Results Vs Discussion Lab Report. The results section is just a presentation of the data. Often a combination of both the past and the present tense is used in sentences within the discussion section.
In the shorter version of a lab report the discussion section is typically separated from the results section and serves as a conclusion as well. The results and discussion sections are one of the challenging sections to write. To effectively write both these sections you need to clearly understand the distinction between the two.
In the longer version of a report where there are multiple findings the discussion is typically included within the results section itself and a separate conclusion section is provided to summarize.
This infographic explains the five main differences between these two sections of a manuscript. Once youve discussed the most important findings of your study in the Results section you will use the Discussion section to interpret those findings and talk about why they are important some instructors call this the Conclusion section. In the longer version of a report where there are multiple findings the discussion is typically included within the results section itself and a separate conclusion section is provided to summarize. The results section is just a presentation of the data.