The Scientific Method

1
The Scientific Method

• (Scientific Inquiry)

2
The Process of Inquiry

• Scientists observe the natural surroundings,
  infer what these observations mean, and predict
  based upon past experience and current
  information.
• Scientific inquiry identifies the different ways
  scientists study our natural world. It does not
  always happen the same way, but there are common
  steps. We will master 6 of these.

3
Asking a Scientific Question

• Not all questions you can ask are scientific.
  Only those that can be observed qualitatively
  and/or quantitatively are a part of scientific
  inquiry. Opinions, values, and judgments cannot
  be answered this way.
• Many times posing a question is the first step in
  scientific inquiry. It may use the words what,
  how, or why in the question.

4
Hypothesis

• Using your prior knowledge, you give a possible
  answer that seems reasonable to answer the
  question or to explain the observations. This is
  a hypothesis.
• This is not a fact, but just one possible answer.
• It must be able to be tested by observations or
  experiments to be a valid scientific hypothesis.
• It takes many tests before it can be considered
  as true.

5
Design an Experiment

• Once a problem is identified and a possible
  solution (hypothesis) is made, the scientist can
  plan how to set up an experiment to test the
  hypothesis.
• Which factors are important to study to see if
  the hypothesis seems correct or not?
• Can only one factor (manipulated variable) be
  changed?
• As it is changed, what effect does it have on a
  second factor (responding variable)?

6
Collect Data and Interpret It

• The purpose of the experiment is to test the
  hypothesis. This means we identify a question
  and a possible answer BEFORE we actually do the
  experiment.
• How will you organize the observations,
  measurements, and other evidence during the
  experiment?
• What units will you use when measuring?
• Can a graph help organize the quantitative
  results?

7
Draw Conclusions

• As a part of the experiment, you analyze data and
  interpret what it means.
• Drawing conclusions is a separate step from
  collecting and interpreting data (running the
  experiment). In this step, you are looking at
  your data results and asking this
• Does the data support my suggested answer to the
  problem?
• Your conclusion is to identify if the data
  supported or refuted your hypothesis. If
  supported, you need to run more tests before you
  assume your answer is true. If the data doesnt
  support your hypothesis, you need to think about
  a different answer, and try to test that.

8
Communicate Results

• The results of the scientific investigation need
  to be shared with others. We share our ideas and
  conclusions developed during the inquiry. We
  also share the inquiry processes used. Others
  can check our design for flaws or run the same
  experiments to check our results for validity.
• Another scientist might use your inquiry to draw
  a new question or another hypothesis on what is
  happening. Or a new experimental design may be
  developed. It might even lead another to do a
  study in a different field of study because your
  work gave someone a new idea.

9
The Order of Inquiry

• Scientific inquiry does not just follow one set
  path from start to finish. Scientists sometimes
  skip a step, or go backwards in the steps. The
  scientific method is flexible enough that we can
  use it in different series of steps to gain a
  better understanding of the natural world and
  universe in which we exist.