Beginning with Science 02: Scientific Investigation

For this assignment you will do two things:

Part I: Evaluate one experimental design. (10 points)

Part II: Design your own experiment using the scientific method. (40 points)
Review each scenario below, and choose one to complete for your assignment. Each scenario contains
specific questions that will ask you to provide examples, explain your suggestions for improvement, and
refer to the lesson. Be sure to respond to each question in complete sentences.

Part I: Scenarios (select only one)

Scenario 1

Christopher and Kate noticed that after a rainstorm some of the rocks in their yard appear to shrink.
They wondered how the mass of the rocks changed when dissolved in water. To determine this, Kate
purchased a variety of rocks from a local shop, carefully recording the types of rocks in a data chart.
Christopher gathered rocks from the backyard to add to the rocks Kate purchased. They measured
each rock's initial mass; then they inserted the rocks one by one into 100 milliliters of water and
measured the mass of each rock after it had sat in the water for five minutes. Both Christopher and
Kate concluded that store-bought rocks do not dissolve in water. They also concluded that to get
rocks that dissolve in water they must be gathered directly from the yard.

1. 1. Describe why the investigation above is not adequate to explain what types of rocks will
dissolve in water.

2. ________________________________________________________________________

3. 2. Using what Christopher and Kate have already observed, suggest a possible hypothesis
regarding how the mass of a rock changes when placed in water. Identify the independent
and dependent variables.

4.
________________________________________________________________________

5. 3. Describe, in detail, a procedure to test your hypothesis. Identify the controlled variables.

6.
________________________________________________________________________

1
Scenario 2

Lizzie loves to stargaze at night. She has noticed that the moon appears to change shape over the
 course of the month, and she wants to investigate why this happens. She hypothesizes that the
relationship of the sun, Earth, and moon creates shadows on the moon. She sets up an experiment
with a light bulb to represent the sun, a large beach ball to represent Earth, and a smaller foam ball
to represent the moon. She researches the position of the sun, Earth, and moon at different times of
a month and makes a model of the entire system.

1. 1. Identify the parts of the scientific method in Lizzie's experiment.

2. ______________________________________________________________________

3. 2. List at least three variables Lizzie should control during the experiment. For each variable
identified, give a specific suggestion for how Lizzie can control it.

4. ______________________________________________________________________

Scenario 3

Matthew notices that if he walks barefoot on blacktop pavement, his feet get much hotter than if he
walks barefoot on grass or dirt. He wants to determine if the amount of blacktop pavement in a city
will affect the overall temperature of the city. His hypothesis states that because the pavement
absorbs heat from the sun, a city with more pavement will have a higher temperature. Matthew uses
a map to measure the number of miles of pavement within the limits of his hometown. He then
records the temperature outside of his house to see how it varies each day for one week. He asks his
friend in the next town to complete a similar experiment. Once the data is collected, he concludes
that the hypothesis is not supported.

1. 1. What are the major flaws in Matthew's experimental design? What are the strengths of
the experimental design? Explain each in detail using terms from the lesson.

2.
________________________________________________________________________

3. 2. This experiment is not able to support Matthew's hypothesis. Suggest specific

improvements that will allow the experiment to more effectively test the given hypothesis.
Explain why these changes are improvements.

4.
________________________________________________________________________

Part II: Designing an Experiment (select only one)

For the second part of your assignment, you will apply the scientific method to a real-life situation. You will select a
problem that leads to a testable question, similar to the scenarios presented in Part I and explain how you would
follow each step of the scientific method to try and answer the question or solve the problem. Note: you are
describing only what you would do at each step; you will not be conducting the experiment.
Choose one of the following four problems to design your experiment.
Problem 1

Your family has planted a garden. You observe that some of the plants in the garden have teeth
marks in them. What is eating the plants?

Problem 2

A local farmer notices that the level of water in the pond behind his house has been going down.
Temperatures have been very high in the area, but there are also a lot of animals on his farm
that may be drinking the water. What is causing the water to go down?

Problem 3

The crowds at the local beach have decreased over the last week. Temperatures are very high in
the area, but people seem to be staying away from the beach. Why?

Problem 4

As you are walking down a wooded path, you notice a large depression in the ground that has
burn marks along the outside. What caused the hole?

Part II: The Process

View this table to see what you will need to include in your experimental design.

Experimental Design Process

Parts of the
Scientific What You Need to Do Example
Method
This step should include a description Scenario: My car wont start. My question is: Why
of the scenario you are investigating, wont my car start?
along with the question that you are
attempting to answer. It is important
Purpose that each question/problem has a
variety of possible solutions to
investigate, thereby allowing you to
use the scientific method.

Observation List all the possible observations that I noticed that the engine made a clanging sound
you can make about the when it started.
question/problem stated in the
purpose of the experiment. The car is 15 years old.

It has been more than two weeks since I last bought

 gasoline.

Explain what specific topics you would I lo

research to attempt to solve this ca
Research problem, and describe at least two th
practical resources you would use for
your research.

List at least two possible hypotheses Tw

that could apply to your question my
Hypothesis above. Choose one hypothesis, or ca
educated guess, that you will test If
with an experiment. wi

Experiment Describe an experiment to test your 1

hypothesis. Be sure to identify the
independent and dependent variables,
as well as all the controlled variables. 2
Make sure that the experiment's
procedure provides instructions for
controlling the controlled variables and
that it will test the hypothesis you are
proposing.
Fo
my

Ind

De

Co
co

Describe the data that you will Da

collect to test your hypothesis.
How will you organize your data M
Data to make sure that it is neat,
verifiable, and easy to
understand? M

Describe possible results you would be Th

looking for or measurements you th
Analysis would be taking, based on the
experiment you designed.

Discuss how you would determine Th

whether the experiment proved the jum
hypothesis to be correct or incorrect, sta
Conclusion based on the possible results of the de
experiment. Then explain what you wo
would do next if your hypothesis were
incorrect.
 Experimental Design

Parts of the Scientific Method I Chose Problem

Purpose

Observation

Research

Hypothesis

Experiment

Independent variables
(manipulate)

Dependent variables
(measure)

Data

Analysis

Conclusion