the science research complete ms powerpoint 2007

8/14/2019 The Science Research Complete MS PowerPoint 2007

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THE SCIENCE RESEARCH

Bureau of Secondary Education

Department of Education

May 2008


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Planning the Science Research

lIdentifying the problem;

lIdentifying the variables;

lFormulating the hypothesis; and

lPlanning the experimental procedure

l

l


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Identifying the Research Problem

lFinding a Research TopicHardest part of a science research

Need to focus on topics which are interest to

youSelect a question that is going to be

interesting to work on for at least a monthor two, and;

A question that is specific enough to allowyou to find the answer with a simpleexperiment.


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Some characteristics of a good sciencefair project question:

lThe question should be interestingenough to read about then work on forthe next couple months.

lThere should be at least 3 sources ofwritten information on the subject. Youwant to be able to build on the

experience of others!


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Now, for something like a science fairproject, it is important to think ahead. Thiswill save you lots of unhappiness later.Imagine the experiment you might perform

to answer your question. How does thatpossible experiment stack up againstthese issues?


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lThe experiment should measure changes tothe important factors (variables) using a

number that represents a quantity such as acount, percentage, length, width, etc. Or, justas good might be an experiment thatmeasures a factor (variable) that is simply

present or not present.lYour must be able to control other factors that

might influence your experiment, so that youcan do a fair test. A fair test occurs whenyou change only one factor (variable) andkeep all other conditions the same.


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lIs your experiment safe to perform?

lDo you have all the materials and equipmentyou need for your science fair project, or willyou be able to obtain them quickly and at a

very low cost?lDo you have enough time to do your experiment

before the science fair?

lDoes your science fair project meet all the rules

and requirements for your science fair?lHave you avoided the bad science fair projects

listed in the table? (the Slide after the next)


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Some science fair projects thatinvolve human subjects, vertebrateanimals or animal tissue, pathogenic

agents, DNA, or controlled or hazardoussubstances, need approval from DOSTbefore you start experimentation.


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Some examples of good science fairproject questions are the following:

lHow does water purify affect surfacetension?

lWhen is the best time to plant soy beans?

lHow does arch curvature affect loadcarrying strength?

lHow do different foundations stand up to

earthquakes?


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Science Project Topics to Avoid Why

Any topic that boils down to a simplepreference or taste comparison. For ex.,Which tastes better: Coke or Pepsi?

Such experiments dont involve thekinds of numerical measurements wewant in a science fair project. They aremore of a survey than an experiment.

Most consumer product testing of theWhich is best? type. This includescomparisons of popcorn, bubblegum,make-up, detergents, etc.

There projects only have scientificvalidity if the Investigator fullyunderstand the science behind why the

product works and applies thatunderstanding to the experiment. Whilemany consumer products are easy to use,

the science behind them is often at thelevel of a graduate student in college.

Any topic that requires people to recall

things they did in the past.

The data tends to be unreliable.

Examples of bad science research topics that you shouldavoid are the ff:


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Science Project Topics to Avoid Why

Effect of colored light on plants Several people do this project at

almost every science fair. You canbe more creative!

Effect of music or talking onplants.

Difficult to measure.

Effect of running, music, videogames, or almost anything on

blood pressure

The result is either obvious (theheart beats faster when you run) ordifficult to measure with propercontrols (the effect of music).

Effect of color on memory,emotion, mood, taste, strength,etc.

Highly subjective and difficult tomeasure.

S i P j t T i T A id Wh


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Science Project Topics To Avoid Why

Any topic that requires measurements thatwill be extremely difficult to make orrepeat, given your equipment.

Without measurement, you cant do science.

Graphology or handwriting analysis Questionable scientific validity

Astrology or ESP No scientific validity

Any topic that requires dangerous, hard to

find, expensive, or illegal materials.

Violates the rules of virtually any science

fair.

Any topic that requires drugging, pain orinjury to a live vertebrate animal.

Violates the rules of virtually any sciencefair.

Any topic that creates unacceptable risk(physical or psychological) to a humansubject.


Any topic that involves collection of tissuesamples from living humans or vertebrateanimals.



