What is Science?
What is bias?
Bias is prior expectations that interfere with conducting an impartial investigation or experiment.
You want to test the following question: does drinking soda lead to faster tooth decay?
Write a hypothesis for the question, and plan an experiment to test your hypothesis. In your answer, include:
hypothesis
materials
procedure
Example:
hypothesis: drinking soda leads to faster tooth decay.
Materials: soda, water, people that drink soda, people that don't drink soda
procedure: follow each group for 6 months. Each week, have the group go in to the dentist to see how much enamal they have left. At the end of 6 months compare the amount of tooth enamel between the two groups.
True or false: scientific knowledge is always changing.
True!
Which are facts, and which are opinions?
a. Snakes have vertebrae.
b. Snakes are creepy.
c. Snakes slither like a worm.
d. Snakes eat eggs and rodents.
a and d are facts.
b and c are opinions.
Think about your cellphone.
What are advantages of your cellphone as an invention?
What are disadvantages of your cellphone as an invention?
Some examples:
advantages: connect people, safety, social media
Disadvantages: texting and driving, addiction, social media
What is an example of an advancement in technology that has impacted the way you live?
Examples: phones, refrigerators, wireless headphones
Today's weather was 41 degrees and cloudy. Yesterday, the temperature was 38 and there were flurries. Based on this evidence, you make the conclusion that April weather is always going to be about 39.5 degrees and cloudy. Is your conclusion correct? Why or why not?
This conclusion is incorrect. The conclusion does not follow from the evidence provided. To make this conclusion you would have to analyze the trends in weather during April over the span of several years.
Think about airbags.
What are some risks that are decreased by airbags?
What are some risks that are increased by airbags?
decreased: injury if you crash, protects your body on impact
increased: possibility to malfunction, broken ribs
What is the difference between an open system and a closed system?
A closed system, no matter is lost
In an open system, some matter is lost
Ex: electrical circuit
What is often the first step in scientific inquiry?
a. developing a hypothesis
b. posing a question
c. designing an experiment
d. collecting data
Asking a question
You are an engineer on the team building the next rocket headed to space. Your first rocket got too hot in the thermosphere and lit on fire. What design changes would you suggest?
Some sort of cooling mechanism so the rocket doesn't overheat. Maybe different materials on the external body of the rocket that don't get as hot.
Think about a hive of honey bees. Explain the system of producing honey in terms of subsystems and parts as well as inputs, processes, and outputs.
subsystem: pollinating flowers
parts: bees, flowers, hive
inputs: hive, pollen
processes: taking pollen and turning it into honey
outputs: honey
You conduct an experiment with two trials to determine if teenagers that drink coffee are shorter than teenagers that don't drink coffee. Your results are below:
Trial one: coffee drinkers= 57.5 inches; Non coffee drinkers= 59 inches
Trial two: coffee drinkers= 58 inches; non coffee drinkers= 53 inches
Based on these results, what should you do next?
You could check the reliability of your study, and see what is causing your differences in results. The results are significant, so you should conduct a further study before drawing conclusions.
What are the differences in features, performance, durability and cost between a pen and a pencil?
Features: pen is more permanent that a pencil
performance: both work similarly but pen doeesn't need to be sharpened
durability: pen will run out of ink slower than a pencil will need to be sharpened
cost: pencil has less cost than pen
What are examples of safety procedures that need to be followed in the laboratory?
-follow instructions
- don't inhale or taste anything
- appropriate clothing/gear