How to write a lab report on identification of unknown bacteria

1. How to write a lab report on identification of unknown bacteria Biology 225

2. Sections of the report • Title • Introduction • Materials and Methods • Results • Discussion • Conclusions • References

3. Title Purpose: To accurately describe the scope of your project • Be descriptive • Include your tube # Example: The identification of two unknown species of bacteria in tube #99

4. Introduction Purpose: To introduce your project to the reader and tell how this work would be accomplished and its importance • Includes the question that began this whole process • Includes HOW you were going to answer the question • Possible species • Possible tests, stains, etc. • Possible techniques that could have been used • Includes the reasons that this type of experiment is important

5. Materials and Methods Purpose: To tell the reader what you did and how • Describe what you did • Do not include dates • Reference your lab manual – this is how you knew what to do • Do not forget time and temperature of incubation of biochemical tests • Do not repeat yourself • Do not list the materials

6. Results Purpose: To represent your data/results in the best possible way • Represent your data in tables and figures • Tables and figures are “pictures” of your data that are easily read and understood • Do not write out all of your results in paragraph form • Captions are crucial! • Caption = descriptive title that allows that table or figure to be understood by anyone, even outside of the original paper • Figures are drawings, pictures, graphs – anything except tables

7. Example of Table

8. Example of caption for table • Table 1 – Cell and colony characteristics, staining characteristics, and biochemical test results from the identification of Gram + and Gram – bacteria in tube #99.

9. Discussion Purpose: To describe to the reader what your logic was behind the choice of the two species that you identified • Explain your elimination process – how did you eliminate 8 of 10 possible species of bacteria • Discuss one of your species at a time • Show how the characteristics of your species are related to the results of tests that you had • Discuss any problems that occurred and give possible causes for those problems

10. Conclusion: Purpose: To state the identity of your unknowns • A one or two sentence statement telling what the identity of your two unknown species of bacteria were.

11. References: • Lab manual • Personal communications • Bergey’s Manual… • Your textbook • Websites – use complete URL • Other sources • References should be listed in numerical order that they were used in the report. • Superscript numbers are used at the end of sentences were you used references.

12. General tips…. • Write in the past tense – this is what you did • Do not use personal pronouns….I, you, etc. • This is a scientific paper. Be concise and to-the-point. • Cover all information adequately.

13. More general tips…. • Use white paper and black ink • Use reasonable margins and font • Put your name somewhere on the report • NO cover or coversheet • Length – long enough to get the job done

14. How to get started • Writing is hard! • Start with what you know best – your Materials and Methods section • Then continue on with your Results section • Write your Discussion section next • Then finish with the rest of the sections

15. Grading • Gradesheet in D2L • 10 points for correctly identifying your two species • Results = 20 points • Discussion = 25 points (THE most important section) • Minimum score of 70% to finish the course • Late point deduction = -10 points per day late

16. The End