Do You Call That a Lab Notebook?

"Electronic laboratory notebooks (ELNs)? What are those?" At the start of every academic year, I prepare myself for a battle with my third-year engineering students about laboratory notebooks. More often than not, they either hand me a neatly written diary or loose bits of paper that are half folded and randomly glued to the back cover of a jotter. At first, my students dismiss the idea of keeping a properly documented lab notebook, but I notice a change in attitude when they are introduced to electronic notebooks.