DOCUMENT RESUME ED 344 734 SE 052 300 A1:4HOR Kanare, Howard M. TITLE Writing the Laboratory Notebook. INSTITUTION American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C. REPORT NO ISBN-0-8412-0933-2 PUB DATE 85 NOTE 153p.; Photographs will not reproduce clearly. AVAILABLE FROMAmerican Chemical Society, 1155 16th St., N.W., Washington, DC 20036 (paperback--ISBN-0-8412-0933-2, $14.95; clothbound--ISBN-0-8412-0906-5, $24.95). PUB TYPE Guides - Non-Classroom Use (055) EDRS PRICE MFOVPC07 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Elementary Secondary Education; *Ethics; Higher Education; Inventions; *Laboratory Experiments; Legal Responsibility; *Notetaking; Patents; Science Education; Scientific Researn; *Writing Skills ABSTRACT The purpose of this book is to teach the principles of proper scientific notekeeping. The principles presented in this book are goals for which working scientists must strive. Chapter 1, "The Reasons for Notekeeping," is an overview of the process of keeping a laboratory notebook. Chapter 2, "The Hardware of Notekeeping," is intended especially for the laboratory manager, purchasing agent, or school administrator who is responsible for specifying and obtaining laboratory notebooks, writing paper, and pens. The information that is included will also be valuable to librarians, archivists, record managers, and any scientist who is concerned about the permanence of written records. Chapter 3, "Legal and Ethical Aspects," discusses the ownership, rights, and obligations of the scientist and the employer, both in the university and industry. Chapter 4, "Management of Notekeeping," describes practices for issuance, use, and storage of notebooks. Chapter 5, "Organizing and Writing the Notebook," emphasizes the importance of being flexible and clear in writing. Chapter 6, "Examples of Notebook Entries," provides examples of the proper method of entering a variety of laboratory notes. Chapter 7, "Patents and Invention Protection," examines how the notebook is used to help secure patents and invention protection. Chaptr 8, "The Electronic Notebook," summarizes the advantages and disadvantagec of traditional, handwritten notekeeping systems and computer-based systems. Some suggestions for teaching laboratory notekeeping and photographs from the historical laboratory notebooks of famous scientists are appended. (KR) ************k********************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * *******************k*************************************************** (142riting 'the?raberatmy J\6tSook U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educalronal Researchand Improvement -PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY CENTER (ERIC) Rims document has been reproducedas received from the person or organization originating it r Minor changes have been made toimprove reproduction quality Points of view or opinions slated in Ibisdocu- ment do not necessarily represent official OE RI position or policy TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Howard M. Kanare BE T C:ITY AVAILABLE Writing the Laboratory Notebook Howard M. Kanare AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY WASHINGTON, D.C. 1985 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Kanare, Howard M., 1953- \Writing thc laboratory notebook. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. Laboratory notebooks. I. Title Q180.58.K36 1985 542. 85-15606 ISBN 0-8.!12-0906-5 ISBN 0-8412-0933-2 (pbk.) Copyright © 198.5 American Chemical Society All Rights Reserved. The appearance of the codeat the bottom of the first page of each chapter in this volume indicates the copyright owner'sconsent that reprographic copies of the chapter may bc made for personal or internal use or for the personalor internal use of specific clients. This consent is given on the condition, however, that the copierpay the stated per copy fee through the Co ,yright Clearance Center, Inc., 27 Congress Street, Salem, MA01970, for copying beyond that permitted by Sections 107 or 108 of thr U.S. Copyright 1.aw. Reprographiccopies of the chapter may be made for personal or internal use or for the personalor internal use of specific clients. This consent does not extend to copying or transmission by any meal'sgraphicor electronicfor any other purpose, such as for general distribution, for advertisingor promotional purposes, for creating a new collective work, for resale, or for informationstorage and retrieval systems. The citation of tradenames and/or names of manufacturers in this publication is not to be construed as an endorsement or as approval by ACS of the commercial productsor services referenced herein; nor should the mere reference herein to any drawing, specification, chemicalprocess, or other data be regarded as a