SCIENTIFIC METHOD THE PROCESS OF THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY

WHAT DO YOU SEE HERE? WHICH IS MOST IMPORTANT? TO WHOM IS IT MOST IMPORTANT?

POSE A QUESTION Based on observations and facts Must be testable Must have variables

FORM A HYPOTHESIS Based off of knowledge, research, and observations Gives a possible answer to your question Must be testable

DESIGN AN EXPERIMENT Include and identify only one independent (manipulated) and one dependent (responding) variable Independent variable is changed by the experimenter Dependent variable responds to changes made to the independent variable Control every other possible variable Test multiple times The more tests, the better the data Others must be able to replicate experiment Log materials and procedures EVERY TIME

COLLECT DATA (PERFORM EXPERIMENT) Accurately measure and record results using the METRIC system of measurement Stay organized by using a log book or data table Experiments that do not report the actual data are NOT valid Most experiments will involve a graph or other way to show the results in picture form

DRAWING CONCLUSIONS Interpret your data and draw a conclusion based on the results of your experiment Ask yourself if you collected enough data to draw an accurate conclusion Does the data support your hypothesis? How will you improve your experiment next time? What other variables might you test?

COMMUNICATE YOUR FINDINGS Use the internet, print media and public speaking to communicate the results of your experiment Generally, the most reliable source of knowledge will come from peer reviewed papers communicated in scientific journals Be careful of information obtained from the internet Wikis, blogs, and commercial websites are not always bad sources of information, but should be investigated thoroughly The more information is communicated, the more progress we can make!