Reporting Format for the Modal Analysis Laboratory Report

The Undergraduate Report will comprise the following sections: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) Title page Summary Calculations and results Discussion

The ability to produce reports to a high standard of presentation is a key transferable skill that you need to develop while at university. In MM2DYN module, marks are allocated for the quality of the presentation of reports. You are therefore strongly encouraged to produce reports using word-processing (e.g. Word) and spreadsheet (e.g. Excel) packages that are widely available on Department and University computer networks. Neat, hand-written reports are also acceptable.

Report Sections
(i) (ii) The front sheet supplied with the instruction sheet should be used as the Title Page for the report. The Summary must give the key points that derive from the experiment, normally on not more than a single side of A4. The summary should give concise statements of the objectives of the experiment and of the answers to the questions posed by the objectives. Put simply, the summary explains why you did the experiment and what the main findings were. It should not contain a detailed description of equipment or procedure. Wherever possible it should be quantitative. The summary is a vital section and normally receives wide circulation within a company, whereas the complete report has a much more limited distribution. Because of this, it is particularly important that it must be understandable without reference to graphs or text in the body of the report. (iii) Readings and results should normally be tabulated in your report. Include a sample calculation for the theoretical bending frequencies. For this lab, you may find it helpful to plot a graph of the percentage difference between the experimental and theoretical bending frequencies vs. mode number. It is preferable to use a spreadsheet program (e.g. Excel) for this. Annotate and label the axes clearly and include a title and reference number. Plot data points with a marker (e.g., a triangle in Excel or a cross, square (but not a dot) if you are doing it by hand). (iv) The Discussion is another important section. The points you should discuss are specified on the instruction sheet. Within these topics, your discussion may include the following points: How closely has the stated objective been achieved? What other related facts have been established? Have the equipment, instrumentation and procedure proved satisfactory for the purpose of achieving the objective? If unsatisfactory, how might improvements be made? Does the theory adequately account for the results obtained? Be concise and do not labour the obvious. Make a list of the points to be made before you start writing. A rambling, digressive discussion is wasteful of your time and that of the reader. The discussion should not normally exceed two pages. Discussion point 1 asks you to comment on the level of agreement between theory and experiment. In addition to the notes given on the instruction

sheet, remember that there will be limits to the range and quality of your results, so do not read more into them than is warranted. Develop a critical approach and aim to give a coherent argument. Remember that discrepancies may be due to untenable assumptions in the theory or experimental error. A list of possible errors that might account for the discrepancy is not particularly helpful unless you attempt to quantify sources of error and rank them in importance. Do not use phrases such as reasonable agreement, fairly accurate or quite good. These phrases are meaningless and simply highlight for the reader the fact that you have no idea of the errors involved! If you are in doubt about the extent of the error treatment required for a particular experiment, ask in the class concerned.

Copying
There are clear advantages to working with the other members of your group to do calculations and otherwise process the results. If you wish, the group may present identical calculations and graphs, including photocopies. If you do present photocopies, you must of course accept the responsibility for checking the accuracy of their contents! You are also encouraged to discuss as a group the points that should be drawn out in the discussion and summary sections of your report. However, you must not present discussions or summaries using identical or very similar words. It must be clear to anyone reading the reports of members of the group that the reports have been written independently. Such copying is regarded as most serious and will, as a minimum, result in zero marks.

The readers of your reports

A report communicates information from one person to another. A good report will present the information in such a way that it can be assimilated without effort. This can only be achieved if you have a clear idea of the needs of the reader. In industry for example, information in a report to an immediate superior (who has a detailed knowledge of the work) must be presented quite differently in a report to the technical director (who probably has not!). The reader will want to be able to check your calculations so that he can point out any mistakes. Include a sample set of calculations where necessary. The reader wants you to demonstrate an understanding of your answers and their significance by intelligent discussion of the points specified on the instruction sheet. Do remember that the reader does in fact know what the answers should be and will be looking for you to convince him that you do too! Present the information clearly, crisply and concisely. Long rambling discussions that skirt around the main issues will be penalised. It is often helpful to write in short sentences. Students often try to read more into their results than is justified. You should try to develop a critical approach to the interpretation of results. In industry, you will find that your superior will spot any dubious conclusions (as, of course, will your academic reader!) and if you can not justify them, your promotion prospects are likely to be damaged! Never make a statement in a report that you are not prepared to defend.