Notebook keeping

Once again, if your own instructor wants anything different, do it. The art of notebook keeping has many schools—follow the perspective of your own. 

The First-to-invent Principle of the United States and Its Consequences on Laboratory Notebook Keeping... 

Neatness counts. Research is a lot of work, and everybody gets tired. But you must take the time to write legibly, or at least to copy any scribbled notes within a short period of time, before you can no longer decipher them. And if you re keeping a research notebook, keep it current. 

The scope of initial training always covers an induction period of perhaps four weeks, during which the trainee learns about the structure of the company which he has joined and the administration which he will be expected to carry out in the field. It is important that he learns about the legislation which applies to his job and the statutory forms which he must use. Surveyors are often required to keep a notebook, the purpose of which is similar to that of a police officer. He will later be required to cover the interests of all the clients who are his district , and he must therefore set up in his home the necessary administrative and record-keeping facilities to enable him to do this effectively and economically. 

A detailed and comprehensive system of record keeping is necessary, including, for example, worksheets, notebooks, computer output and reports, and all of these should be retained for a reasonable period of time or as required by the customer. A period of six years is often chosen. The content of reports and certificates is tightly defined, to ensure that customers receive all relevant information and that the laboratory does not make exaggerated claims about which parts of its work have been accredited. A documented system for dealing with any customer complaints and for informing customers if discrepancies in results are subsequently discovered must be available and in place. 

I started keeping a notebook to try to figure out what was causing these reactions. It turned out to be various foods, cigarette smoke, cleansers, mold, vehicle exhaust, pesticides, cosmetics, soap, my clothes and electromagnetic fields. 

But you didn t read that line, or the next, or the next. So you are a danger to yourself and everyone else. Read and take notes on any experiment before you come to lab (see Chapter 2, Keeping a Notebook ). 

Percent yield. Calculate the percent yield (see Chapter 2, Keeping a Notebook ) and put it on the label. 

This is the major problem. And it requires some experimentation. That s right Once again, art over science. Usually, you ll know what you should have prepared, so the task is easier. It requires a trip to your notebook, and possible, a handbook (see Chapter 2, Keeping a Notebook and Chapter 3, Interpreting a Handbook ). You have the data on the solubility of the compound in your notebook. What s that you say You don t have the data in your notebook Congratulations, you get the highest F in the course. 

Remarks. Tell where you put your calibration peak, where the sample came from, and anything unusual that someone in another lab might have trouble with when trying to duplicate your work. Don t put this off until the last day of the semester when you can no longer remember the details. Keep a record of the spectrum in your notebook. 

Record keeping carried out not only by the analyst in laboratory notebooks, but also in logbooks for each instrument. After completion, these should be archived for at least ten years. Records should include the type of sample (with a unique identification number), collection method, location, date, description of sample, preparation and analysis method, and instrumental conditions, original data files, and the name of the person responsible. 

From the outset the student should accustom himself to keep a notebook in which all records of experiments and all observations are entered. Never rely on the memory in scientific work. 

While looking at a notebook binder, said Is that the new air conditioner At least it keeps the folks well. ... 

Get in the habit of using any hiatus, however brief, during your experiments to keep your notebook current. (Reward yourself by combining this activity with timeout for some refreshment or relaxing music.)... 

While you should keep your notebooks out of harm s way during an experiment, the lab notebook rightfully belongs at the bench, and not the desk. Record data directly into the book, rather than commiting data to memory or temporarily using a sheet of paper (or worse, a paper towel) in place of the notebook itself. 

Note any unusual occurrences, even if they indicate some laziness or inattentiveness on your part. Despite aU earnest attempts to keep an experiment from going awry, the complexity of most experiments conspires to introduce error or accidents into all observations. (It s far better to acknowledge an erroneous or suspicious measurement than to send later readers (including yourself) off on a series of experiments to follow up on a misleading observation that appears in your notebook without comment.)... 

Keeping a Ciip fiie. We all have ideas that we do not have time to pursue. You might start a folder or notebook of ideas that you can set aside for future reference. Photocopy or clip articles or tidbits that interest you as you come across them and place them in your clip file. When you need a writing topic, you can go to your clip file for ideas. 

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