Transcript Verb Tense in Lab Reports

Verb Tense in Lab Reports
Writing Consultant Presentation
EG 1003: Intro to Engineering and Design
NYU’s Polytechnic School of Engineering
Verb Tense in Lab Reports
 How verb tense works
 Primary verb tenses
 Avoiding common mistakes
Do not write reports like a story
 Abstract and introduction are not written with
the future tense (will test)
 Procedure (test!)
 Data/observation is not the present (is tested)
 Conclusion is not past tense (was tested)
Lab reports require different tenses
 The format is a logical argument,
not a chronological retelling
 Laboratory work is finished
 Writer is now an expert, supporting hypothesis
 Most parts of the report refer to procedures,
data, and observations in the past tense
Verb Tense in Lab Reports
 How verb tense works
 Primary verb tenses
 Avoiding common mistakes
Report all action in past tense
 A microphone was constructed by the team
 The gear ratio was too large for the robot’s
purpose
 Common household objects were used to
construct a microphone
General condition present
Things that are always true take the present
tense:
Precision is the repeatability of the result.
Present also for all printed material:
The authors report their results in the latest
edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Use conditional for hypotheses
Appropriate for conclusions:
Inverting the cup would have reduced
heat loss.
Better wheels would improve the robot’s
speed.
Breadboards should be used.
Use subjunctive for contrary to fact
If the car was lighter, it would have traveled
farther.
If the car were lighter, it would have
traveled farther.
Verb Tense in Lab Reports
 How verb tense works
 Primary verb tenses
 Avoiding common mistakes
Passive voice is a mood, not a tense
The robot is found to be accurate, but not
precise.
The robot was found to be accurate, but
not precise.
The robot should be found to be accurate,
but not precise.
Future is rare in lab reports
 Future tense (“will construct”) implies certainty
 No certainty in science until ideas are tested
 Use conditional tense for things that might
happen (even future work)
Use verbs consistently
Introduction
Present
Procedure
Past
Data/Observation
Past
Conclusion
Conditional/subjunctive
Verb Tense in Lab Reports
 How verb tense works
 Primary verb tenses
 Avoiding common mistakes