WRITE UP YOUR EXPERIMENT As A FORMAL PAPER
ME:
Choose a title that tells the reader about the experiment including the independent variable,
and the dependent variable.
AUTHOR; S 1:
Author’s names are centered under the title. The person who did most of the writing is listed
first.
INTRODUCTION:
The first sentence is an observation or states a known fact that made you decide to do this
experiment; therefore it is written in the present tense. The next several sentences back up the
topic sentence with research. Use an in-text citation to guide the reader to the reference
section. For this assignment use the textbook, journal articles, or websites (.org, .edu, and
gov are best – NO wikipedia) as sources of information.
Conclude the introduction with a final paragraph about this experiment. The author’s
hypothesis is given as a statement and should include the independent and dependent
variables. Start your sentence with “The purpose of this experiment is…”
METHODS:
The methods section should explain what you did in enough detail so a competent person
could repeat the experiment. Include techniques, concentrations, times, temperatures etc.
Methods are written in past tense and in passive voice {the tube was heated}. First person is
acceptable {we heated the tube} but second person is not {you heat the tube}.
RESULTS:
This section should include a brief statement of the results and direct the reader to the tables
BIOS 107: Biology l
and graphs that give the details. Even though the table and graphs may be in the middle of
the paper, they should provide enough information so that the reader can understand the
experiment without reading the text. Be sure to give a title and include the measurement
Units DO NOT include any interpretation of results in this section.
DISCUSSION:
Explain how the results support or falsify your hypothesis. Explain any unexpected results.
Explain any factors that you did not control which may have affected the experiment. If you
were to repeat this experiment, what would you do differently? Discuss how your new data
may apply to other systems. Use references to show how your data is supported by other
research or known facts (references). Describe other experiments that could be done to
expand research in this area.
REFERENCES:
References should be listed in alphabetical order by author. Include the authors or editor,
journal or book title, year of publication and page numbers. Use APA format.
Rotten U.R., Nasty I.M., 1992. How to Grade Papers to Insure that Most Students
M. J. Disgruntled
Teachers 45-79.
Stink W.E., Too U., 1994. How to Publish Lousy Research. MIT Press, Inc. 223-245.
PAPER DU E: