Scientific Method

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Scientific Method
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What is the Scientific Method?

• The Scientific Method is steps that scientist use
  to answer questions and solve problems.

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What is the Scientific Method?
The scientific method is the only scientific way
accepted to back up a theory or idea. This is
the method on which all research projects should
be based. The Scientific Method is used by
researchers to support or disprove a theory.
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Steps of the Scientific Method

• Ask a Question
• Form a Hypothesis
• Test the Hypothesis
• Analyze the Results
• Draw Conclusions
• Communicate Results

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Ask Fred To Act Dramatically Cool

• A- ask
• F- form a hypothesis
• T- test hypothesis
• A- analyze the results
• D- draw conclusions
• C- community

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Ask a Question

• An observation is any use of the senses to gather
  information.
• To ask a question you must first make an
  observation.
• Ask a question about what you
• have observed.

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Form a Hypothesis

• A hypothesis is basically a guess.
• It is the answer to your question.

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Test the Hypothesis

• How do I test my answer?
• Basically, by doing an experiment.
• See if there is a way that you can test your
  answer.
• Maybe you have to grow a few plants for example.

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Analyze the Results

• What did your experiment show?
• You need to record your data to keep track of
  what is happening in your experiment.
• This can be through charts, graphs, or data
  sheets.

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Draw Conclusions

• At the end of the investigation, you must draw a
  conclusion.
• Determine what the experiment has told you by
  looking at your collected data.
• You may have to reform your hypothesis, and
  retest your answer

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Communicate Results

• One of the most important step in any
  investigation is to communicate your results.
• You can write a
• scientific paper, make a presentation, or
  create a Web site.

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Science Method Scenarios
Test you knowledge by visiting the Scientific
Scenarios and see if you can identify the steps
of the scientific method. Click the titles below
to visit the scenario.
The Water Consumed by Perennial and Annual
Flowers
The Differences in Copper Mass Included  in
Pennies Minted After 1982
Attempting to Teach Fish Through Association
Learning About Sea Life
Acids and Bases
Breakfast Cereal Iron
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• The Water Consumed by Perennial and Annual
  Flowers
•  Two students in biology wanted to find out
  which plant required more water, an annual or a
  perennial flower. They decided to use a dandelion
  as the annual and a rose as the perennial.  In
  three separate test tubes they placed equal
  amounts of water.  In the first two test tubes
  they placed the dandelion and the rose, leaving
  the third test tube without a flower as a
  control.  Before placing the flowers in the test
  tubes they cut the stems at an angle.  After two
  days they recorded the amount of water left in
  the test tubes

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• Attempting to Teach Fish Through Association
•  Ellen wanted to see if fish could learn by
  association.  She set up three identical
  ten-gallon aquariums.  The walls and tops were
  covered with black construction paper to prevent
  light from entering.  Ten feeder guppies were
  added to each aquarium as test subjects.  A small
  corner of each aquarium was left open, and a
  small reading light is placed over it.  Each day,
  the light is turned on over the aquarium, and
  thirty seconds later, a small amount of food is
  added to two of the aquariums.  The third
  aquarium is a control, and no food is added at
  this time.  Every five days for twenty days, the
  number of fish that come to the light before the
  food is offered is recorded.

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• Learning About Sea Life
• In Mr. Miyagis fifth grade Science class the
  students had been reading about different salt
  water sea creatures.  After reading they began to
  ask questions on how they survive in the ocean. 
  Mr. Miyagi decided to do an experiment to help
  the children learn more about ocean life.  He
  found it best if the students were divided into
  five groups.  Group A observed a horseshoe crab. 
  Group B observed a sea urchin.  Group C observed
  a snail.  Group D observed a spider crab. Group E
  observed a star fish.  After each group had
  observed the sea organism for 15 minutes, they
  were asked to record the information about what
  they discovered.  Data included size, shape,
  color, protection from predators, and how they
  eat and move.  After they had recorded the
  information, each group was asked to share with
  the rest of the class what they learned about
  their creature.  The students finally discussed
  how each sea organism was alike and different.

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• Acids and Bases
• Billy wanted to find out if certain liquids
  were acids or bases.  He used lemon juice, water,
  and glass cleaner for samples.  The water was
  used as the control.  He placed two tablespoons
  of each liquid into separate beakers. Then he
  took three strips of red Litmus paper and dipped
  one into each beaker then laid them out to dry.
  When they dried, he then recorded the color of
  the paper and whether it was an acid or a base. A
  positive base test is blue, a positive acid test
  is red, and in a neutral test the paper does not
  change.

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• The Differences in Copper Mass Included  in
  Pennies Minted After 1982
• Bubba wanted to know approximately how much
  copper is present in pennies minted after the
  year 1982.  First, Bubba chose his penny and
  filed a small notch on either side of the coin. 
  He then proceeded to weigh the penny.  Bubba,
  with the help of his science teacher, measured
  out 20 ml, or 6 cm, of hydrochloric acid into a
  50-mL beaker.  Bubba then poured the acid into
  the beaker, covering the penny.  He left the cup
  sitting over night, and removed the penny with a
  pair of tongs on the next day.  Bubba then washed
  the pennies in water to remove all of the acid
  and dried them thoroughly.  He then weighed the
  penny again to determine the amount of copper
  left.

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• Breakfast Cereal Iron
• Natalie wants to know how much iron is
  contained in a cup of two popular breakfast
  cereals. She put a cup of Total and a cup of
  water into a bowl. She then put a cup of Corn
  Flakes and a cup of water into another bowl. She
  let each bowl set for 24 hours. The next day
  Natalie inserted a magnet into each cup and
  stirred it around. She measured the amount of
  iron filings in milligrams from each cereal.