Sci. Method & Parts of an Experiment
An educated guess for the possible results of an experiment
(Hint: Always written as an if/then statement)
What is a hypothesis?
A crystalline solid that is naturally occurring, inorganic, and has a definite chemical composition.
What is a mineral?
Molten rock can be classified as either of these, depending where they are found.
What is magma or lava?
A process that breaks down rocks into smaller pieces
What is weathering?
The type of rock that fossils are found within
What is sedimentary rock?
The group that does not receive an initial change, and is used as a comparison for the results of the experiment.
What is a control group? or What is a control?
Rare minerals that can be cut and polished (used for jewelry)
What is a gem?
Rocks are classified based on this...
What is how they are formed?
The movement of sediments throughout the Earth’s surface
What is erosion?
A footprint, trail, burrow, or anything else that an animal leaves behind that becomes embedded within sediment
What is a trace fossil?
Something you formulate after analyzing the results of an experiment.
What is a conclusion?
Cleavage is a mineral's smooth surface after this and fracture is a mineral's rough surface after this.
What is a break? or What is a breakage?
Rocks formed by tremendous heat and pressure
What are metamorphic rocks?
When rocks are chemically broken down (or changed) into a different type of rock.
What is chemical weathering?
Parts of an organism (or the actual organism), preserved in amber, ice, or tar.
What is an original remains fossil?
Carol thinks that boiled water will freeze faster than cold water. She boils a cup of tap water and pours it into a small bowl. She also fills a small bowl with cold tap water. She places both bowls in the freezer. Carol uses a timer to check on the water every thirty minutes. She records the temperature of each bowl using a table.
The independent variable of Carol's experiment is this.
What is the hot (or boiled) water?
Comparing of the density of minerals to the density of equal volumes of water
What is specific gravity?
Rocks that are formed from cooling lava or magma
What are igneous rocks?
The 4 causes of erosion
What is mass movement (gravity), ice, wind, and water?
These fossils form when an organism is buried, then decays, leaving a space within the rock.
What is a mold fossil?
George thinks teachers will call on him more if he wears red shirts. He alternates daily wearing red shirts and blue shirts for three months, recording how often each teacher calls on him every day. He raises his hand four times per class period to contribute to discussion.
The dependent variable of George's experiment is this.
What is the amount of times he is called on by his teachers?
Color, luster, hardness, streak, breakage, crystal shape, and magnetism.
What are ways to identify a mineral?
The types of rocks that form from the compaction and cementation of pieces of other rocks, dissolved minerals, or plant and animal matter
What are sedimentary rocks?
When rocks are physically broken down into smaller pieces, but remain the same type of rock.
What is mechanical weathering?
This law states that older rocks lie underneath younger rocks in undisturbed rock layers.
What is the law of superposition?