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Finding Information on YourResearch Topic

lYou can tap several sources from yourimmediate environment.

lYou can talk to other people with more

experience than yourself: your mentors,parents, and teachers.

lRecord your sources and take good notes

as you go.


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Today, savvy researchers use theirlibrary and Internet to do background

research to help them find the best way todo things. You want to learn from theexperience of others rather than blunderaround and repeat their mistakes.


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Library Research

One of the most valuable resourcesat the library is not a book, but a person.Public librarians, college librarians and

certified school librarians are speciallytrained to teach information literacy.Librarians are excellent sources fororganizing research, for teaching how to

search, how to read and use citations,how to narrow down web searches, andhow to winnow out the good from the bad.


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lThe best place to start your backgroundresearch is by looking up your keywords

in an encyclopedia, dictionary, ortextbook.

lRead the background information andnote any useful sources listed in thebibliography at the end of the

encyclopedia article or dictionary entry.lYou can also check the subject headings

of books and articles as you look them

up in the library catalog.


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lPeriodicals are printed material likemagazines and newspapers. Dependingon your topic, they may also containuseful information. You can look up yourkeywords in a printed index available inyour library.

lIf your library is subscribed to online

resources, you can gain access toinformation unattainable in any otherway.


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Internet Research

There are 2 primary ways to searchfor information on the internet.

1.To use a search engine such as Google or

Yahoo!

2.To search using a subject portal.


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Subject portals list just asmall portion of the information onthe Internet, but the sites listedhave been checked for relevance.

Search engines try toindex everything on theinternet.


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Two popular subject portals:

lLibrarians Index to the Internet

lWWW Virtual Library

You can begin by entering yourkeywords one at a time to search forinformation in the search engines and

subject portals; however, this willprobably bring up too much irrelevantinformation.


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If you want some advanced tips onusing the Internet to find information, hereare two good sites. There is valuableinformation here even for people who thinkthat they are good at Internet searching.


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lhttp://www.lib.berkeley.edu./TeachingLib/GuiA tutorial offered by the Teaching

Library at the University of California at

Berkeley.lLibrarians Index to the Internet: Internet

Guide and Search Tools. Check out the

tips in Internet Searching.l
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu./TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/FindInfo.htmlhttp://www.lib.berkeley.edu./TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/FindInfo.html


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To do an internet search for books

containing information about a specificscience fair project, the Science Fair ProjectIndex is a great place to start. The Index isdesigned to allow the user to locate a

particular experiment by the general topic;by keywords in the experiment title or bookinformation; by grade level; by the materialsor equipment employed; or by the principledemonstrated.

lhttp://www.ascpl.lib.oh.us/scifair/

l
http://www.ascpl.lib.oh.us/scifair/http://www.ascpl.lib.oh.us/scifair/


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Finding Too Much or Too Little

Information If you are finding too much

information, for example pages and pages

of irrelevant hits on Google or a periodicalindex, you need to narrow your search.You can narrow your search by borrowingsome of the terms in your researchquestions.

If you arent finding enoughinformation, you need to simplify your

search.


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Most online search engines andperiodical guides have instructions abouthow to narrow and broaden searches.Just read the instructions for help.


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In the end, never forget that yourgoal is to find information to answer theresearch questions you asked about your

topic. Dont stop looking until you havesources that will answer your questions!Be sure to ask for help from mentors,parents, and teachers if youre havingtrouble.


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Identifying the Variables

lVariable is any factor, trait, or conditionthat can exist in differing amounts ortypes.

An experiment usually has threekinds of variables: independent,dependent, and controlled.


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lIndependent variable one that ischanged by the scientist. To insure a fairtest, a good experiment has only oneindependent variable.

lDependent variable one which can not

be changed in order to see how itresponds to the changed made to theindependent variable.

lControlled variable quantity that ascientist wants to remain constant.


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In a good experiment, theinvestigator must be able to measure thevalues for each variable. Weight or mass

is an example of a variable that is veryeasy to measure.


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In some experiments, it is notpossible to demonstrate that a change inthe independent variable causes a change

in the dependent variable. Instead onemay only be able to show that theindependent variable is related to thedependent variable. This relationship is

called correlation.


