1. The Scientific Method

2. What is the Scientific Method? It is a series of steps that are used to find solutions to scientific problems. THEY MAY NOT ALWAYS GO IN THIS ORDER! You can relate this process to every day problem solving, for example: You point the remote at the TV to turn it on and it stays off, you then change the batteries and still the TV does not come on. You then check the power cord and sure enough, it is unplugged. After a series of guesses and testing you found the problem!

3. The Steps... Observation : What happened? You will be able to use one or more of your 5 senses to make an observation. (i.e. you smell a gas, you see bubbles, you feel heat, etc.) There are TWO types of observations: Qualitative- like a quality or characteristic of an observation (the TV will not turn on) Quantitative- an observation involving numbers or the quantity of something.

4. The Steps... Hypothesis: A proposed reason for why you observed what you did. In other words: what do you think is the reason the TV is not turning on? Hypothesis: I think the TV will not turn on because the batteries are dead. Please note that a hypothesis is NOT an educated guess. You do not ask a question in a hypothesis, you make a statement. It is more like an educated idea.

5. The Steps... Experiment: this is also sometimes known as your procedure. The experiment is what you are going to do to test your hypothesis (see if your hypothesis is true or not) Our hypothesis was that the batteries in the remote were dead. Therefore, our experiment would require us to change the batteries.

6. The Steps... Data/ Results: Your data is expressed quantitatively (by numbers) and will be expressed in a chart, graph or diagram. Or, your results may be qualitative (the TV still did not turn on).

7. The Steps... Conclusion: This is the part where you summarize what happened in your experiment and decide based on the data/results if your hypothesis was correct! We had to REVISE our hypothesis because after changing the batteries the TV still did not turn on- New hypothesis is: Perhaps the TV is unplugged.

8. So, the steps to the Scientific Method are... Observation Hypothesis Experiment (aka Procedure) Data/Results Conclusion

9. Intermission

10. So, when considering the Experiment- some terms you should know... In your experiment there will be... Control- what part of your experiment is going to remain the same (will not be experimentally testable) Independent variable- is changed (by you in most cases) in order to cause change in the dependent variable. Dependent variable- These are the things that will change in response to independent variable.

11. Most scientific experiments are not as easily proved as our TV scenario. Scientists will repeat the same experiment several times to make sure that every time they get the same results because this is the only way that an experiment will be accepted by the scientific community. If their results are not identical every time, they will change, or refine their hypothesis. For example, after concluding that the batteries may not be dead, we suggested the power cord may not be plugged in.

12. When a hypothesis has been tested repeatedly yielding the same results over and over regardless of who does the experiment, the hypothesis will then be called a theory. A theory is an explanation of why certain experiments will yield certain results. Theories are always subject to change and/or revision when new information becomes available. What are some Scientific theories you have heard of?

13. Scientific Law A scientific law is different then a scientific theory. A scientific law describes a natural phenomenon without trying to explain it. Scientific laws are usually expressed as mathematical relationships.

14. So what is the difference???? A scientific law states what happens; a scientific theory explains why.