Electrolytic Determination of Avogadro’s Number
UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAVEN
TAGLIATELA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
EASC1120 General Chemistry with Application to Biosystems

Overview of Tech Memo
In place of lab report, technical memos will be required for each lab unless specified otherwise. One tech memo will be written for each group. One student will be the “Lead Investigator” for the group, which will change each time.

Analysis and Development of Technical Memo
Complete a technical memo to be turned in 1 week after completion of the experimental process. The following is required:
o One tech memo per group, with the “head investigator” changing for each experiment.
o The technical memo will address your findings from the experimental process in a minimum of 2 pages single spaced (not including appendix), 12pt font, 1inch margins and will be formatted as follows:
? Proper headings including date, to, from (including identification of head investigator) and reason for the memo. Please see above for an example.
? Paragraph one should be a Summary Paragraph or a brief overview of the memo and include an objective of the experimental process and an initial summary of the results and recommendations.
? AResults section should have a summary table of data from your experimental trial labeled correctly and any relevant graphs that will aid in understanding your findings. All tables and graphs should be referenced in the body of the paper. This section should also identify your variable and your constants.
? Recommendations that based on the data you obtained that address the questions regarding the problem. Future Recommendations that address the limitations of your experimental process and recommends further/future testing based on those limitations.
? References that include this technical memo (the lab procedure), your textbooks and any additional paper or Internet sources used. It is safer to reference a website than to get caught plagiarizing others information. Lab reports will be verified against sources and any act of plagiarism will be presented to the University per the Academic Integrity Policy.
? Attachments that includes copies of your experimental processfrom your lab notebook and all calculations attached to the technical memo and additional material you find useful
UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAVEN
TAGLIATELA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
EASC1120 General Chemistry with Application to Biosystems
Technical Memo Grading System (USE THIS AS A CHECKLIST WHEN COMPLETING ANY TECH MEMO TO BE SURE YOU HAVE NOTE MISSED ANY KEY POINTS).

Overall Quality of Memo (20%) • Full organized paragraphs that are well written
• Precise & consistent terminology
• Proper use of units and notation; e.g. mL not milliliters
• Minimum of 2 pages-single spaced, 12pt font and 1inch margins
• Appropriately sized graphs and tables that are labeled properly with captions.

Heading (5%) • Complete heading according to guidelines.
• Includes date, recipient, sender (author), and subject line.
• Precise subject line

Summary Paragraph (15%) • Address the objective of the experimental process
• Initial and brief summary of the results
• Initial and brief summary of your recommendations

Results
(20%) • Explains purpose of the experimental design you developed
• Brief description of your variable and your constants
• Summary table of data from experimental trials labeled correctly
• Any relevant graphs that will aid in understanding your findings
• All tables and graphs should be referenced in the body of the paper

Recommendations (15%) • Recommendations based on data presented. Your reasoning and logic used to come to your conclusion.
• Your recommendations should take into consideration the findings, the cost and any additional concerns like waste, or environmental factors.

Future Recommendations (15%) • Explain specific ways you could improve the experimental process
• How would you eliminate sources of error
References
(5%) • Any information that was obtained from an outside source should be listed
• When referencing sourced information in the text be sure to cite the ref.

Attachments (5%)
• Includes a copy of lab notebook procedure
• Include calculations
• Label each attachment
ADVICE ABOUT TECH MEMOS

Advice Explanation Example
Respondtoyourreader’sneeds. Most work assignments should respond to a reader’s specific request for information

Considerthefactorsthatgovernyourreader’sinterestinyourmemoandaddressthosefactorsinthewayyouorganizeyourmemo:
• Hasthereaderaskedforspecificinformation, often in a list of questions?
• Isthereaderawareofthesubjectanditsimportance?
• Whydoesthereaderneedthisinformation?
• Whatlevelofdetailorevidencewillthereaderrequiretoacceptthecontentofthe memo? Rephrasethe primary questionasastatementtoopenyourmemo. That way you make sure you place the most important information first.

