2. What Science Is and Is NOT - The goal of science is to investigate and understand the natural world, to explain events in the natural world, and to use those explanations to make useful predictions.

3. What Science Is ► 1) science deals with the natural world ► 2) scientists collect and organize information in an orderly way, looking for patterns and connections between events. ► 3) scientists propose explanations that can be tested by examining evidence. * In other words science is an organized way of using evidence to learn about the natural world

4. Thinking Like a Scientist ► Suppose your car doesn’t work. Is it out of gas? Is the battery dead? How can one find out what is wrong? FINDING ANSWERS IN THE REAL WORLD

5. Thinking Like A Scientist *THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD ► Observation: The car won’t move ► Question: Is the car out of gas? ► Hypothesis: The car is out of gas. ► Experiment: Put gas in the car. ► Repeat: *Then maybe you will come to a conclusion

7. Thinking Like A Scientist - Scientific thinking usually begins with an observation. - Observations generally involve using one’s senses. The information gathered then is called data.

8. ***Observations ► Louis Pasteur used the scientific method to disprove the idea of spontaneous generation. ► READ FROM SCIENTIFIC METHOD

9. Collect Data about Question Quantitative data is data that is expressed in numbers. Qualitative data is descriptive and involves characteristics that can’t usually be counted.

10. Quantitative vs. Qualitative ► Weight and Height are an example of: ► The manatee seems healthy and alert is an example of:

11. ***Question ► Ask a question about the problem you observe. ► Example:  Is the car out of gas?  Why are there ants in my glove box?

12. Explaining and Interpreting Evidence ► After making essential observations, researchers will propose one or more hypotheses. ► Hypothesis – A testable statement for what was observed.

13. ***Hypothesis ► What is a hypothesis? ► What is a guess? ► How do you know what is educated?

14. Question Everything. ► This book contains a lot of facts but don’t think biological science is a set of truths that do not change. ► Science is always an ongoing process that involves asking question, observing, making inferences, and testing hypothesis.

15. ***Designing an Experiment ► Asking a question. ► Forming a hypothesis. ► Setting up a Controlled Experiment ► Recording and Analyzing results ► Drawing a conclusion

16. Dirt: The New Muscle Juice ► Eight year old ► Play with trucks ► 2 months ► Give water ► Eighteen year old ► Weight lifting ► 6 months ► Give Dirt Which kid will be stronger? Good experiment?

17. Setting Up a Controlled Experiment ► Testing a hypothesis often involves designing an experiment. ► The factors in the experiment that can change are called variables. Ex: weather, materials, light, time, space, etc.

18. Controlled Experiment ► Whenever possible, a hypothesis should be tested by an experiment in which only one variable is changed at a time. ► All other variables should be left unchanged, or controlled. Manipulated variable / Independent variable – variable that is deliberately changed. Responding variable / Dependent variable – variable that changes in response to the independent variable.

20. Questions ► What are the controlled variables? ► What is the independent variable? ► What would be the dependent variable?

21. Collect Data about Question Quantitative data is data that is expressed in numbers. Qualitative data is descriptive and involves characteristics that can’t usually be counted.

22. Quantitative vs. Qualitative ► Weight and Height are an example of: ► The manatee seems healthy and alert is an example of:

23. When Experiments Are Not Possible ► Field studies – If a scientist wanted to gain a better understanding of a particular organism in the wild then an experiment would be impossible.

24. Creating an Experiment ► Get into groups of three or four and create a controlled experiment from the observation you see below. ► Observation: ? ► Question: ? ► Hypothesis: ? ► Experiment: ? (Controlled) ► Maybe Conclusion: ?