Lab Report Analysis
Lab reports are used to accurately depict data gathered from research conducted. Although identifying the nomenclature of these lab reports may be difficult, one can analyze them carefully to have a better understanding of what the main points in a report are. The three lab reports looked at were: Traditional Indian fermented foods: a rich source of lactic acid bacteria by the Department of Biotechnology, Pondicherry University, Puducherry-605014, India, A Look Inside Autodesk Labs, where technologies are put through their paces by Karen Moltenbrey, and Computer Analysis of Influence of Moisture Content of the Fine-Silty Sand for the File CEP Applied for Oceanographic Engineering under Vertical Tensile by Jilin Jianzhu University. Despite these lab reports having many differences; upon closer examination, these reports actually have many similarities as well.
Upon analyzing the first report, the Jilin Jianzhu University report shows an image of a research foundation which they worked with/for when working on the report. Additionally it is organized in such a matter where things aren’t messy but everything is neat and distinguishable. Right after the abstract – a form of summary that introduces the issue, how that issue is going to be explored in order to find the best solution for the issue or just gather more information about it
– , they provided us with “Additional Index Terms” which are very helpful to have a better insight of terms to know that will play a pivotal role in understanding the issue at hand. In addition to the abstract, there is also a title which helps in the way in which the author(s) help assert credibility and helps engage others in the reading. At first glance you can see right away that the piece has subtitles which helps further organize the information into sections. Not only that but there are a lot of pictures and diagrams which seem quite complex. However, upon taking a closer look at these pictures and diagrams we could see that they are actually being well explained within the report. Each diagram and picture is labeled as a figure and are briefly explained under each illustration which helps better understand the context. After all the research is done, it is followed by the conclusion which is simply a short explanation of the findings after the tests had been completed. Interesting enough however, the piece does not end there since Acknowledgments and Cited Sources are also included in the piece which really helps show that this piece is in fact reliable and it humbles up the piece which I personally like very much.
In the second report about the AutoDesk labs, it had a cover which was different from the other 2, however this cover seems to be poorly executed. It may be more of a personal thing but I believe the color scheme and the image used takes away from the sense of professionalism in the piece. Other than that, on the first page it is just straight to the point by explaining the purpose behind AutoDesks and what they really are. One of the highlights of this report is the subtitles since they are posed as questions. This came to be very helpful because some of the subtitles where questions I myself had, so seeing them there felt as if the writer knew what was going on in my head which made me feel more in touch with the piece. In comparison to the previous one this one didn’t have a citation so its credibility is debatable. I honestly was not the biggest fan of this lab report because I felt it was missing a lot of components that add to it’s professionalism, since it seemed like a magazine more than a report. On the bright side, the images were very entertaining and gave a nice technical illustration of the parts.
Finally when it comes to the last report from the Pondicherry University, at a first look it looks very professional, very credible, and it gives a very welcoming atmosphere to the reader. As all other reports, this one had an “abstract” with keywords right below it which is very good in providing clearer and more concise information. The length of this lab is 10+ pages which gives the impression that a lot of hard work and time went into this piece. Not only that, but within those pages there are diagrams. These diagrams are very well done because not only do they have a title to explain what the figures are about but also include references as to where the information on the charts came from. One must also take note that in this lab report there were not only subsections but also sub subsections that dwell deeper into the topic. While skimming through it, I also noticed that there were a lot of words that were very scientific and hard to pronounce but they were italicized which I don’t know exactly what italics do but it really helped to say “hey, this isn’t something you should know how to pronounce”. Similar to the first one they also have an “Acknowledgment” section as well as a “Work Cited Section”. In terms of vocabulary it’s very advanced, but not too advanced to where it sounds like a dictionary. Overall, it was a pretty good lab report, if I were to say anything it would include more color but then again that is just a personal thing.
What I have noticed is that lab reports usually include the same information although it may be structured differently. Firstly, they all have an abstract to serve as a summary/introduction of what the lab report will consist of. Not only that but a nice and clear title and if possible any outside groups you may have worked with to complete the task. This helps add to the aesthetics of the piece, helps add to its credibility and makes the paper actually seem more interesting to read. Subtitles would also be greatly necessary to include in order to separate different sections. Other key things I saw that are needed are an “Acknowledgement” and “Work Cited” Section. Other more minor points that could strengthen the paper however would definitely have to be the use of higher vocabulary, as well as the use of color to make it more interesting. As can be seen many of these lab reports, despite being about different topics and having many differences between them; many of them have a lot of similarities.
REFERENCE:
- Satish Kumar, R., et al, (2013), Traditional Indian fermented foods: a rich source of lactic acid bacteria, by the Department of Biotechnology, Pondicherry University, Puducherry-605014, India
- Moltenbrey, K., (2010), A Look Inside Autodesk Labs, where technologies are put through their paces, Trends and Technologies
- Qian, Y., (2019), Computer Analysis of Influence of Moisture Content of the Fine-Silty Sand for the File CEP Applied for Oceanographic Engineering under Vertical Tensile, Jilin Jianzhu University
Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.