• Herearethedatayourequestedregardingthethermaldiffusionexperiments.TheresultsshouldbeusefultotheCompositeMaterialsGroupandshouldanswertheirquestionsregardingourprocedures.Theattachedgraphsillustrateourspecificresults.
UsetheSubjectlinetoyouradvantage. Focusthereader’sattentionbyusingasubjectlinethathighlightsthecriticalideasinyourmemo. Make the subject precise. A generic subject line can mask the importance of the information. Preferasubjectlinesuchas:

Subject:SeriousViolationsofSafetyRegulations—BuildingA3

Avoidgenericoroverlybroadsubjectlinessuchas:

Subject: Safety Inspections
Getto the point. Exceptfor“badnews”situations,beginyourmemowiththemajorpointyouwishtomake. Don’t make the reader search for the answers to the important question (s).
Preferadirect,specificopening:

Webelievetheequationsusedinourprocedurearevalidforuseinthedesignyoupropose(followedbyalistofreasonswhyandanylimitationsorqualifierstoyourstatement.)

Givestructuretotheinformation.
Makesurethatheadings,paragraphs,andlistsreflectdistinctgroupsofinformationarrangedinanorderthatmakessensetoyourreader. The reader needs to follow the strict line of reasoning and evidence that leads to your primary points. Avoid mixing ideas or going off on points that are not centrally related to your conclusions.
Preferastructurethatillustratesthestructureofideas:

Theequationsweusedwouldnotsuityourdesignfortworeasons:
• The30ft.depthofyourtankswillintroducestratification;
• Theuseofsaltwaterinyourtankswillcreateavariationinspecificgravity.

Avoidmixingunrelatedideasinasinglechunkofinformationorhidingstructureinlineartext:

Theequationsweusedwouldnotsuityourdesignfortworeasons.Accordingtothehydrostatictheory,theforcesactatthecenterofpressureofthesubmergedarea The30ft.depthofyourtankswillintroducestratification. Anotherreasonisthattheuseofsaltwaterinyourtanks
Use a direct, personal tone Rememberthatmemosarewrittenbypeoplefor
people(normallywithinthesameorganization).Addressyourreaderdirectlyinalevelofformalitythatisappropriatetoyourworkingrelationshipwiththereaderandtothepurposeofthememo. So in most technical memos at work, the tone would be less formal than in a lab report written for company archives or a report in a professional journal.
Prefer a direct style:

Weremainavailabletoansweranyquestionsyouhaveaboutthesefindings.

Avoidstiff,institutionalprose:

Itisstated here thatinvestigatorsintheEngineeringApplicationsDivisionwillcontinuetoremainavailabletorenderassistanceintheunderstandingoftheabove listed findings.
Maintain precision in your writing.
Place subjects and verbs in proximity.

Label tables and graphs.
Summarize data and results in tables

Reference all tables and graphs in main body of memo.

Use consistent and proper terminology

The words and the data need to match in ways that precisely characterize the technical content.
You can sometimes produce unclear sentences when you place too many words between the subject of a sentence and its verb. Multiple sentences instead of one long one can sometimes improve clarity.

• All tables and graphs are labeled using a number and caption describing the content of the graph or table.
• Caption titles are placed above the table, and below the figure or graph. Titles contain enough detail to make the content clear at first glance.
Use tables to summarize data and/or results to make it easier for the reader to find this information in the memo.

When discussing data or information contained in tables and/or graphs, be sure to reference table/graph by number regardless if it is in the main body of the memo or as an attachment.

Repeating the same word for the same term can help readers when material is complex and terms have specific meanings that are tied to specific words.

Use proper engineering terminology when explaining design calculations or concepts. Prefer modifiers that appear closely linked to data:

The coils continued to function within design
parameters even at temperatures up to 145° F.

Avoid using modifiers that don’t connect to data:

The coils functioned well even at high temperatures.
Prefer close proximity between subject and verb for clarity such as:

In order to measure the daily total precipitation, data were
compared and averaged at each point (from both the
tipping bucket rain gauge and the plastic rain gauge).

Avoid too many words and prepositional phrases between subject and verb such as:

Data at each point, from both the tipping bucket rain gauge
and the plastic rain gauge, in order to measure the daily
total precipitation, were compared and averaged.
Table 1. Homestead Wood Products Test Values
Figure 1. Distribution of Test Results: Homestead No. 2 White Pine–Compressive Strength of 30 Samples Tested to Failure.
Prefer the same word such as:

A thorough assessment of the potential of the proposed advanced control concept will require significant additional work. This current proposal will be the beginning of a more elaborate effort to evaluate and finally test the new control concept in real-world roadway networks.