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One of the most common reasons tosee a correlation is that interveningvariables are also involved which may give

rise to the appearance of a possibly directcause-and-effect relationship, but whichupon further investigation turn out to bemore directly caused by some otherfactor (Wikipedia, 2006).


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Examples of Variables

Question IndependentVariable(What Ichange)

DependentVariable(What I observe)

Controlled Variables(What I keep the same)

How much

ater flowsthrough afaucet atdifferentopenings?

Water faucet

opening(closed, halfopen, fullyopen)

Amount of water

flowing measurein liters perminute

The Faucet

Water pressure, or howmuch the water is pushing

Different water pressuremight also cause different

amounts of water to flowand different faucets may

behave differently, so toinsure a fair test I want tokeep the water pressure and

the faucet the same for each


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Question IndependentVariable

(What Ichange)

DependentVariable

(What Iobserve)


Doesfertilizer

make aplant growbigger?

Amount offertilizer

measured ingrams

Growth of theplant measure

by its heightGrowth of theplant measureby the numberof leaves

See MeasuringPlant Growthfor more waysto measure

plant growth

Same size pot for each plantSame type of plant in each pot

Same type and amount of soil ineach plotSame amount of water and lightMake measurements of growthfor each plant at the same time

The many variables above caneach change how fast a plantgrows, so to insure a fair test ofthe fertilizer, each of them must

be kept the same for every pot.


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Question IndependentVariable(What Ichange)

DependentVariable(What I observe)


Does an

electricmotor turnfaster if youincrease theoltage?

Voltage of the

electricitymeasured involts

Speed of rotation

measured inrevolutions perminute (RPMs)

Same motor for every test

The motor should be doingthe same for each test(turning the same wheel,

propeller or whatever)

The work that a motorperforms has a big impact onits speed, so to insure a fairtest, I must keep thatvariable the same.


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Formulating the Hypothesis

Hypothesis educated guess about theanswer to your question.

lThe hypothesis must be worded so that it can

be tested in your experiment. Do this byexpressing the hypothesis using yourindependent and dependent variables. Infact, many hypotheses are stated exactly

like this: If a particular independentvariable is changed, then there is also achange in a certain dependent variable.


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Sample Hypotheses

lIf I open the faucet [faucet opening is theindependent variable]. Then it willincrease the flow of water [flow of water

is the dependent variable].lIf a plant receives fertilizer [having

fertilizer is the independent variable],

then it will grow to be bigger than a plantthat does not receive fertilizer [plant sizeis the dependent variable].


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Notice that in each of the example itwill be easy to measure the independentvariables. This is another important

characteristic of a good hypothesis. If wecan readily measure the variables in thehypothesis, then we say that thehypothesis is testable.


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Planning the Experimental Procedure The first step in designing your

experimental procedure involves planning

on how you will change your independentvariable and how you will measure theimpact that this change has on the

dependent variable.


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To guarantee a fair test when you areconducting your experiment, you need tomake sure that the only thing you change

is the independent variable. And, all thecontrolled variables must remain constant.Only then can you be sure that the changeyou make to the independent variable

actually caused the changes you observein the dependent variables.


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Scientists run experiments more thanonce to verify that results are consistent.In other words, you must verify that you

obtain essentially the same results everytime you repeat the experiment with thesame value for your independent variable.This insures that the answer to yourquestion is not just an accident.


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Each time that you perform yourexperiment is called a run or a trial. So,your experimental procedure should alsospecify how many trials you intend to run.

In some experiments, you can runthe trials at once. For example, if youregrowing plants, you can put three identical

plants (or seeds) in three separate potsand that would count as three trials.


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In experiments that involve testing orsurveying different groups of people, youwill not need to repeat the experiment

multiple times. However, in order to insurethat your results are reliable, you need totest or survey enough people to makesure that your results are reliable.


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Two types of trial groups

1. Experimental group consists of thetrials where you change the independentvariable.

Ex: If your question asks whether fertilizermakes a plant grow bigger, then theexperimental group consists of all trials in

which the plants receive fertilizer.


