1. Science 8--Nature of Science—Scientific Problem Solving
Section 3 Vocabulary
Case Study

2. controlled experiment
a scientific investigation that tests how one factor affects another

3. variable
any factor that can have more than one value

4. independent variable
the factor that you want to test

5. dependent variable
the factor you observe or measure during an experiment

6. constants
the factors in an experiment that do not change

7. experimental group
used to study how a change in the independent variable changes the dependent variable

8. control group
contains the same factors as the experimental group, but the independent variable is not changed

9. qualitative data
uses words to describe what is observed

10. quantitative data
uses numbers to describe what is observed

11. scientific method
a process of critical thinking that uses observations and experiments to investigate testable predictions about the physical universe