Scientific Report -9 Components of a Scientific Report

Scientific Report -9 Components of a Scientific Report

This article aims to help you master how to write a student-level report of workshop research, also known as scientific reports or lab reports. Although the guide might be juxtaposed with research work, the main focus would still remain on capturing those essential elements that qualify your work as a science paper.

First off, we would begin with the simple method of identifying a science report; a scientific report is a document that labels the process, progress, and/or results of technical or scientific research. It may often comprise a definite conclusion and/or recommendation.

Now how does a lab report differ from term papers?  According to research made by the Britannica encyclopedic reference, a sourced out multi-paragraphed contrast was deduced and its concern was centred on the major differences existing between a scientific report and a research paper alias term paper. It reads;

“Lab reports generally require less time for background research. For a lab report, you really only need to present the reader with enough background information to provide a rationale for the hypothesis and the particular tests used in the study. Of course, this distinction only holds true for student-level lab reports; professional lab reports often require a great deal of time searching through the library and Web-based research reports. The Web has made it much easier to complete background research for lab reports.

Lab reports emphasize standardized and clear presentation of information. Where the lab report places relatively less importance on library and Web-based research than a research or term paper, it places greater emphasis on clear descriptions and following standardized formats in the structure of the report. Ultimately, the lab report “should enable readers to replicate the experiment so that they can verify the results for themselves” (Beer, 1997).

Despite these differences, both the lab report and the term paper should follow basic rules of good writing and research.”

With that being formally addressed it’d be relevant to list out major components of scientific research that you as a potential writer should put cognizance of, but before we kick off it is important to note the purpose of our scientific research, is there any benefit to it?

As a researcher, writer, and overall curator, your dominant goal and desire with respect to your discipline should be to communicate clearly provided solutions to tasking worries and enigma; before you proceed to put two and two together, use the below to structure your direction

• Are you in possession of a clearly stated objective or hypothesis?
• Can you dispense correctly data in a clear and brief form?
• Are you able to interpret the results of the study?
• Can you pinpoint and justify the differences in your results?
• Can you present a thoughtful conclusion?
• Do you recognize the total significance of the outcomes from the study?

Answer the above questions and if the prevalent endpoints read NO, then your foundation is faulty, and it’d most likely result in you sourcing out defective reports that tie no end. Below are the elements that make up a scientific report

1.       Title page

2.       Table of content

3.       Abstract

4.       Introduction

5.       Materials and method

6.       Results

7.       Discussions

8.       Conclusions

9.       References

Title Page

Your title page is the beginning and thus, must comprise of

A.      The title of the report: the title of your report must not be an entire paragraph; a word count ranging from 4-12 is deemed acceptable. It is an incentive and absolute requirement to make the title concise, clear, a herald for keywords, specific, and very descriptive.

B.       Essayist: whenever you have elected to make a publication, use corresponding monikers and sobriquets, involve the address and major landmarks, credit the qualified authors, and display their contact information

C.       Date: always be sure to input the date on which your work was submitted.

Table of content

A table of content is a prearranged list of document chapters, sections, and items, labelled by a number of pages and used for organizing a book, paper, or article. Readers should be able to understand the manner in which you have systematized your scientific report.

Your table of content should comprise significant matters, main content, sub-matters, and conclusion, including a heading and page numbers of all chapters. A table of content should only be present for lengthy works, at least a 6 to 7 paged article or research paper.

Abstract

When an abstract is been mentioned it refers to a conceived synopsis, a self-defining outline, or a précis of the report, see it as an edifying summary of what you have done and the results it begat.

While preparing an abstract, you’d need to embrace the following

• An objective
• Reference
• Citations
• Summary

If there ever was a hypothesis, you’d need to identify the cause and effect. Did it morph into an established fact, or was it repudiated? Traditionally, an abstract is designed to emanate first, but to carry readers along and abate confusion, it’d be best to write it last. Are you clear on this?

Introduction

Your introduction should define the question; your introduction should carve out an analysis concerning the pending reason you have decided to investigate. your introduction should embolden your cause by providing conjectures that will provoke answers to the question in the form of a prediction; these predictions are  often addressed as hypotheses and for you to realize such, write down the following questions and provide answers to them

What is the course of the study?

What is the objective of the study?

What background information is necessary for the reader?

What particular method was used to conduct the study? Why?

Cause for why the research was taken?

Definition of all techniques adopted

A recap and evaluation of previous research

Your introduction should serve as a pointer, the typical what and why. It should present a reason why your experiment is in existence; this should be jotted down in a narrative format and should not vent what would cause an imprint of conclusion.

Material and Method

This should come with a detailed description of the procedures and techniques used during the experimenting process, itemize the process of groundwork, sample specification, apparatuses, and method applied.

Sample-  create a section like this, and if your experiments include the use of animal substances or human elements, be sure to highlight such with a clear description, but if your experiment is devoid of such, there shouldn’t be a need to point it out

Experimenters—if the features of your experiments are influencing your result, create another section in similitude with the above and explain the features, causes, and effects.

Materials (and measures)- this category should involve whatever non-human tools, substances, and instruments are used in your experiment. When scribbling this aspect down, be sure to align it in chronological order.

Procedures- this section should be comprised of all techniques, methods, and manners which you employed in your experiment

Analyses- create a section if you fancy a cause to explain some or, rather most of the complex methods and techniques that are far from common.

Method of action in a scientific report must come in a passive voice and must be arranged chronologically.

Results

Going with the renowned definition of what a result depicts, this unit must contain what you have uncovered, an end product of your invested time and efforts, and the data collected from your initiated exhaustive experiment. Your task is to collect and report your findings but not expand on or explain them. Your result must reflect the following

• Images and varieties
• Tables and graphs
• Colossal number of data

Be sure that what you are recording is empirical, from a personal view, and not an adaptation, do not write out your result in the active voice or involve personal pronunciation.

Discussion

After you are done listing down your results, proceed to compare and contrast them with the literature. Designate an extended period to reflect on your actual data and observations.

Further, with the explanation and interpretation of your data and rationalising errant data or detectable errors and what sort of influence they assert on the outcome, now, as you go about trying to feed logic into the prospective mind, be sure whatever you are making out provides a comprehensible meaning of the result.

Conclusions

This is where your report staggers to a close; sum up your research and findings. Your conclusion should contain only a few sentences and must repeat the findings of your experiment; you can as well recommend possible paths that can lead to improvements in the area of your research.

References

This should consist of the sites you sourced out points and cited. It should be formatted in line with the demands of a journal, be sure you are precise as spelling errors are one to disorganize your work.