experiments 101

Experiments 101Everything you always knew you never

wanted to know about experiments…but need to learn anyway.

In science we perform experiments in order to test a hypothesis.

Effective, reliable experiments must

test ONLY one variable

include a control

be repeatable

test your hypothesis

Variables

Independent or Manipulated

This is the variable that you control or manipulate.

Variables

Independent or Manipulated

This is the variable that you control or manipulate.

the type of paper for the paper airplane

Variables

Dependent or Responding

This is the variable you CANNOT control. It “depends” on the independent variable.

Variables

Dependent or Responding

This is the variable you CANNOT control. It “depends” on the independent variable.

You should only have ONE dependent variable in an experiement.

the distance the paper airplanes flew

Variables

Independent or Manipulated

This is the variable that you control or manipulate.

Dependent or Responding

This is the variable you CANNOT control. It “depends” on the independent variable.

Control

This is everything in the experiment that you have control

over.

Controls are used for comparison.

All variables in an experiment should be controlled (or the

same).

What did we control in the “Come Fly with

Me” lab?

What did we control in the “Come Fly with

Me” lab?Size of paper

How we folded the planes

How we threw the planes

How we measured the distance

DataAll data should be recorded during the experiment.

Your analysis and conclusion should match your data.

DO NOT MAKE THINGS UP!!

The data you collect should be about your dependent variable.

DataQuantitative data can be measured or

counted.

DataQuantitative data can be measured or

counted.

135 centimeters

25 people

45 drops of water

DataQualitative data CANNOT be measured or

counted.

DataQualitative data CANNOT be measured or counted. Qualitative data can come from

observations or interviews.

DataQualitative data CANNOT be measured or counted. Qualitative data can come from

observations or interviews.

The wind was blowing when we threw the notebook paper plane.

The man I interviewed said he felt sad when it rained.

The patient reported he had some dizziness after taking the pills.