30 Jun OBSERVATION
Observation
Scientific inquiry in biolo y starts by observing the living species around you. Whatseparates science from the other methods of seeking
truth is that it istestable ?e.g., one can devrse experiments to test the v alidity of an Idea); it is falsifiable (e.g., an exp eriment can
rev eal if an idea isfalse); and it involves natural causality (e.g., the method involves and depends upon the natural laws ofthe universe
which cause things to happen in a predictable and repeatable manner).
Observation: Scientific inquiry begins when something interesting
gets your attention.
Question: Following an observation, a question arises in your mind. It may be something like “I wonder what?” or, “I
wonder how? or, “I wonder why?”
Assignment Details
In this assignment, you will take a look at the scientific method. You will design
a (fictional) scientific studyto ansWer a specific question based upon an observ ation.
First,.choose1 of the following observations or
questions:
Option A
Observ ation: During the winter, you spread salt daily on your driveway to melt the snow. Inthe
springtime,when the lawn beginsto grow, you notice that there is no grass growrng for about 3 inchesfrom the driveway. Furthermore,the
grass seemsto be growing more slowly up to about1 foot from the driveway.
Question: Might grass growth be inhibited by salt?
Option B
Observ ation: You and your neighbor have small kitchen gardens where you both grow tomatoes. His blotchy green and red
tomato estaste much sweeter than your perfectly uniform red ones.
Question: Might tomato sweetness be effected bythe green
chloroplasts in the fruits?
Option C
Observ ation: You Went to the bakeryto get a loaf of bread, but all of the loaves seemed
small. The baker said that he used the same recipe and tested to be sure the yeast in the dough was activ e, but the machine he used broke
down during the kneading process. Because the bread rose, he decided that it had dev eloped enough gluten, and he baked it off anyway.
Question: Does yeast need air to make bread rise?
After choosing 1 ofthe ab ov e options (observation and question), you will do some
library or Internet research about the subject. Once you have become famrlrarwrth the topic, propose a testable hypothesis to answerthe
question, and followthe rest of scientific method to determine if your hypothesis is correct by designing a controlled experiment.
You
wrll not actually do the experiment or collect results; rather, you wrll propose a workable controlled experiment and make up what would
seem to be reasonable results. You will then discussthose imagined results and draw a conclusion (based upon your imagined results) about
whether or notto accept your hypothesis.
Complete the steps of the scientific method for your choice of observ ation and question using
the directions below. Use the following headings in your paper.
Introduction
The introduction is an inv estigation of what is currently
known about the question being asked. Before one proposes a hypothesis or dashes offto the lab to do an experiment, a thorough search is
made in the existing literature about the specific question and abouttopics related to the question. Once one isfamiliar with what is
known about the question under consideration, one is in a position to propose a reasonable hypothesisto test the
question.
Hypothesis
This is an educated guess or a best guess aboutwhat might be the explanation for the question that is asked. A
hypothesis should be a 1-sentence statement (not a question) that can be tested in an experiment. Ahyp othe sis can be stated as a prediction
using an if/then statement. The abilityto test a hypothesis impliesthat it has a natural, repeatable cause.
Controlled Experimental
Method
The hypothesis istested in a controlled experiment. A controlled experiment comp ares a control (e.g., the normal, unmodified, or
unrestricted, or uninhibited set-up based on the observ ation) to one or several experimental set-up s. The conditions in the exp erimental
set-ups are identical to the control in ev ery way (e.g., temperature, composition, shape, kind, etc.), except forthe one experimental
variable that is being tested. The results obtained from the experimental set-ups will be compared to each other and to those obtained from
the control. If done correctly, any differences in the results may be attributed to the experimental variable under consideration.
When
designing an experiment, it is important to use multiples (replicates) for each set-up to avoid drawing the wrong conclusion. If the
experiment only has one control and only one experimental setup with just one test subject in each, there is always the chance that a single
livingorganism (test subject) could get sick or ev en die for reasons not caused bythe experimental variable. Because living organisms are
genetica ly different, the results from just one test subject in a giv en setup may not be typical forthe species as a whole. This could
result in errors when interpreting the results. This kind of problem is avoided by using multiple controls and multiple experimental setups
with multiple test subjects.
Be sure to provide sufficient details in your method section so that someone could reproduce your
experiment.
The experimental method section should also state clearly how data (numbers) will be collected during the exp eriment,which
wrll be used to compare results in each test setup.
Resuhs
Because this is a suppositional experiment, you will make up results
according to what you think might happen if you actually did the experiment.
Results should include detailed raw data (numbers) rather
than just a summary ofthe results. For example, i data are collected daily forfive Weeks, results should include the actual data from
each day, and not just a summary of what happened at the end of the five Weeks. Recorded results should match the experimental
method.
Conclusion
In this section, clearly state whether you reject or acceptthe hypothesis based on the (imagined) results. Discuss
what this means in terms of the hypothesis, such as the need for additional experiments orthe practical uses or implications ofthe
results.
References
Provide references in APAformat. This includes a reference list and in-text citations for references used in the
introduction se ctio n.
Giv e your paper a title, and identify each section as specified above. Although the hypothesis will be a 1-sentence
response,the other sections will need to be paragraphs to adequately explain your experiment.
Submit your assignment as a Word document.
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