Full recommendations on how to keep a lab diary can be found here.

Let’s take a look at why recording all the experiments and observations you do and the data you collect is so crucial.

Legal protection

The laboratory diary serves as legal documentation of your work. If there is ever a dispute about who did what and when, your lab diary can be used as evidence.

Intellectual property

The lab diary is a record of your original ideas and discoveries. If you want to patent your work, the lab diary will help you prove that you came up with the idea first.

Collaboration

If you collaborate with others in the lab, a lab diary will help ensure that everyone is on the same page. It can also help avoid misunderstandings and mistakes.

Reproducibility

If someone else wants to repeat your experiment, they can use your lab diary as a guide.

Whether to use an electronic or paper lab journal depends on your personal preferences and needs. There are advantages and disadvantages to both options, so you need to consider your specific situation before making a decision.

Electronic laboratory notebooks (ELNs) are becoming increasingly popular because they offer many advantages. ELNs are clearer and more searchable than paper journals and allow you to collaborate with other researchers in real time. They also offer a better way to store data and share it with others. In addition, ELNs can be integrated with other software tools such as data analysis software, making it easier to conduct research.

On the other hand, paper lab journals have been the standard for many years and are preferred by some researchers. They require no special software or power source to use, so they can be used even in places where electricity is not available.

The decision between using an electronic or paper lab journal is ultimately up to you and what is more convenient and practical for your purpose.