Variables Investigation One: Pendulums

“What Scientists Do” A scientist is a person who wonders why.

Scientific Inquiry/Scientific Method – is the process of finding answers to scientific questions using several key steps.

Hypothesis?

Hypothesis – a proposed answer to a question (same as prediction).

Variables – factors that can change the results of an experiment.

Fair Experiment – an experiment in which all of the variables are controlled except for the one that you are testing.

Controlling Variables in Experiments

Instruments – are tools that help scientists make observations, conduct experiments, and organize data. (i.e. magnifying lenses, microscopes, telescopes, thermometers, etc.)

You need well-written, detailed lab reports, so that other scientists can try your experiment and verify your results.

“Sir Isaac Newton: Learning Through Experimenting”

Sir Isaac Newton – one of the greatest scientists who ever lived Sir Isaac Newton – one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. He revolutionized scientific thought about light, gravity, and space.

Prism – A piece of transparent material that separates light into the colors of the rainbow. Indigo Violet

ROY G. BIV

R ed O range Y ellow G reen B lue I ndigo V iolet

Spectrum – The name for the colorful rainbow seen where a beam of light passes through a prism.

Creating a Rainbow

Somewhere Over the Rainbow MP3

Newton’s Prism Experiments http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienceopticsu/newton/

Newton predicted and then proved that a prism did not change light but rather revealed what white light was truly made of.

Prism Separating the Colors of White Light

“Jane Goodall: Learning Through Observation”

Paleontologist – a scientist who studies what life was like millions of years ago.

Jane Goodall – a scientist who observered chimpanzee behavior in the wild at the Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve in Tanzania.

Jane Goodall Through the Years Working With Chimps

Jane Goodall discovered that chimps made tools out of sticks and branches to catch termites.

Chimps & Tool Use (A.K.A Chimpanzee Fun Dip)

Jane Goodall’s Most Shocking Discovery http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2AN7kBQOsw

“Toy Ducks at Sea”

NOAA – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Oceanographer – a scientist who studies the ocean.

The Importance of Oceanography http://science.howstuffworks.com/ocean-current.htm

An accidental shipwreck which released thousands of rubber bathtub toys into the Pacific Ocean allowed scientists to study ocean and wind currents.

Current – The part of a body of water that has a continuous onward flowing movement; especially one that follows a recognizable course.

Ocean Currents

“Swinging Through History”

Pendulum – A mass hung from a fixed point of support, free to swing back and forth when put in motion.

Oscillation – the back and forth movement of a pendulum.

Galileo Galilei – was an Italian scientist who first recognized and explored pendulums.

Astronomy – the scientific study of objects in space.

Telling Time Before Clocks

Christian Huygens – was a Dutch scientist who used a pendulum to make the first reliable clock around 1655.

Examples of Modern Pendulums Include: grandfather clocks, plumb bobs, wrecking balls, and children on a swingset.

Pendulum Websites http://pbskids.org/zoom/games/pendulum/swing.html http://www.phy.ntnu.edu.tw/ntnujava/index.php?topic=11.0

Review Questions What does a scientist wonder? What is the process of finding answers to scientific questions? What is a proposed answer to a question? What is the term for factors and conditions that can change or affect the outcomes of an experiment? What is a fair experiment? What is the term for tools that help scientists make observations and conduct experiments? Why are detailed lab reports important?

Review Questions Continued What great scientist revolutionized scientific thought about light, gravity, and space? What is a prism? What is the name for the colorful rainbow that separates light into the colors of the rainbow? What does a paleontologist study? Who was Jane Goodall and what did she study? What does NOAA stand for? What type of scientist studies the ocean? Why was the rubber toys shipwreck significant? What is a pendulum?

Review Questions Continued What is the term for the back and forth movement of a pendulum? Who was the Italian scientist who first recognized and explored pendulums? What is astronomy? What is Christian Huygens known for? What are some examples of Modern Pendulums?

THE END!

Variables Experiments Vocabulary Cycle - is any motion or activity that repeats itself.

Experiment – is an investigation designed to find out how variables affect outcomes.

Controlled Experiment - is an experiment in which one variable is changed and the outcome is compared to a standard {i.e. the standard pendulum system}

Standard – is the basic procedure used in a controlled experiment, before changing any of the variables.

Two-Coordinate Graph – shows the outcome of a series of experiments when a variable is changed by steps.

Prediction – is an estimate based on information or experience.

Multiple Trials – The process of conducting an experiment several times to ensure accurate, reproducible results.