How Scientists Work
a way of learning about the natural world
What is science?
An attitude of having doubt
What is skepticism?
the one factor that is purposely changed to test a hypothesis
What is an independent variable?
Deals with numbers or amounts
What is a quantitative observation?
a possible answer to a scientific question
What is a hypothesis?
Using one or more of your senses to gather infomration
What is observing?
Facts, figures, and other evidence collected during a scientific investigation
What is data?
the factor that may change in response to the independent variable in an experiment
What is the dependent variable?
Deals with descriptions that cannot be expressed in numbers
What is a qualitative observation?
an attempt by other scientists to conduct the same experiment
What is replication?
grouping together items that are alike in some way
What is classifying?
Data that is collected through scientific processes and that also explains a particular observation.
What is empirical evidence?
A scientific experiment in which only one variable is changed at a time
What is a controlled experiment?
Reasoning that is based on personal feelings or values
What is subjective reasoning?
Dr. Susan Horowitz
Who discovered the effects of a drug in the fight against cancer?
These help people study things that can't be observed directly
What are models?
Reasoning that is based on evidence
What is objective reasoning?
an error in the design of the experiment
What is bias?
A set of beliefs that may make use of science but that is not based on observations.
What is pseudoscience?
observing, classifying, making models, inferring, and predicting
What are some skills scientists use?
When you explain or interpret things you have observed
What is inferring?
One attempts to explain what has already happened while the other forecasts about what will happen
What is the difference in inferences and predictions?
A summary of what you learned from an experiment
What is a conclusion?
a repetition of an experiment
What is a repeated trial?
the name of the drug Dr. Horowitz discovered helped stop cancer cells from dividing
What is Paclitaxel?