Report Writing Guidelines

Taken directly and paraphrased from:

The ACS Style Guide - A Manual for Authors and Editors, Janet. S. Dodd, Editor, 1986, American Chemical Society
Publishers

A copy is available in the library.


General Writing Style
Short declarative sentences are easiest to write, and easiest to be, and they are usually clear.  However, too many short sentences in a row can sound abrupt or monotonous.  It is easier to start with simple declarative sentences and then combine some of them than to start with long rambling sentences and then try to shorten them.  By all means you should write in your own style, but keep in mind that scientific writing is not literary writing.  Scientific writing serves a completely different purpose from literary writing, and must therefore be much more precise.  Some specific hints follow.

Stick to the original meanings of words; don't use a word to express a thought if such usage is the fourth or fifth definition in the dictionary or if such usage is primarily literary.  Examples are using "since" when you mean "because," and "while" when you mean "although."  Many words are clear enough when you are speaking because you can amplify your meaning with gestures, expressions, and vocal inflections but when written, they are clear only to you.  Many scientific words have specific meanings for example melt is not the same as dissolve, although both may seen visually similar.  When you mean transition from a solid to liquid state of a pure compound use melt.  When you are adding a soluble solid to water to obtain a homogeneous liquid use dissolve.

In general, use past tense and passive voice where appropriate.  For example:

The mass of benzene was obtained.     not     We weighed the benzene.
Little use of the pronouns I, me, we, our, mine, etc. should be found.


General rules for writing a scientific paper

Avoid slang and jargon.
Use strong verbs; they are essential to clear, concise writing.
Use the passive voice.
Be brief.  Wordiness usually adds nothing but confusion, and the resulting paper is poor.
Phrases like "we believe", "we feel", "we concluded", and "we can see" are unnecessary as are personal opinions.
Try not to shift verb tenses within the same paragraph and section.  However, the tense should change from section to section.
Present and past tenses are correct in the introduction:

"absolute rate constants for many reactions are available."  and   "Jones reviewed the literature and gathered much of this information".
Simple past tense is correct for describing your procedures: "the solutions were heated to boiling", "the spectra were recorded."  Present tense may be used to discuss results  and conclusions.

One final point is that you and your laboratory partners have been discussing this laboratory so the words seem familiar, common and clear to you.  However, these thoughts must be made clear to your reader.


Grammar and Usage

The following section addresses grammar, style, and usage.  This information can be found in more detail in chapter 2 in the ACS Style Guide.  Herein, I have specifically addressed those issues that are particularly troublesome for students.

Correct grammar is required in all sections of your laboratory report.  Chapter 2 provides excellent information on grammar and usage.  As each of you has presumably completed basic writing, I assume that you are able to write using correct grammar.  I expect proper grammar and spelling.  Papers containing grammar and spelling errors may be automatically assigned a failing grade despite the scientific content.  If you have difficulty, at a minimum you should use the spell checker and grammar checker available in word processing programs.  Beyond this assistance, you may seek help at the writing center or from me during my office hours.

Some specific grammar problems or common areas of general poor usage:
Parenthesis
In correct usage, parenthetical expressions contain information that is subsidiary to the point that the sentence is making.  The sentence does not depend on information in parentheses.  Use parentheses for parenthetical expressions that
clarify, identify, or illustrate and direct the reader.

For example:
The total amount (10 mg) was recovered by modifying the procedure.
The final step (washing) was performed under the hood.
The curve (figure 2) obeys the Beer-Lambert law.
Enclose oxidation numbers in parentheses, closed up to the element name or symbol, in text but not in formulas.  (In formulas
use superscripts.)
For example:
copper(III) or Cu(III) not copper III
Use parentheses to indicate isotopic substitution
(N-15)ammonia or (C-14)glucose
The period
Do not use periods after abbreviated units of measure and most other abbreviations and symbols, except when the abbreviation
could be confused with another word.
For example:
inches are abbreviated in.          but         centimeters are abbreviated cm
Capitalization
Generally, in text, keep everything lowercase except proper nouns. The standard english writing rules for capitalization in titles and proper  names apply. Do not capitalize the names of common chemicals.  When giving credit for a rule or law, capitalize only the proper noun.
For example:
Avagadro's number or Lewis acid.
Do not capitalize lower-cased abbreviations and symbols when they are at the beginning of a sentence or in a capitalized title.
For example:
pH shift relationships were studied.
Do not capitalize chemical names and nonproprietary drug names unless they are the first word of the sentence or in a title or
heading.
For example
The correct amount of benzene was obtained.
Do not capitalize the common names of equipment; capitalize only brand or trade names.
For example:
Perkin Elmer ultraviolet visible spectrophotometer, but not gas chromatograph.
Usage of numbers
Use consecutive numbers for figures, tables, schemes, structures, and references.  Use numerals with units of time or measure including a unit.
For example:
6 min or 225 ml.
When measurements are used any nontechnical sense, spell them out.
For example:
If you take five minutes to read this you might become a better writer.
With items other than units of time or measure, use words for numbers less than 10; use numbers for 10 and above, except as
the first word of the sentence.  Use numerals in any series containing numbers 10 or greater.
three flasks          but            30 flasks                  seven trees         but           10 trees
5, 8, and 12 experiments         not          five, eight, and 12 experiments.
Numbers may be used to name an item.
Sample 1 contained a high-level of contamination, but samples 2 and 3 were pure.
For large numbers in scientific notation use exponents. 

Abbreviations
Use abbreviations sparingly.  Abbreviations are best restricted to units. Commonly accepted abbreviations like IR for infrared spectroscopy and NMR for nuclear magnetic spectroscopy are acceptable.

Figures and Tables and Schemes

Every figure must have a caption that includes the figure number and a brief description of the material contained therein.  Good figure captions can allow the reader to determine the major points of the paper by investigation of the figures and tables.
Schemes are used to show chemical reactions.  Schemes should also contain proper captions.  Tables are best used to present data when there are too many data to be presented clearly in the narrative.  Tables should be organized to provide easy comparison of data.  Tables must have titles and column headings.  Units should reside in the column headings unless units change throughout the column.  Tables should also have a caption that summarizes the data.

References
References should be prepared for any material that is not original (see academic integrity policy).  References should include the authors name, title, journal or book, year of publication, page or pages, and publisher.
A correct example of literature cited follows:

Goodstudent, J., Writing a Report with Style, The ACS Style Guide, 1988, ACS Publications, 182-194.
 
This list is not all inclusive it is presented to provide guidance and address the most common problems seen in undergraduate students.  A copy of the ACS Style Guide is available in the library.  For those of you who plan a career in chemistry a copy of the ACS Style guide would be a good addition to your library.