Scientific Method Review

Hypothesis  An educated explanation  Has to be testable!  YOU decide which choice is the right answer  Which will be more effective in cleaning a window? Bleach, Windex, or Laundry Detergent.

Bias  Changing the data to get what you want  Putting your emotions, thoughts, and opinions into it  Subjective

Variables  Independent = what is being tested  Key words on a test: different, change, manipulated, altered  Dependent = what is being measured  Key words = height, count, inches, weight, etc  Control Variable = what is the normal condition. You are not putting the independent variable on this. WHAT you need to compare the experiment to

Experimental Design  Where you set up an experiment to test the hypothesis  TWO DIFFERENT THINGS!  Things to consider:  Your variables  What you are trying to figure out  How much time  How would YOU do it?  Repeat?  The more detail, the better!

Conclusion  Cause and effect  What is the data telling you?  Did your results support the hypothesis?

Graphing  Pie graph – best for showing percentages  Bar graph and line graph – best for showing trends  Line graphs are more common in science, but you can see any of them

Identifying Errors  Where could something have gone wrong in the experiment?  Measuring  Variables  Human error  Math calculations  Wrong order  Its OK for the hypothesis to be wrong! That’s not an error!

All together…  Given the following problem, come up with an experimental design that would test your hypothesis. Be sure to include your variables.  What you need:  Independent, dependent, control and constant  Hypothesis  Experimental Design  Do goldfinches prefer medium, large, or small bird seed in bird feeders?