1. Thinking Like a Scientist
Using the Scientific Method

2. What do you observe? What inferences can you make from your observations?

3. Observations Any information collected with the senses.
Quantitative – measureable or countable
3 meters long
4 marbles
50 kilograms
35 degrees Celsius
Qualitative – describable, not measureable
red flowers
smells like fresh baked cookies
Tastes bitter
The skill of describing scientific events
In experiments, record observations

4. Inference Conclusions or deductions based on observations.
The process of drawing a conclusion from given evidence.
Practice:
Observations:
I hear people screaming
I smell cotton candy, popcorn, and hamburgers
I see a lot of people
Inference = ?

5. Look at these two sets of animal tracks.
List 3 OBSERVATIONS
Make an INFERENCE

6. Now what do you think? Make 3 OBSERVATIONS Make an INFERENCE

7. Now what do you think?
Make 3 OBSERVATIONS
Make an INFERENCE

10. Inference vs. Prediction
Inference -what is happening or has happened Predicting -forecast of what will happen -based on past evidence - not always accurate
-explanation of observations
-not always true
- an educated guess

11. SCIENTIFIC METHOD

12. SCIENTIFIC METHOD
1. Ask a Question -problem in an experiment -not personal taste -cannot be answered with a “Yes” or “No” Example: - Will a plant grow taller with fortified water than nonfortified waters?

13. SCIENTIFIC METHOD
2. Research -finding out more about your problem Examples

14. SCIENTIFIC METHOD
3. Form a Hypothesis - explanation to the problem
- educated guess
- If…..then….because statement
Example: If I water a plant with fortified water, then it will grow nonfortified water because plants need nutrients to grow.

15. SCIENTIFIC METHOD - Independent -factor changed on purpose
4. Test hypothesis Experiment
- Variable factor that changes
- Independent -factor changed on purpose
(Manipulated (input)
-Dependent factor changed in response to
(Responding) independent variable
(output)
- Control factors that don’t change
-all experiments need one

16. Example:
Variable-
Dependent-
Independent-
Control-

17. SCIENTIFIC METHOD
5. Analyze Results -organize data into charts Example:
Average
height
7.5 cm
9.3 cm
6.1 cm
5 cm
Plant
food
Week 1
Trial
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Tap water
Miracle grow water
Rain water
Bottled water

18. SCIENTIFIC METHOD Analyze Results -Graph results Example: Height in cm
Type of Water

19. SCIENTIFIC METHOD 6. Conclusion MUST HAVES:
–State the conclusion based on your data, restate your hypothesis, AND state whether your hypothesis was supported.
– Comment on your method and the accuracy/precision of your data
– Suggest improvements to the experiment
7. Communicate share ideas with others
Results Scientific paper, presentation
post on internet, etc…
***NEVER EXPERIMENT ONLY ONCE!!!***
Do 3 trials

20. Conclusion example
My hypothesis was that the plant would grow taller with fortified water than nonfortified water, which is what happened. So, my data supports my hypothesis. My method was pretty reliable, although I’m not sure I was able to really control all variables. If I had it to do again, I would work even harder on keeping all variables the same. For example, I would make sure the temperature of the water was exactly for each water type. That would make my data more reliable.

21. Model Scientific Theory Scientific Law Fact
-representation of an object or system
physical (airplanes, dolls)
mathematical (made of math equations/data)
conceptual (big bang theory)
Scientific
-ties together many
Theory
hypotheses and observations
Scientific Law
-summary of many experimental results
and observations
-tells what happens, not why it happens
Fact
-complete truth
-cannot be argued

22. -anything that helps you do a task
Tools and Measurement
Tool
-anything that helps you do a task
International
-SI units
System of
-metric system
Units
-based on multiples of 10
Length
-basic unit - meter (m)
Mass
-amount of matter an object contains
-basic unit - grams (g)

23. -amount of space an object takes up -basic unit- liter (L) (liquids)
Volume
-amount of space an object takes up
-basic unit- liter (L) (liquids)
-cm³ (solids)
Density
-mass is in a given volume
D = m V
-g/ml- liquids
-g/cm³ -solids
Temperature
-heat or energy
-basic unit- kelvin (K)
Time
-basic unit-second (s)