1. GRAPHING REVIEW PART 1 Physics

2. What are graphs used for? Graphs are used to display collected data in a “picture” form that is visually pleasing to the eye and help us understand amounts. These amounts are called data. They often represent large amounts of data that could be otherwise very cumbersome to wade through. For example:  A spreadsheet full of numbers for your spending habits.  Multiple years worth of records for sales  Polling data for voting

3. What types of graphs are there? There are several types of graphs, some more sophisticated and specialized than others. The four basic types of graphs are : 1. Line graph 2. Bar graph (or histogram if bars are touching each other) 3. Pictograph 4. Pie chart (sometimes called a circle graph)

4. Where does the data come from? The data that you will graph comes from changes to variables that you either: A. Manipulate B. Keep as constant for all trials C. See how they respond D. Are the same environmental conditions for all subjects

5. What are the types of variables? There are 4 basic types of variables. 1. Independent variable – this is what the experimenter changes during the experiment  The thing you change to see what will happen

6. What are the types of variables? 2. Dependent variable – this is what the experimenter measures.  These are the results you are interested in

7. What are the types of variables? 3. Standardizing variable or Constant variable - these are variables that are set as equal for all trials or treatments so that they do not contribute to different results for different trials

8. What are the types of variables? 4. Control group – a standardized group in which the independent variable is either eliminated or set at some standard value.