Writing in Physical Science
from http://biology.westfield.ma.edu/wscwg/physcience/
Physical scientists and science educators incorporate a variety of modes of writing into their professional careers. Astronomers, chemists, geologists, physicists, and science educators communicate with each other and "non-scientists" using an assortment of writing styles. As in other disciplines, the writing genre used by authors in the physical sciences depends upon the intended audience and the message being conveyed by the written piece. For example, a scientist who is writing a newspaper editorial supporting the use of nuclear power will not use a "laboratory report" format. In order to determine what type of writing format is the most appropriate for your writing assignment, you may find it useful to refer to the list below as a guide. Each type of scientific writing in the list is linked to information about the corresponding message, writer, and intended audience. Keep in mind that each link provides information about the primary writer and the primary intended audience, but is not meant to exclude readers from other categories. You may assume that the instructor for your course is always a member of the intended audience.
Writing Laboratory Reports and Research Papers
Message
One of the goals of most of the courses in the physical sciences is to help students improve their skills in communicating about the results of scientific experiments. When writing laboratory reports and research papers, scientists must provide their audience with appropriate background information, a detailed description of the methodology used in the experiment, the results of the experiment or study, and the conclusions or implications that were drawn from these results. The writing (message) must be detailed and accurate. Although there may be slight variations on some of the details, laboratory reports and research papers in the physical sciences use the following general format.
Format
Title and Authors
Compose a title that will give the reader a sense of what was investigated. The title should identify the variables under investigation if possible, but should not be too long and detailed. In order to develop an appropriate title, you should wait until the experiment is completed before composing a title.
Include the authors' names, the course name and number, and the date. Be sure to center the title and authors' names and to use bold type as follows:
Page Break
When dealing with quantitative data, you should indicate which equations or formulas you used to compute your answers, and you should provide at least one example of each different type of calculation. When using data to produce a graph, you must use appropriate scales, correct labeling, and accuracy when plotting points. The types of tables, graphs, figures, and charts used will depend upon the data generated in an experiment.
You should begin this section by analyzing the data presented in your tables, graphs, and figures. Look for patterns in the data, and consider what the data may be indicating. Compose one or two sentences about each table, graph, and figure. When writing your summary of the data, be sure to refer to each table, graph, and figure specifically (e.g., Table 2).
American Psychological Association (1994). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
http://www.psych.qub.ac.uk/LearningResources/APAPublicationManualCribShe
Writer
Any scientist who conducts experiments in a laboratory setting must write accurate laboratory reports or research papers. These scientists may be laboratory technicians running routine tests or researchers attempting to uncover new information. The writer of such reports is typically familiar with scientific jargon and routine procedures in the laboratory.
Audience
Although the audience for laboratory reports and research papers often consists of scientists, this is not always the case. Since these reports are most often used to communicate research findings among scientists, scientific jargon is often used with little explanation. However, laboratory reports and research papers are sometimes read by "non-scientists." For example, an individual who is afflicted with a certain disease may be interested in reading many of the research papers regarding the disease.
Journals Containing Other Examples
The following journals contain examples of laboratory reports:
Science: http://www.sciencemag.org/
Journal of the American Chemical Society: http://pubs.acs.org/journals/jacsat/index.html
from http://biology.westfield.ma.edu/wscwg/physcience/
Physical scientists and science educators incorporate a variety of modes of writing into their professional careers. Astronomers, chemists, geologists, physicists, and science educators communicate with each other and "non-scientists" using an assortment of writing styles. As in other disciplines, the writing genre used by authors in the physical sciences depends upon the intended audience and the message being conveyed by the written piece. For example, a scientist who is writing a newspaper editorial supporting the use of nuclear power will not use a "laboratory report" format. In order to determine what type of writing format is the most appropriate for your writing assignment, you may find it useful to refer to the list below as a guide. Each type of scientific writing in the list is linked to information about the corresponding message, writer, and intended audience. Keep in mind that each link provides information about the primary writer and the primary intended audience, but is not meant to exclude readers from other categories. You may assume that the instructor for your course is always a member of the intended audience.
- Laboratory Reports / Research Papers
- Commentaries / Position or Issue Papers
- Journal Article Summaries
- Book and Paper Reviews
- Lesson Plans
One of the goals of most of the courses in the physical sciences is to help students improve their skills in communicating about the results of scientific experiments. When writing laboratory reports and research papers, scientists must provide their audience with appropriate background information, a detailed description of the methodology used in the experiment, the results of the experiment or study, and the conclusions or implications that were drawn from these results. The writing (message) must be detailed and accurate. Although there may be slight variations on some of the details, laboratory reports and research papers in the physical sciences use the following general format.