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2. Control group consists of all trials

where you leave the independent variablein its natural state.

In our example, it would be important

to run some trials in which the plants getno fertilizer at all. These trials with nofertilizer provide a basis for comparison,and would insure that any changes yousee when you add fertilizer are in factcaused by the fertilizer and not somethingelse.


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However, not every experiment is likeour fertilizer example. In another kind ofexperiment, many groups of trials are

performed at different values of theindependent variable.


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For example, if your question askswhether an electric motor turns faster ifyou increase the voltage, you might do anexperimental group of three trials at 1.5

volts, another group of three trials at 2.0volts, three trials at 2.5 volts, and so on. Insuch an experiment, you are comparing

the experimental groups to each other,rather than comparing them to a singlecontrol group.


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Whether or not your experiment hasa control group, remember that everyexperiment has a number of controlled

variables. Controlled variables are thosevariables that we dont want to changewhile we conduct our experiment, andthey must be the same in every trial andevery group of trials.


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Key Elements of the ExperimentalProcedure

lDescription and size of all experimentaland control groups, as applicable

lA step-by-step list of everything you must

do to perform your experiment.lThe experimental procedure must tell how

you will change your one and only

independent variable and how you willmeasure that change.


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lThe experimental procedure must explainhow you will measure the resultingchange in the dependent variable/s.

lIf applicable, the experimental procedure

should explain how the controlledvariables will be maintained at aconstant value.


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lThe experimental procedure shouldspecify how many times you intend torepeat your experiment, so that you canverify that your results are reproducible.

lA good experimental procedure enablessomeone else to duplicate yourexperiment exactly.

Wh ill d t


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Where will you conduct yourexperiment?

You may need a lot of room for yourexperiment or you may not be able tomore your experiment around from place

to place. If you are working with human oranimal subjects, you may need a locationthat is quiet. You will need to think aboutthese limitations before you start yourexperiment so you can find a location inadvance that will meet your needs.


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Conducting the Science Research

The second step in the scienceresearch process is conducting theresearch consisting of:

1. Preparing for the conduct of theexperiment;

2. Constructing the data table; and

3. Conducting the experiment.

l

l

P i f th C d t f th


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Preparing for the Conduct of theExperiment

lKnow what to do.

lGet a laboratory notebook for taking notesand collecting data.

lBe prepared. Collect and organize allmaterials, supplies and equipment youwill need to do the experiment.

lThink ahead about safety!


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Preparing the Data Table

Prepare a data table in yourlaboratory notebook to help you collectyour data. A data will ensure that you are

consistent in recording your data and willmake it easier to analyze your resultsonce you have finished your experiment.

S l D t T bl


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Sample Data Table

Trial Faucet Opening

(the IndependentVariable)

Water Flow

(the Dependent Variable)

#1 open [Write your date in this column asyou make measurements during yourexperiment.]

#2 open

#3 open

#4 open

#5 Fully open

#6 Fully open


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Conducting the Actual Experiment

It is very important to take very detailednotes as you conduct your experiments. Asaddition to your data, record your observationsas you perform the experiment. Write down anyproblems, anything you do that is different fromplanned, ideas that come to mind, or interestingoccurrences. Be on the lookout for theunexpected. Your observations will be usefulwhen you analyze your data and drawconclusions.


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lKeep a lab notebook so that all yourinformation is kept in one place. The

data that you record will be the basis foryour science research final report andyour conclusions.

lIf possible, take pictures of yourexperiment along the way.

lRemember to use numericalmeasurement as mush as possible. Ifyour experiment also has qualitativedata, then take a photo or draw a pictureof what happens.


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lBe as exact as possible about the wayyou conduct your experiment, especially

in following your experimentalprocedure, taking your measurements,and note taking.

lIn fact, its a good idea to do a quickpreliminary run of your experiment.

Show your preliminary data to yourteacher, and make revisions to your

experimental procedure if necessary.


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Stay organized and be safe. Keepyour workspace clean and organized asyou conduct your experiment. Keep your

supplies within reach. Use protective gearand adult supervision as needed. