Recording and Graphing Data

Common Notebook Sections



Each experiment, or set of related experiments, in the lab notebook should contain most of the sections described below. Which sections should be included will vary with the exact type of experiment being performed or with the directions of your instructor.

Purpose - A brief statement of the goals and methods of the experiment.

Background - A brief overview of the information necessary for someone else to understand what is going to happen in the experiment.

Materials - Unknown numbers, specialized equipment, chemicals used.

Procedure - An outline of the procedure to be used. If it is not printed elsewhere, this should be more detailed.

Experimental
Details -
Include how solutions were made, all data taken and any observations made. This should be done in an orderly fashion. Use tables as appropriate.

Calculations - Include an example of each calculation type.

Results - Your findings based on the experiment.

Conclusions - A summary of the major findings of the experiment and any recommendations you can make.


Continue and read about specifics about recording data.