Format
Include the authors' names, the course name and number, and the date. Be sure to center the title and authors' names and to use bold type as follows:
Title
(3 spaces)
Authors' Names
Course Number and Name
Date
Course numbers and names do not pertain to professional laboratory reports and research papers.Page Break
Abstract
Many, but not all, laboratory reports and research papers include a one-paragraph summary of the results of an experiment. This summary, called an abstract, should be no more than 100 words in length. It is a concise, accurate, and readable synopsis of an experiment. After reading the abstract, a reader should have a sense of the theoretical and empirical components of the experiment, as well as an overview of the results. An abstract should include: (1) the topic of the experiment, (2) materials and methods, (3) results, (4) conclusions, and (5) implications. This section should have the heading Abstract, as shown above.
(3 spaces)
This section, often referred to as the introduction, does not typically have a heading. The introduction should include: (1) a description of the problem under investigation, (2) a hypothesis or prediction of the results of the experiment, (3) definitions of important terms and identification of variables involved in the experiment, and (4) a review of relevant literature. Any information obtained from previous research by another author must be cited (see References section). A student who is composing a laboratory report must provide a detailed theoretical background in this section. Experienced researchers may assume that their audience is familiar with the theoretical underpinnings and do not need to provide such extensive details.
(3 spaces)
Materials and Methods
(3 spaces)
This section should include: (1) a list of the materials and equipment used (including quantities of each) and (2) a description of the step-by-step procedure used in the investigation. A drawing of the materials and set-up may be helpful. Using your descriptions and drawings, another investigator should be able to set up and execute the same experiment exactly as you did. Therefore, it is a good idea to make note of "trouble spots" or "things to watch out for." Since this section is a record of what you did during the experiment, it should be written in the past tense.
(3 spaces)
Results
(3 spaces)
Data may be displayed in tables, charts, figures, and graphs. Each of these tables, charts, etc. must have a title. You must decide what information is important to record, and you must take care to record data accurately. Although many students think of data as exclusively quantitative (numerical), you should be aware that scientific data are often qualitative (descriptive).When dealing with quantitative data, you should indicate which equations or formulas you used to compute your answers, and you should provide at least one example of each different type of calculation. When using data to produce a graph, you must use appropriate scales, correct labeling, and accuracy when plotting points. The types of tables, graphs, figures, and charts used will depend upon the data generated in an experiment.
You should begin this section by analyzing the data presented in your tables, graphs, and figures. Look for patterns in the data, and consider what the data may be indicating. Compose one or two sentences about each table, graph, and figure. When writing your summary of the data, be sure to refer to each table, graph, and figure specifically (e.g., Table 2).
(3 spaces)
Discussion
(3 spaces)
In this section, you should compare your results with your original hypothesis or prediction. Do the results support your hypothesis? If not, will you amend the hypothesis or reject it completely? Similarities and/or differences between your results and the results of other researchers should be noted. Any conclusions or generalizations that you make should follow logically from the data and results. Finally, you may wish to comment on the limitations of your experiment, implications of your work, and further experimentation, if appropriate.
(3 spaces)
References
(3 spaces)
All literature and other media cited in the laboratory report should be included in this section. The references are listed alphabetically according to the last names of the primary authors. Although several styles are acceptable for citing literature in the physical sciences, the American Psychological Association (APA) style is frequently used. For guidelines and examples using APA style, refer to the following references:American Psychological Association (1994). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
http://www.psych.qub.ac.uk/LearningResources/APAPublicationManualCribShe
Writer
Any scientist who conducts experiments in a laboratory setting must write accurate laboratory reports or research papers. These scientists may be laboratory technicians running routine tests or researchers attempting to uncover new information. The writer of such reports is typically familiar with scientific jargon and routine procedures in the laboratory.
Audience
Although the audience for laboratory reports and research papers often consists of scientists, this is not always the case. Since these reports are most often used to communicate research findings among scientists, scientific jargon is often used with little explanation. However, laboratory reports and research papers are sometimes read by "non-scientists." For example, an individual who is afflicted with a certain disease may be interested in reading many of the research papers regarding the disease.
Journals Containing Other Examples
The following journals contain examples of laboratory reports:
Science: http://www.sciencemag.org/
Journal of the American Chemical Society: http://pubs.acs.org/journals/jacsat/index.html
