In a world of technology and computers, everyone is going paperless. This is a wonderful thing, because its great for the planet and makes staying organized easier. However, there are some downsides to it, especially when it comes to working in a science lab. Computers can break or lose information that is vital to a scientific process. They are also susceptible to power outages or software problems. That’s why it’s still important to utilize the help of a bound lab notebook. Let’s take a look at why these basic lab supplies still have a place in the world of science.

A Hard Copy

First and foremost, a bound lab notebook offers a hard copy of important information. It’s great to have everything saved on a computer and you can even back data up to multiple computers, but having a hard copy is still a wise choice. If you don’t have access to a computer or the proper software at any given time, having the information you need in a notebook will save you. When it comes to important lab work, it’s never a bad thing to have multiple forms of backup.

Strategic Designs

Laboratory notebooks are designed with scientific methods in mind. They often come with numbered pages, room for a table of contents, extra spaces for notes, and easy to use designs that make note-taking simple. They are created to be used in a lab and are catered to your needs. Online programs are nice for keeping notes, but they don’t always offer the same strategic designs and layouts that you need. You usually have to spend extra time formatting and arranging to get the layout you want.

Share Information

Lab notebooks are also a quick and easy way to share information with other people working on your project. You can leave notes for them and they can easily find what they need with the help of your table of contents. If you like to keep your digital notes on a personal computer that goes home with you, you can leave your hard copy in the lab in case anyone needs access to your notes.

Electronic lab notebooks are a great option and should certainly be utilized, but that doesn’t mean that bound lab notebooks no longer have a place. Having multiple copies of your lab information is very important and it’s nice to have more than one way to organize your information, so don’t write off the idea of paper notebooks just yet.