experiment on a tomato plant will group being in shaded light and full sunlight.
Biol 240 Lab: April 7, 2022
Lab Report Sections:
(Title)
Introduction
Materials & Methods
Results
Discussion
References
Figures
2) Lab Report #2: First assignment (M&M, Results,
Figures). Due TODAY, hopefully you have turned it in
already!
3) In-class assignment (References) – Due today.
4) Lab Report #2: Second Assignment (Title,
Introduction, Discussion). Due by this coming
Wednesday (April 13)
Finding Scientific Articles
1. Use Google Scholar to find the articles
2. Use Google Scholar or Copley Library site to download pdfs of the
articles to read
Super easy and intuitive!
Works just like regular Google!
Can use it to find articles connected to a scientific article (cited by or citing)
Once you’ve identified a paper that looks good…
Next you need to access the full article, usually as a pdf file
Google Scholar is the easiest way to find pdfs of the articles you want…
Search example: effects of shade on chlorophyll concentration
BEFORE using Google Scholar, log in to the Copley library site!
●
●
This will give you access to pdfs through Google Scholar if you access it in
the same browser
The login will usually last for a few days, but if you are having trouble
accessing pdfs in Google Scholar try logging in to Copley and trying again
Finding articles practice
●
On Google Scholar, do a search on a specific topic related to climate change and
photosynthesis (try choosing a specific climate-related variable). Below, enter the
reference information (citations) for three journal articles you found, and briefly
summarize one key finding.
Example:
1. Ayub G, Smith RA, Tissue DT, Atkin OK. 2011. Impacts of drought on leaf respiration in darkness
and light in Eucalyptus saligna exposed to industrial‐age atmospheric CO2 and growth
temperature. New Phytologist 190: 1003– 1018.
Finding: Climate-change induced drought causes photosynthesis rates to decrease dramatically in
Eucalyptus trees.
The basic format for the References section is:
Authors. Year. Article Title. Journal Name (Volume): Pages.
Don’t forget to apply ‘hanging indentation’ to each reference. For
example:
D. Cartamil, O. Santana, M. Olvera, D. Kacev, L. Castillo, J.B. Graham,
R. Rubin & O. Sosa-Nishizaki. 2011. The artisanal elasmobranch fishery
of the Pacific coast of Baja California, Mexico. Fisheries Research (108):
393-403.
Example: Using this reference in your Introduction text:
> 2 authors: use et al.
One of the most important factors affecting the growth and
bioenergetics of plants is the amount of moisture they receive.
For example, Ayub et al. (2011) found that climate-change
induced drought caused photosynthesis rates to decrease
dramatically in Eucalyptus trees.
2 authors: Ayub & Smith (2011) found that…
1 author: Ayub (2011) found that…
• b) For one journal article you found, log on to the Copley
library, locate and download a pdf copy of the article. When
you submit this case study, attach the pdf file to your email.
Lab today
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Talk about lab reports
Mini-lecture and practice: finding scientific articles
In-lab assignment
Free lab time: Work on Intro & Discussion sections for lab report 2
By Wednesday: Turn in the full Lab Report
Title:
Informative – the reader should be able to understand exactly
what they are about to read
INTRODUCTION
Start with ‘Big Picture’
Include relevant background
Information, references for
statements of fact
– Lead to research Question
– Introduce experiment as a means
– Of addressing question:
Hypotheses, and BRIEF (1 short sentence)
Experimental approach
“Inverted Triangle”
format
DISCUSSION
1) Start with brief ‘RECAP’
Original hypotheses
Brief overview of results
‘Take-away message’
2) Body (General Discussion)
“Triangle”
format
2 paragraphs
WHY did you get these Results?
Include references – what have other researchers found in similar studies?
How do they explain their results? (Compare)
3) Return to Big Picture (one or two sentences)
Lab today
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Talk about lab reports
Mini-lecture and practice: finding scientific articles
In-lab assignment
Free lab time: Work on Intro & Discussion sections for lab report 2
By Wednesday: Turn in the full Lab Report
Next Week: NO LAB (Easter)!
April 21 – Beginning short field experiment and data collection.
Week 9 Assignment: Lab Reports Part 2 (FULL REPORT – Including Title,
Introduction, Discussion, References)
– Due by Wednesday, April 6 Up to this point, you have submitted several sections, including Materials &
Methods, Results, and Figures – these sections have already been reviewed and
graded. For the final lab report, you will need to add the remaining sections:
Introduction, Discussion, & References.
Your next submission should contain ALL the components of the lab report
(including a Title), as specified in the guidelines posted on Blackboard and in
lab/lecture. (To be clear: Only the new sections of your report will be graded, so
do not spend time revising sections that have already been graded! At the end of
this process, you’ll have an opportunity to revise the final version of your report).
Also, now that we have spent some time discussing references in lab, I am
requiring the addition of at least three peer-reviewed journal article references to
support your lab report text.
Let me know if you have any questions. Your final lab report should be emailed to
me as an attachment (as always).
