1. Soda & Mentos Argument

2. Steps to Forming a Scientific Argument
Analyze your Data
Decide on a Claim
Identify the Evidence that Supports Your Claim
Provide a Justification, or Reasoning for Your Evidence

3. Analyzing Data
DATA should be presented in a way that makes it easy to compare, find relationships, or notice patterns.
Data Table
Graph/Chart
Diagram

4. Data Table 92.6 130 169 173 220 1 2 3 4 5 6 1st pd. 2nd pd. 3rd pd.
# of Mentos
Height of Spray
1st pd.
2nd pd.
3rd pd.
4th pd.
5th pd.
AVG. 1 68 71 88 93
143
92.6 2 85
120
106
157
184
130 3
205
158
146
177
169 4 49
159
152
200
181
173 5
210
195
191
207 6
260
196
234
220

5. Bar Graph

6. Deciding on a Claim
Your ANALYSIS of the DATA will lead you to your CLAIM.
In our case, it will be one of our three HYPOTHESES (remember our “if-then” statements).
Your claim MUST…
be supported by the evidence
directly answer the research question

7. Adding more Mentos causes a stronger reaction (higher spray).
Deciding on a Claim
Our EVIDENCE supports HYPOTHESIS 1:
Adding more Mentos causes a stronger reaction (higher spray).

8. Identifying Evidence DATA: raw measurements or observations
EVIDENCE: analyzed data that is used to support the claim
The CLAIM should be built to fit the EVIDENCE
Not the other way around!
(looking for evidence to fit a claim)

9. Identifying Evidence
We draw our EVIDENCE from either the data table or the bar graph…
The average spray height increased as more Mentos were added to the soda.

10. Providing a Justification
The JUSTIFICATION of your evidence (or your REASONING) is where you will draw connections between your EVIDENCE and relevant scientific concepts.
The JUSTIFICATION should explain why your CLAIM & EVIDENCE are valid.

11. Providing a Justification
The JUSTIFICATION is where we will use our RESEARCH to explain the scientific concepts that link our EVIDENCE to our CLAIM.
Nucleation sites (craters) on the Mentos provide places for CO2 bubbles to form.
Ingredients in the soda and Mentos react to release a lot of CO2 bubbles.
More nucleation sites (more Mentos) allow for the formation of more CO2 bubbles at once.

12. Argument Board
QUESTION: How does the NUMBER OF MENTOS affect the HEIGHT OF THE SPRAY?
CLAIM: Adding more Mentos causes a stronger reaction (higher spray).
EVIDENCE: The average spray height increased as more Mentos were added to the soda.
JUSTIFICATION: Craters on the Mentos provide nucleation sites where CO2 bubbles can form. Ingredients in the soda and Mentos react to release CO2 bubbles. When more Mentos are added, they provide more nucleation sites which allows more CO2 bubbles to form at once. This causes the foam to spray higher out of the soda bottle.