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'''Laboratory reports''', commonly referred to as lab reports, are [[science|scientific]] papers that enable researchers to communicate their findings with others, e.g. findings such as results of scientific [[experiment]]s. Another important function of lab reports is the record-keeping of experiments. This allows other researchers to examine or to duplicate the experiment.

Researchers and scientists often use the lab report format to publish their accomplishments. However, they are not the only ones to write these documents: most reports are done by students of highschools and colleges for schoolwork, and when they're competing in [[science fair]]s.

The format and rules of lab reports are very complicated and have to be strictly followed for easier communication. But, these rules may vary in different fields or even to different people. For example, in a school, each teacher may have different preferences of format and style for lab reports from their students.

[[This article is a W.I.P -- wed, oct. 12 2005]]⏎
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==History==
''See also: [[History of science]], [[sociology of science]] and [[sociology of scientific knowledge]]''

==Format==
Using the format as a guideline when composing a report will help one avoid leaving out important aspects of a experiment and make the report logical and easier to understand. Although there isn't a standard format or style for such a document, most lab reports contain basic elements as listed below.

====Title Page====
(contracted; show full)====Discussion====
Here, the significance of the results is explained and a conclusion is reached. And then the author will list possible sources of systematic and random error and suggest ways to improve the design of the experiment.

====Reference====
This section provides a alphabetized list of books or other published resources cited in the report. For more information, see [[citation]] and [[plagiarism]].

====Appendices====

Appendices is a section for data, diagrams and other related items that are not included in the above sections. Each appendix should be referred to at least once from other sections of the report. For example, at the beginning of the results section, one might add: "See Appendix A: Raw Data Chart".⏎
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==See Also==
* [[Scientific method]]

* [[Scientific paper]]

==Reference==
* http://myweb.facstaff.wwu.edu/~mendens/LabReport.pdf

* http://www.psywww.com/tipsheet/labrep.htm

* http://www.rpi.edu/dept/llc/writecenter/web/labs.html

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