1. THE NATURE OF SCIENCE

2. Scientific Method
When scientists try to solve a mystery they use a problem-solving procedure called the scientific method
The six steps to the scientific method are
Identify the problem
Gather information
Develop a hypothesis
Test the hypothesis
Analyze the results
Draw a conclusion

3. Science Science means “having knowledge”
Science is a process of observing, studying, and thinking about things in your world to gain knowledge

4. Earth Science Science is divided into different areas of study
The kind of science you will study this year is Earth Science

5. Earth Science Some Earth science topics include:
Geology - The study of Earth and its matter, processes, and history
Meteorology – The study of Earths weather and the forces that cause it
Oceanography – The study of Earth’s oceans, their processes, and life within them
Astronomy – The study of objects in space, including stars, planets, comets, and their origins

6. Science
Much of the information you will learn about has been discovered over the ages by people who conducted scientific tests
Many unanswered questions remain and much more is waiting to be discovered

7. Testing and Experimentation
Experimenting is an important part of science
For an experiment to be effective it must be carefully designed

8. Experiment Example
Suppose you want to know which brand of dishwashing liquid cleans dishes best.
First you would need to research dishwashing liquids, as you research you may make an educated guess of which brand works best, this is a hypothesis.
Next you would design an experiment that tests the validity of your hypothesis

9. Experiment Example
You will have to consider which brands you will test, the amount of soap, type and number of dishes, how much and what type of grease is on the dishes, amount and temperature of water, and type of sponge or washcloth used.
All these factors could affect the outcome of the experiment.

10. Variables and Constants
The different factors that can change in an experiment are variables
You can only test one variable at a time for accurate results
A variable that you change is the independent variable
In our example the brand of dishwashing liquid is the independent variable

11. Variables and Constants
                        
Constants are variables that do not change in an experiment
Constants in our example would include, the amount of dishwashing liquid, the amount and type of water used, the type of grease, and the temperature of the water

12. Variables and Constants
A dependent variable is the variable being measured
In our example experiment the amount of grease left on the dishes after washing would be the dependent variable

13. Controls A control is a standard to which your results can be compared
A control for our example would be washing the dishes in only hot water with no dishwashing soap

14. Repeating Experiments
For your results to be valid your tests should be repeated many times to see whether you can confirm your original results.
If you can show the same results in 100 trials under the same conditions, then you have a conclusion you can feel confident about

15. Data
During the experiment you should observe what is happening and carefully record your data in a table
Be sure to include any unexpected results in your data, many discoveries have been made when experiments produced unexpected results
                                                                                        

16. Hypothesis A hypothesis is an educated guess
Scientists test hypotheses using experiments
If data gathered over a long period of time support a hypothesis, the hypothesis may eventually become a theory

17. Theory
A scientific theory is an explanation or model backed by results obtained from many tests or experiments
Before a hypothesis can become a theory it must be subjected to many years of tests and observations

18. Scientific Law
Scientific law is a rule that describes the behavior of something in nature
Usually a scientific law describes what will happen in a given situation but doesn’t explain why it happened

19. Ethics Science is limited in what it can explain
For a problem to be scientifically studied, there must be variables that can be observed, measured, and tested
Problems dealing with ethics and belief systems cannot be answered using these methods