The Nature of Science Chapter 1. Section 1 What is Science? You should know this by now!!!
-
Upload
stanley-rogers -
Category
Documents
-
view
214 -
download
0
Transcript of The Nature of Science Chapter 1. Section 1 What is Science? You should know this by now!!!
What is Science?
A. Science—a way or a process used to investigate what is happening around you1. Scientists observe, investigate, and experiment to find answers.
2. Scientists also use prior experience to predict what will occur in
investigations. 3. Technology is the application of science to make products or tools that people can use.
What is Science?
B. Communication in science
1. Thousands of scientific journals and magazines report the results and conclusions of experiments every year.
2. You can also keep scientific data and results in a Science Journal.
Doing ScienceA. Scientific methods—ways, or steps to follow, to solve
problems
B. Descriptive research—answering a scientific question by making observations about the question1. State the research objective.2. Describe the research design,
or how you will carry out your investigation.3. Eliminate bias, or expected results.
Doing Science 4. Select the best materials for the investigation.
a. A model represents things that happen too slowly, too quickly, or are too big, small, dangerous or expensive to observe directly.
b. Scientists around the world use a system of measurements called the International System of
Units (Metric System) to make observations.
Doing Science
5. Design data tables, or ways to accurately record results and observations.
6. Analyze your data and figure out what your results mean.
7. Draw conclusions.
Don’t fall asleep on me yet!!!
Doing ScienceC. Experimental research design- answering a
scientific question by observation of a controlled situation1. Form a hypothesis, which is a prediction that can be tested.2. Plan the experiment
a. Independent Variable- the factor that is changed.
(You can only test one at a time!)
b. Dependent Variable- factor that is being measured.
c. Constants- variables that stay the same.
Doing Science
3. Use a control- a sample that is treated like the other experimental groups except that the independent variable is not applied to it.
4. Conduct several trials of the experiments.
5. Analyze your results and draw conclusions.
Writing a Hypothesis
A hypothesis must contain the words IF and THEN.
– If I study for a test, then I will get an A.– If I eat a lot of sugar, then I will get hyper.– If I mix chemical A and
chemical B, then they will create a new chemical.
Sample Size
The more subjects you test, the more accurate your results.
– For 8th grade experiments, using 10 or more test subjects could be enough.
– Scientists must use many more test subjects in order to test their hypothesis.
Science and Technology
A. Scientific discoveries lead to new products that influence your lifestyle.
1. Entertainment- _____________2. Convenience- ______________3. Health- _____________________
B. Science provides information that people use to make decisions.
C. However, science cannot decide whether the new information is good or harmful, moral or immoral.
Let’s try a problem…
Bart thinks that drinking a 32 ounce Mountain Dew before you go skateboarding will help you do a higher ollie in the air. He divides 10 of his friends into 2 groups. To group A, he gives each person a 32 ounce Mountain Dew. To group B he gives nothing. Group A’s average ollie height was 2 feet, and group B’s average ollie height was 1 foot.
Is the sample size big enough?
For a small experiment, yes. For accuracy, however, more participants would be better.
What is his experimental procedure?
He divides 10 friends into 2 groups. Group A get Mountain Dew and Group B does not.
Last problem….
Homer thinks that adding hot sauce to gasoline will make a car go faster. One day, he adds hot sauce to Marge’s gasoline tank but no hot sauce to his own tank. They both drive to the same grocery store. It takes Homer 25 minutes to get
there and Marge 20 minutes to get there.
What is his experimental procedure?
Add hot sauce to one car’s gasoline tank but not to the other and see who gets to the grocery store first.
What should Homer’s conclusion be?
He might conclude that hot sauce does make a car go faster, but his sample size was not big enough to make a conclusion