Research Report Guidelines

The research report should be a joint effort of you and your lab partner(s). It must meet the following format specifications:

• Word processed
• Times New Roman font
• Font size 11 or 12, but not larger or smaller
• Margins 1.25" left, 1" top, right, and bottom
• Insert page numbers bottom-center, with title page number suppressed
• Two paragraph formatting styles are acceptable:
  a) First line indented, with no extra spacing between paragraphs;
  b) First line not indented, with extra spacing between paragraphs
• Experimental section should be written in narrative form rather than numbered-list form
• Experimental section should describe WHAT YOU DID rather than WHAT YOU WERE OR ARE SUPPOSED TO DO. Thus it should be written in past tense. Example of a correctly-written statement: "We weighed 0.1542 g of amino acid, transferred it to a 10-mL volumetric flask, and added water to the mark." The same statement incorrectly written: "Weigh 1 mmole of amino acid, transfer to a 5- or 10-mL volumetric flask, and add water to the mark." The last statement is an instruction, not a description of something done.
• Data must be presented in neatly arranged, numbered tables with headings. All tables should be grouped together at the end of the report, preceding the figures. Tables are referred to by number (for example, "See Table 1") in both the Experimental and Results/Discussion sections.
• Spectra, graphs and plots should be presented as numbered figures. All figures should be grouped together at the end of the report following the tables. Figures are referred to by number (for example, "See Figure 3") in both the Experimental and Results/Discussion sections.
• Graphs and plots should be done using MS Excel or another high-quality spreadsheet
• Calculations should be explicitly shown
• Decimal numbers smaller than 1 should be written with a preceding 0. Thus, 0.5 rather than .5
• Sentences should not begin with numbers. Thus, instead of "0.5 g of aspartic acid was placed..." you should write "Aspartic acid (0.5 g) was placed..."
• Common units may be abbreviated: mL for milliliter, ^oC for degrees Celsius, etc.
• Avoid too-frequent use of the words, "then", "own" (following "our"), "out" (following "weighed" or "measured"), and of the phrase "In order ..". For example,
  Too-frequent use of "then", unnecessary use of "out": "The amino acid sample was then weighed out. It was then placed in an Erlenmeyer flask. Then 0.5 mL of water was added, and then the mixture was swirled until the amino acid dissolved."
  Improved: The amino acid sample was weighed and placed in an Erlenmeyer flask. Water (0.5 mL) was added, and the mixture was swirled until the amino acid dissolved."
  
  Unnecessary use of "own" and "In order..": "In order to compare the spectrum of our own amino acid to those of known amino acids,.."
  Improved: To compare the spectrum of our amino acid to those of known amino acids,.."
  
  
• Data should be included even for "unsuccessful" experiments
• IR, UV-vis, and NMR spectra should be referred to as "spectrum" (singular) or "spectra" (plural), not "graphs" or "spectrums"
• References cited should be numbered and listed following the narrative section, preceding the tables and figures. Sentences or paragraphs taken word-for-word from a reference must be set off in quotation marks.

The report should consist of the following parts, or sections:

• Title Page
  • Name of experiment: The --- Project, with the name of your amino acid where the hyphens are
  • Names of investigators
  • Course and Section Numbers
  • Date of submission
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
  • Provide some background information on amino acids, including their structure, classification, and biological importance
  • Include a figure showing amino acid structure
  • State the purpose of the research (the problem to be solved)
  • Indicate the identity of your amino acid, and state its R group
• Experimental
  In this section, you should describe in narrative form the materials and methods that you used in your experiments
  • Describe reagents and sources
  • Describe techniques and instruments used
  • Describe all synthetic and analytical protocols (procedures). For example, making the copper adduct of your amino acid is a "synthesis"; hydrolyzing an oligopeptide is an "analytical procedure".
• Results and Discussion
  • Discuss the results of your experiments with your amino acid. For example
    • What were the results of your quantitative solubility measurements, in grams amino acid per mL of water? What is the precision of this number, based on repeated experiments? What other solvents dissolved your amino acid? Did you observe anything interesting or unusual in the course of these studies?
    • What were the results of your density measurements? What solvents and solvent mixtures were tried and which one suspended your amino acid? Based on the density measurements, can you eliminate any of the 20 amino acids from further consideration as the identity of your unknown?
    • What was the melting or decomposition temperature of your amino acid? How do your results compare with tabulated results for the amino acids? What were the results of side-by-side comparison experiments with known amino acids?
    • What were the results of your chromatography experiments with inks, and what do you conclude from them? What were the results of your TLC experiments with amino acids? What were the results of side-by-side comparison experiments with known amino acids?
    • What are the major features of the infrared spectrum? What structural features are indicated by the spectrum?
    • What information was obtained from the UV-visible spectrum?
    • What can you conclude about the identity of your amino acid?
    • Is the NMR spectrum consistent with the structure of the amino acid?
  • Discuss the results of your synthesis of the copper adduct of your amino acid, and the results of your studies of its properties.
  • Discuss the results of your oligopeptide study.
• Summary
  • Briefly review what you accomplished.
  • Briefly review your conclusions.
  • Summarize your quantitative results in a table, side-by-side with the known values of the same quantities for you amino acid.
  • Indicate which experiments were key in helping you to identify your amino acid.
  • Indicate which amino acids were present in your oligopeptide.
• Discussion of the relationship between the experiment and the CH1030 Course Theme, Equilibrium. NOTE: THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT--DON'T FORGET TO INCLUDE IT!
  • Write a paragraph in which you discuss the manner in which equilibrium, physical or chemical, is involved in your experiments. You should address how equilibrium is involved in each of the following experiments:
    • Solubility of amino acid in water
    • Titration of protonated amino acid with NaOH
    • Formation and solubility of the amino acid adduct with copper
    • Job's method determination of the stoichiometry of the copper amino acid adduct
    • Hydrolysis of the oligopeptide
• References (referred to by raised Arabic numeral in narrative)
• Data tables (referred to by Arabic numeral in narrative)
• Figures (referred to by Arabic numeral in narrative)

The major sections should be announced using headers in boldface and font size one larger than normal. Subsections within a major section should be announced using subheaders in italics and one font size larger than normal. Subsubsections within a subsection should be announced using subsubheaders underlined and in the normal font size.

You should submit a first draft of your report no later than the Friday following the 3rd lab session of the term. This will be critiqued by the course instructors, but will not be graded at this point. You should submit the final draft of your report no later than Monday of the final week of C term. This WILL be graded with particular attention to your response to the earlier critique.

A typical formal research report is shown here. You can use it as a model for yours if you want.

The Importance of Proofreading. Before submitting a final document for "publication" in a professional context, it is essential to carefully proofread it. To proofread a document means to read it word-by-word to find all needless errors (misspelled words, missing words, extra words or phrases, improper punctuation, references to the wrong table or figure, inconsistencies in formatting, missing or misplaced sections, and so on). If this is not done, it is almost certain that the document will contain a number of errors. Other professionals reading the document will be annoyed by these errors. If the errors are too numerous, most people will just stop reading. Producing error-filled documents will damage your reputation and credibility. It will prevent you from communicating your message to others. It may eventually lose you your job. Please carefully proofread before submitting any final document.