Science

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Science

• Everything we know went through a testing process
  
• Experimental Design, Scientific Process,
  Scientific Method

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Observation vs. Inference

• Observation can be made with only the five
  senses (sight, touch, hear, taste, and smell)
• Observations? not guesses, assumptions or
  opinion.
• Inference logical assumption based off of prior
  knowledge or after very limited observation

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Observations

• Two types of observations
• Qualitative observation
• descriptions
• observed (not measured)
• Ex. Colors, textures, smells, tastes, appearance,
  etc.
• Qualitative ? Quality
• Quantitative observation
• numbers
• measured
• Ex. Length, height, area, volume, weight, speed,
  time, temperature, humidity, sound levels, etc.
• Quantitative ? Quantity 

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Observation or Inference?

• It is blue.

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Observation or Inference?

• It is old.

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Observation or Inference?

• It must be a ball.

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Observation or Inference?

• There are 9 tentacles.

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Hypothesis

• Educated prediction made from various
  observations- It is NOT guess!
• Useful only if it can be tested.
• If I do this (manipulated variable), then I
  think this will happen (responding variable)
  because

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The Experiment experimental design

• Setting up an experiment
• Control group (generally what is normal)
• Controlled variables
• Experimental group
• Variables
• Manipulated variable (independent variable)
• Responding variable (dependent variable)

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Why only have one manipulated variable per
experiment?
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Data collection

• Large sample size
• Use of a data table
• Variables easy to identify
• Measurable results
• Outliers can cause data distortion
• How can you recognize outliers?
• Multiple trials give most accurate results

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• After an experiment is complete
• Results, more testing, new hypotheses, more
  experiments, more resultsand on and on
• work is usually published
• Peer review process- Experiments must be
  successfully repeated by other scientists
• After many years, after many scientists, lots of
  supporting evidence, new theories are accepted
• Atomic Theory
• Cell theory
• Germ Theory

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Theory vs Law

• Law
• Explains one topic
• No longer adding evidence to laws
• Theory
• Explains a multiple hypotheses
• Unifies evidence from multiple studies
• Continually adding evidence to theories