Writing “Brief Communication” Lab Reports
For Bio 240L you will be writing lab reports with a format used for a scientific journal
article. In the scientific literature, journal articles take several forms. You will write up
your experimental results in the form of a “Brief Communication.” This shorter format is
used when scientists have an interesting finding that they want to get published quickly
but may not have enough data to fill up a full-length scientific paper. By writing a Brief
Communication paper, you will get practice in an authentic form of scientific writing
without getting bogged down in all the technical details of a full scientific paper. Still, this
report will require a significant effort on your part as you decide the best way to present
the data, interpret your results, and explain and justify your conclusions.
General guidelines that your lab reports should follow:
Although the data collection was largely a group effort, each person should write and
turn in their own lab report.
Title: Your report should have a clear, descriptive title.
Your paper should be no longer than 4 pages (aim for 3) of 1 ½ or double-spaced text
with 12 pt font size and one inch margins. (This page limit excludes your figures)
Write in a clear, straight-forward style. Try to explain what you mean in your own
words. Write under the assumption that your reader has no idea about your project,
why you did it, the methods used, etc.
Proofread your paper and use spell-check.
Write in the past tense. You are reporting on work that is completed.
Include headings within your report for the following sections: Introduction, Materials
& Methods, Results, Discussion, References, and Figures.
Introduction section
-Your introduction should start with a brief presentation of background information that
provides context for the hypothesis you tested. Start with the ‘Big Picture’ – it should be
clear WHY you did the research. From there, find a way to connect the Big Picture to a
more clearly defined research question, and work your way towards the specific goal of
your study.
-Towards the end of the Introduction you should clearly state your hypothesis with a
rationale, and a very brief approach (one sentence) to testing your hypothesis.
(Hint: Remember the inverted triangle approach to writing introductions – start as
broadly as possible, and end as specifically as possible.)
Materials & Methods section
The basic elements of the Methods section are study design, settings & data collection,
ending with data analysis/statistical methods. The goal of this section is to give the
reader enough information to be able to replicate the experiment themselves.
Hints:
-Do not use bullet points. Write in paragraph style.
-For more complicated protocols (e.g., protein assay), you do not need to provide a
detailed explanation of how the measurements were made, you can simply say ‘using
protocol provided by lab instructor’.
-End by stating what data sets you analyzed, and what statistics were used (for example,
you might say that all data sets were analyzed using a t-test, and that results are
reported as mean ± SD).
Results
-Present the results in the same order that you introduced the various experimental
variables in the previous section (Materials & Methods).
-You should describe each of your results as concisely as possible. For each
variable/treatment tested, you should include the mean ± SD and the p-value. Use the
‘one-sentence-per-variable’ format I have given you! (see next paragraph).
-When describing a result, refer to the figure that illustrates that result. For instance, you
might state: “Plants treated with full light were significantly taller (39.7 +/- 5.2 cm) than
plants treated with partial light (32.1 +/- 3.5 cm), based upon a p-value of 0.014 (Fig. 1).”
The reference to the figure in parentheses indicates to the reader that you are referring
to those results.
(Note: Figures that illustrate these results should be placed at the end of the report.
More info below)
Discussion
The discussion section is where you present your interpretation of the results. What do
your results tell you? Did the experiment turn out like you thought? Do your results
support or refute the hypothesis stated at in the Introduction? Were there things that
could have been done differently?
Recap: I generally like to see the Discussion start with a short recap paragraph that
reminds the reader of the original hypothesis / hypotheses, a brief overview of the
results, and what your general conclusion was (what is the ‘take-away’ message).
General Discussion: Next, you should have one to two paragraphs that explain WHY you
got these results. This is the most important part of your report, so don’t gloss over it!
Finally, be sure to tie all of this back to the ‘Big Picture’ (i.e., how are the results
important to the world?).
(Hint: Remember the inverted triangle approach to writing Introductions? This is the
opposite! Start as specifically as possible, and end broadly.)
References
A scientific paper will normally contain many references within the text, and a
‘References’ section at the end. Most statements of fact that you make should have a
reference, even if it is a website, or your textbook. However, as we have discussed, the
best references are peer-reviewed scientific journal articles. There are various ways to
cite references – I am not asking for you to use any particular format, but in general, the
basic format for the References section is:
Authors. Year. Article Title. Journal Name (Volume): Pages.
Don’t forget to apply ‘hanging indentation’ to each reference. For example:
D. Cartamil, O. Santana, M. Olvera, D. Kacev, L. Castillo, J.B. Graham, R. Rubin & O.
Sosa-Nishizaki. 2011. The artisanal elasmobranch fishery of the Pacific coast of Baja
California, Mexico. Fisheries Research (108): 393-403.
Your lab report should have, at minimum, 3 peer-reviewed references.
Figures
-At the end of your report include all figures and/or tables. You should put no more than
2 figures / tables per page and they should be large enough to be easily examined.
-Include informative figure captions below your figures.
-Include appropriate units on all numbers – including those in the text! Put a space
between the number and its units (It’s 0.4 µg/g, not 0.4µg/g) and include a zero before a
decimal point (0.4 µg/g, not .4 µg/g).
-Be sure to label all axes and include units on axes.
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