Project Preparation Summary How-To

For All 200 Level Physics Laboratories

Three weeks of the course will be devoted to each project that you perform. This three-week cycle has two working sessions and one presentation session. At the begining of the first working session, each person must turn in a project preparation summary. It should be neatly hand written in your laboratory notebook. Then, when you turn in the carbonless duplicate, you will retain a copy for reference. The following is a list of the sections required in all project preparation summaries. Please clearly divide the sections and subsections in your summary.

Objective: Write down the objective of the experiment, as stated in the project description. Although you may copy this part of the summary directly from the project description, you will benefit more by putting it into your own words.
Theory: Summarize the theory that your project will illuminate. Draw this information primarily from your lecture course textbook, but other sources that you find in the library may also prove useful. Using the keywords listed for your project, locate the appropriate sections in the lecture text. Write down the pertinent ideas in complete sentences. When you can express a concept succinctly in English, please do so. For example, "alpha rays are the least penetrating products of radioactive decay." In most cases English alone will not be sufficient, and your statement of the theory will have to include one or more equations and perhaps a diagram.
Procedure: Summarize the procedure for data collection.
1. Explain briefly how you will prepare and operate the apparatus. Because you have yet to get first-hand experience with the apparatus, you should not expect to do a good job here.
2. List the data to be collected. Study the analysis and questions sections of the project description to be sure that you have identified all the data that you will need for the calculations. Note that you may need some quantities that are not mentioned explicitly in the project description.
Analysis: State briefly how you will analyze the data.
1. List the graphs and diagrams called for in the project description. State what quantities the axes correspond to. State how you expect the graph to look. For example, if you plot position versus time, you might expect to find a straight line with a slope equal to the velocity of the object. Even when your expectation is incorrect, you will be better prepared to understand the significance of your data.
2. Explain the relation of the required graphs and diagrams to the equations you have written in the theory section and to the project objectives.

You must limit the length of the preparation summary to no more than 2 pages. These are intended to be summaries, not detailed explanations. Be complete but not verbose. Summaries longer than this limit may receive a reduced grade at the instructor's discretion.

Legibility is paramount. Preparation summaries that are difficult to read or follow will receive reduced grades.

Your project preparation summary should provide a sound basis for writing your lab report. A properly done preparation summary will make your time in lab more productive and shorten the time required to produce the final report.