license or as aconveyance of any right or permission, to the holder, reader, or any other person or corporation, to manufacture, reproduce,use, or sell any patented invention oi copyrighted work that may in any way be related thereto. Registered names, trademarks,etc., used in this publication, even without specific indication thereof,arc not to be considered unprotected by law. PRINTED IN THE UNITED SIATES OF AMERICA Third printing 1989 About the Author Howard M. Kanare received his B.S. in chemistry from the Uni- versity of Connecticut in 1976, followed by an M.S. in mate- zials science from the Univer- sity's Institute of Materials Science. He worked in specialty chemical production before joining the Research and Devel- opment Laboratories of the Portland Cement Association, where he now holds the posi- tion of Senior Research Chem- ist.His recent work has in- cluded improving X-ray fluorescence analysis of minerals and supervising the production of cement standard reference materialsunder contracts with the National Bureau of Standards. "Live in the serene peace of laboratories and libraries." Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)Adyice to young scientists attend- ing the ,Jubilee Celebration in Pasteur's honor, at the Sorbonne, 27 December 1892. f; I dedicate this book with love to my wife, Larina Veronica Kanare. Contents Preface xi 1 The Reasons for Notekeeping An Overview 1 2 The Hardware of Notekeeping Books, Pens, and Paper 11 3 Legal and Ethical Aspects Ownership, Rights, and Obligations29 4 Management of Notekeeping Practices for Issuance, Use, and Storage of Notebooks35 Organizing and Writing the Notebook Be Flexible53 ix 6 Examples of Notebook Entrie, 81 7 Patents and Invention Protection 103 8 The Electronic Notebook 113 Appendix A Some Suggestions for Teaching Laboratory Notekeeping 121 Appendix B Photographs from the Historical Laboratoly Notebooks of Famous Scientists 129 Index 141 X Li Preface This b(vk has a simple purpose: to teach the principles of proper nr.rekeeping. Few, if any, of us working scientists write notes a ully and completely as we should. We often lament not recording a seemingly unimportant detail that later proves crucial. Much experimental work could have been better understood, and much repetition of work avoided, if only we were more attentive in our notdkeeping. The principles presented in this book are goals for which we must strive; sometimes following all the principleswill be impracti- cal or impossible. Do the best that you can, and keep in mind that the extra effort and time put into notekeeping are worthwhile. Everyone develops a personal nor:keeping style; some are more efficient than others.If you would like to share the personal techniques that make your notes especially useful, please send your ideas to the ACS Books Department, 1155 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036. Acknowledgments The comments, criticisms, technical information, and suggestions of many people have been invaluable.I would like to thank the following people for their aFsistance in th t. development and revision of this book: Donald W. Anstedt, Construction Technology Laboratories; Paul Banks, Columbia University; Henry A. Bent, North Carolina State University; Walter E. Buting, Genentech, Inc.; George J. Collins, U.S. Government Printing Office; Raymond E. Dessy, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Hubert E. Dubb, Eleiskr, Dubb, Myer, and Lovejoy; Edmund L. d'Ouville, formerly with Standard Oil Company (Indiana); Merrily Smith, Library of Congress Preservation Office; John K. Taylor, National Bureau of Standards; Richard C. Toole, DuPont Experimental Station; and 'William K. Wilson, formerly with the National Bureau of Standards. xi Iacknowledge a personal debt of gratitude totwo of my professors, John T. Stock and Bertrand I. Chamber land, who,years ago, taught me the virtues of proper notekeeping. Since that time, many of my colleaguesinindustrialresearch positions have confirmed the value of careful notekeeping, especially in regulated environments. Their comments and suggestionsare appreciated. Howard M. Kanare Chicago, Illinois May 20, 1985 The Reasons for Notekeeping An Overview Alaboratory notebook is one of a scientist's most valuable tools. It contains the permanent written record of the researcher's mental andphysical activities from experiment and observation, to the ultimateunderstanding of physical phenomena. The act of writing in the notebook causesthe scientist to stop and think about what is beingdone in the laboratory. Itis in this way an essential part of "doing good science." The laboratory notebook is known by different names todifferent people. It is variously called the "lab notebook," "projectnotebook," "engineer's log book," or "research