1. From Dogs to Cats: Experimental Design
Anna

2. Where you should be: Question Background Research Hypothesis
Design and Experiment
Results
Conclusions

3. Question: Will a pecan tree die if I water it with salty water?
Background Research: Salt, osmotic potential and pecan tree salt tolerance
Hypothesis: Watering my pecan tree with a maximum of 35mg/L salt (seawater concentrations) will kill it because pecan salt tolerance is about 100 times lower.
Experimental Design:

4. Variable-a parameter that changes
What were the variables in my pecan-salt experiment?
Salt
Salt Concentrations
What could be a control? (something I compare against my experimental variables?)
A pecan tree with no salt added

5. Things to consider Materials Time Set up Where will the experiment be?
Chemicals?
Material Safety Data Sheet
Balance?
Plants?
Buy them as seedlings or mature?
Time
how long will it last?
When will you make your observations?
Every day at what time?
Set up
Where will the experiment be?

6. Having developed an initial design, what could I improve on?
Type of plant?
Age of plant?
Type of salt?
Concentration of salt?
Type of soil?

7. Replicates?
You need to replicate (do several times) the same experiment to make sure its not a fluke!
3 is the minimum required in science
RECORD EVERY SINGLE DETAIL
Pictures
Video
Drawings
Observations

9. What about you? What is your experimental design?
Sum these things up in you project files:
Hypothesis:
I think X because of Y
Experimental Variables
Things you will be testing
Controls
Things you will be comparing the experiment against
Design? And # Replicates

10. I’ll be here the rest of the period if you need help.