How to keep a lab notebook — in the form the regulations recognize

Search for "how to write a lab notebook" and you find plenty of example fields — but rarely where those requirements come from. This post collects the format that Korean university research offices commonly teach, with links to the underlying sources.

What each entry must contain

Synthesizing university and industry-liaison guidance (for example, KAIST's newsletter summary of research-note rules and practice), a single experiment entry contains: project name, entry date, experiment title, purpose, method, results, and the signatures and dates of the author and a reviewer. Two common deductions: recording only the aim and leaving results blank, and not recording failed experiments at all — a failure is still "an experiment performed, and its interpretation," so it belongs in the record. Practical details such as signatures and blank-space handling are frequently discussed in researcher communities as well.

When, and in what order

The core principle: don't jot now and transcribe later. Write directly into the notebook during or immediately after the experiment, in time order; pasting in cut-out memo slips is cited as improper practice. The KAIST summary above and institutional guides such as Yonsei's research-ethics pages teach the same principle — because only immediate, chronological entry can later answer the question "when was this actually written?"

Corrections don't erase

When fixing content, institutional manuals consistently teach: no correction fluid, no erasing — strike through so the original stays legible, then sign and date the correction. Note that these are summaries of guidance; details vary by institution and project. Before relying on them, check the National R&D Research Note Directive (in Korean) and your institution's own rules.

If you need a blank form

Field-specific templates are collected on the e-note.or.kr template list, and the directive's annex form is available from the law portal. But the form matters less than whether the three principles above — every required field, immediate and chronological entry, corrections that leave a trail — were actually followed.