LABORATORY NOTEBOOKS
A data notebook is essential for scientific investigation.  In it one records protocols, observations, results and thoughts on the experiments.  Such a log of one's work should be written in ink, in a bound book with consecutively numbered and dated pages, rather than in a loose-leaf notebook or on a tear-off pad.  Notes and observations made during the course of preparing for and executing an experiment are entered directly into your notebook at that time, not copied from other papers.  If a correction is made, a line should be drawn through the incorrect value and the correct one written beside it.  Pages should not be torn out.

Crucial to the usefulness of any data notebook is the faithful recording of observations and results.  There are no wrong results or experiments that did not work.  There are unexpected results, flaws in experimental design, errors in procedure, faulty techniques and instrumental failures, but for an intelligent researcher, there is something to be learned from every experiment or exercise.  Identification of a source of error and/or redesign of a procedure is crucial to scientific investigation.  Reproducibility is also a seminal factor to excellence in research.

 Notebook Format

Entries must be legible and neat.  Some logical order should also prevail.  Some investigators use every page of the notebook for the sections outlined below.  Others use the right-hand page for the various sections and the left for computations, short notes, ideas for further work, etc.  Whichever you choose, be sure to leave a few pages at the front for a Table of Contents and room within each lab write-up and between labs for later annotation.  The notebook entry for any experiment should contain;

 1. Date - Each page should give the date for the work described on that page..

 2. Title - Give title of the experiment or exercise on the first page for each new experiment.

 3. Materials and Methods - This section is a record of the procedures, materials and solutions necessary to accurately reproduce and subsequently verify the experiment.  This is a very important section.  In this lab most of the protocols are given in detail in the lab handouts, and therefore one need only attach a copy of the appropriate handout.  However, any modifications made to the given protocols must be noted in detail.

 4. Results - This section is a record of observations, data tables, graphs, photographs, etc.  The data must be legible, orderly, completely labeled, and intelligible enough that you can understand it months or years later.  Always try to display data carefully.  When results are to be compared, place them so that they can be compared conveniently.  Plan ahead so the data collection and display are simple, complete, accurate and clear.

 5. Conclusions - This section is a short analysis of the findings.  The analysis may be graphical or tabular as long as there is written text explaining the relevant points.  A summary chart may simplify the exposition.

 6. Comments - This section is where you account for unexpected results, point out possible sources of error, suggest improvements in the protocol, etc.  Comments should also be written throughout the course of the lab, noting, for example, any observations, abnormalities, or baffling results.  Comments or annotations added to your notes at a later date should include the date they were added.


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