SCI: Honors Chemistry Lab Report

The background information section should introduce the scientific content that is relevant for your study (pro tip: write your discussion first; whatever you had to look up in order to explain your interpretations should be explained here)

• This section should be written in paragraph form

• The scientific content should come from reliable sources and be correctly referenced (both endnote and footnote strategies are acceptable -- use NoodleTools to create acceptable references).

  • Be very careful with inappropriate use of cut-and-paste, mosaic plagiarism, and simple changing of words 

  • You can use Wikipedia to find other sources

• The background information should be well organized and when applicable, should start off general and become more specific

• The background information should have the appropriate depth in order to provide the reader with enough information that they can understand the technical scientific language used for the remainder of the lab report

• The background information needs to be relevant (as stated above), clear, concise yet thorough, and accurate

Important websites:

Science Databases provided by Cox Library

SDS Safety Data Sheets