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Lab reports fall into a category writing styles considered “scientific” or technical writing. This style of writing is different than most of the writing you have done or seen in English class.
Voice in Technical Writing
Technical writing is defined by the “voice” used by the author . The author uses a passive voice in this style. This means the author never refers to themselves as “I” or "we" and writes in the 3rd person.
Examples
1st person: "All the equipment I used to make the measurements were not equal"
3rd person: " All the equipment used to make measurements were not created equal.”
1st person: "I calculated that the graduated cylinder had a 4.5% error."
3rd person: "The graduated cylinder had a 4.5% error."
1st person: "We conducted this experiment to find the relationship between the volume and pressure of a gas"
3rd person: "The purpose of this experiment was to find the relationship between the volume and pressure of a gas"
The lack of voice or writing in the 3rd person gives the perception that author is objective or unbiased. This ideally leads to tone in the writing that the author it only reporting the facts and is not hoping or rooting for any specific results. Objectivity is important to scientists, because if one is not objective their feelings and biases may influence the outcome or the interpretation of the events/results.
Technical writing is also doesn’t have a lot of flowery prose, it is concise. Technical writing at its best tries to be as clear as possible in the fewest words used. Creativity and expressiveness are not valued in this style of writing. Again this has to be do with the perception of objectivity. Although the author is trying to convince the reader their conclusions or views are correct, the author wants the facts to “speak for themselves”. Flowery prose or opinions takes away that perception that the author an objective observer.
Organization in the Conclusion of Lab Reports
As the author of the conclusion/analysis section of a lab report, you should write this section like you would like a persuasive essay. Because if you think about this, as an author/researcher you trying to convince the audience that your conclusion and analysis of the results is correct. You still want to do this by writing in the 3rd person with a passive voice to maintain the perception of being objective.
The organization of your ideas will go a long way to presenting a clear and concise explanation of the results. Each separate conclusion you draw will need its own paragraph to be explained to the audience. Each paragraph should start with an introduction or transition sentence so the paragraphs/ideas “flow” smoothly and are readable. Then, paragraphs should have a conclusion (or thesis) statement. It may outline a pattern seen or categorize results from the experiment. The rest of the paragraph will be composed supporting statements or “evidence” that supports your conclusion statement. This is where you will cite specific data or events to reinforce your thesis/conclusion. The sentences highlighted in gray in the sample report demonstrate good supporting data. Sometimes creating an outline or “mind map” to organize your conclusion and facts can make this process easier.
Sample Lab Report - effect of temperature on reaction rates
Blank Template for Lab Reports
Link to Bates College, ME - Introduction to Scientific Writing
Plagiarism in Chemistry Lab Reports
Plagiarism can take many forms. It is not limited to copying another person's work. Plagiarism (as defined by Plagiarism.org) can take many forms including:
It is this last point that I see the most in terms of plagiarism in chemistry lab reports. Students think changing one word, a noun or verb, in a sentence means that they are not copying. In reality, it is still plagiarsim and it is not OK. It is representing someone else's ideas as you own. That is unethical and wrong. Below are two examples of student work where copying so many words or ideas from a source (lab partner) is an issue.
Student #1 sample
"In this lab and in the worksheet, we observed that groups and families in the Periodic Table have similar characteristics and that the idea of periodicity does affect the columns of the Periodic Table"
Student #2 sample
"In this lab and in the worksheet, we observed that groups and families in the Periodic Table have similar attributes and that the idea of periodicity does affect the columns of the Periodic Table"
Thirty-three of the thirty-four are copied. That's 97% of the above statements are identical. Don't get me wrong I understand lab partners should have similar ideas. Lab partners should collaborate and discuss ideas. And they will probably come up with similar conclusions & analyses after looking at their observations. When it comes to expressing those ideas in their reports, the way they express should reflect their own unique writing style and personality. Papers where students are found plagiarizing will be subject to receiving a zero or students may be requested to rewrite the offending portions for a reduced grade. Students may asked to share papers with the instructor for verification. And lab partners papers are compared to determine if plagiarism is taken place.
Listed below are links to documents related to technical writing and voice