The Scientific Method
The first step of the scientific method
Observing
What is an inference?
a logical interpretation based on what scientists already know
The Big Bang at the beginning of time
Theory
A farmer plants 20 pumpkin plants. He divides them into plots A and B of ten plants a piece. Each plot gets the same amount water, soil, and sunlight. The farmer gives plot A 10 grams of fertilizer and gives none to plot B. He notices at the end of the growing season plot A produces 35 pumpkins and plot B 15. The farmer says that providing fertilizer will produce more pumpkins.
Which plot is the control group?
Plot A
What is Biology?
The study of life
The second step of the scientific method
Inferring or Forming a Hypothesis
What is a control group?
a group exposed to the same conditions as the experimental group except for one independent variable
The Sun rises in the East and sets in the West
Fact
A farmer plants 20 pumpkin plants. He divides them into plots A and B of ten plants a piece. Each plot gets the same amount water, soil, and sunlight. The farmer gives plot A 10 grams of fertilizer and gives none to plot B. He notices at the end of the growing season plot A produces 35 pumpkins and plot B 15. The farmer says that providing fertilizer will produce more pumpkins.
What does the farmer keep the same for both groups?
Water, soil, sunlight
All living things are made up of basic units called ___________.
cells
The third step of the scientific method
Designing an Experiment
What is a hypothesis?
a scientific explanation for a set of observations that can be tested in ways that support or reject it
That caterpillar is about 3 inches long
Observation
A farmer plants 20 pumpkin plants. He divides them into plots A and B of ten plants a piece. Each plot gets the same amount water, soil, and sunlight. The farmer gives plot A 10 grams of fertilizer and gives none to plot B. He notices at the end of the growing season plot A produces 35 pumpkins and plot B 15. The farmer says that providing fertilizer will produce more pumpkins.
Which plot produced more pumpkins?
A
True or False. A plant is a non-living organism.
False
The fourth step of the scientific method
Collecting and Analyzing Data
What is an observation?
the act of noticing and describing events or processes in a careful, orderly way
Human beings evolving from primates
Theory
A farmer plants 20 pumpkin plants. He divides them into plots A and B of ten plants a piece. Each plot gets the same amount water, soil, and sunlight. The farmer gives plot A 10 grams of fertilizer and gives none to plot B. He notices at the end of the growing season plot A produces 35 pumpkins and plot B 15. The farmer says that providing fertilizer will produce more pumpkins.
What is the independent variable?
The fertilizer
A _________________ is a signal to which an organism responds.
stimulus
The fifth step of the scientific method
Drawing a Conclusion
What is an independent variable?
the variable that is deliberately changed
The Earth revolves around the Sun
Fact
A farmer plants 20 pumpkin plants. He divides them into plots A and B of ten plants a piece. Each plot gets the same amount water, soil, and sunlight. The farmer gives plot A 10 grams of fertilizer and gives none to plot B. He notices at the end of the growing season plot A produces 35 pumpkins and plot B 15. The farmer says that providing fertilizer will produce more pumpkins.
Is the farmer safe to assume that giving his plants fertilizer will produce more pumpkins?
Yes
Which system of measurement do scientists use when collecting data and performing experiments?
metric