You will write a lab report on your Seed Germination experiment. Your lab report will be a simpler version of a scientific paper.
General Guidelines and Expectations:
1. Scientific writing should be concise and to the point. This is not the place to use
“flowery” language.
2. Your report should be 3-4 pages long, must be typed, and must be double spaced with normal font and borders. 3. Figures and graphs should be completed using a computer program and integrated
within the text of your report or placed at the end of the report. Each figure should
include a figure number and a short descriiption. (Example – Figure #1: Table showing
the average mold colony size per piece of bread over 6 days). a. Your text (writing) must also refer to and discuss each figure you include.
b. You must include: At least one data table, one graph and one picture of your set up or final results.
4. For any factual information you got from your sources, you must properly cite your sources!
Content and format instructions:
The content and format of your report should follow the guidelines laid out on the following pages. Each section of your lab report must contain very specific information, and ONLY that information. Follow the instructions carefully. Your report must include a Title, your name, an Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, and at least one data table, graph and photos. You should label each section of your lab report with the appropriate heading.
Title:
You must give your lab report an appropriate title. A good title tells what you did in your experiment in the fewest number of words possible, while still including appropriate information. Your title should include: The scientific name of seed/plant you used and the independent variable you tested.
Example:
The Effect of Fertilizer on Growth of Zea mays
By Student Name
Abstract
Your report should start with an abstract, BUT you should write this last! An abstract is a short paragraph that is a summary of your experiment, and your results and conclusions. Your abstract must include all of the following (don’t use bullets in your abstract, put them in a
paragraph format):
Your central question
Your hypothesis & prediction
– A brief summary of the methods
A summary of the most important data results – Your conclusions about your hypothesis and the data
Introduction
Introduce the reader to your experiment. In this section you must include a minimum of two in-text citations for information you found when doing research. All of the following must also
be included in the introduction (again, in paragraph format, not bullets). Background information about the type of seeds you used (should cite at least one outside source here).
Background information that relates directly to your independent variable (should cite
at least one outside source here). A Discussion of your central question. Why is the question important and what lead you
to ask it (what is the significance of your question).
Your hypothesis.
Your if/then prediction.
Methods
Your methods sections is used to describe exactly what you did (in paragraph form, not bulleted) during the entire course of the experiment. The idea of this section is that someone else should be able to repeat the experiment exactly as you did it with only this methods
section to guide them. Be sure to include specifics such as the type and amounts of you used. Be very specific and detailed! everything
. You must write this section in the past tense. Be sure you do NOT present any data or
results or analysis in this section.
Don’t include details that are not relevant to the successful outcome of the experiment (such as- “I took off my jacket and hung it in the closet”).
Look back through this section. Could someone with no knowledge of the experiment use this section to successfully complete the exact experiment that you did. You might have a classmate from another group or a friend read this section to see if anything is missing.
Results
In this section you will present the results and data you gathered during your experiment. You should include a few paragraphs of text that summarize your results. You MUST include at least one graph summarizing an important set of data. You might also include data tables or more than one graph. You should use a computer to make your tables and graphs.
All tables or graphs must have a figure # and a short descriiption. Be sure all graphs are properly completed (axes labeled etc.). Be sure that you refer the reader to each table or graph by using the figure number and describing why the reader should look at the figure and summarize the data they will see there.
This is just the results section. You should NOT include any type of analysis or conclusions in this section. Just simply describe what happened for each treatment over time and present the important data you gathered. All data you talk about in any section of the report, should be presented in the results section.
Discussion
Now you finally get to interpret and discuss your conclusion about your data and your central question. In the discussion section you are basically saying what your data means. You should clearly state if your data supported or contradicted your hypothesis and how your results led you to your conclusion. If your data contradict your hypothesis then you must provide an alternative hypothesis that might explain your results after further experimentation. (continued on next page) Don’t use the word “prove”. You can’t prove your hypothesis. You can support it with your data or not support it with your data.
In the discussion section you should also describe what you learned about the species you used and what you learned about how the independent variable you tested affects your species. You should also include an analysis of your experimental methods. Did anything unexpected happen that might have affected the results? What were the possible sources of error? How could the experiment be improved? There are always possible sources of error or influence in an experiment like this!
You should end by proposing what further research could be done to more fully answer your central question. The research you discuss cannot be just a repeat of what you already did but it should be directly related to your experiment or central question.
Sources
In this section you will list the full citation for all of the sources you used to find your background information on seed germination, your seed/plant, and environmental factors that affect seed germination. When you write about any facts you learned from these sources, you show where you learned this by creating an “in-text citation.” You need at least two scientific sources and at least two in-text citations in your writing (usually these are in the “Introduction” section). Below are examples of an in-text citation and also the proper way to list the source used. This follows the APA citation style.
