A laboratory notebook should be a complete record of a student's experimental work. The criterion used in judging what should be in the notebook is that the record should be so thorough and so well organized that another person who reads the notebook can understand it, can see exactly what has been done, and can repeat the experiment, if necessary, in precisely the same way the original work was done. 

All data are to be recorded in the notebook in ink, at the time they are obtained. There is no reason for recording anything on scratch paper to be transferred into the notebook later. If a mistake is made in the notebook, simply cross out the error and make the correct entry next to it. Neatness is desirable, but it is much less important than completeness. 

Use the following general format for setting up your notebook: 

1. There is a page at the beginning of the notebook for a Table of Contents. Keep the Table up to date. 


2. Label each page with the name of the experiment and date the experiment is completed.


3. All consecutive pages must remain in the notebook; do not remove any pages. If you really mess up a page, draw a diagonal line through it and start over on a new page. 


4. Start every new experiment on a fresh page. 


5. It is not necessary to copy the details of an experimental procedure, provided you reference the source of the procedure. However, any variations from the original procedure must be documented in the notebook. Remember, your notebook should be a log of your laboratory operations; someone should be able to reconstruct later just what was done and why it was done. Never delete anything-draw a line through it and amend it appropriately. What you consider wrong at one time might turn out to be right later.