ABSTRACT
Not so long ago the only purpose of keeping a laboratory notebook was to keep a record of the procedures followed when performing an experiment. Should the experimenter make a valuable discovery, a record had been kept so that the compound or method could be reproduced (hopefully by anyone). Laboratory notebooks, however, are now so much more important than they were in the past. Synthesis procedures for many compounds are often much more complicated than they were in the past and more instrumentation is utilized to produce a chemical entity. Still more important is the ability to protect legally anything that has been discovered. In a patent dispute the creator must be able to prove not only that he has discovered the chemical entity, but also that he has recognized its potential and established a pattern of testing within one or more therapeutic areas. Having good records available for review by government agencies such as the FDA is equally important.
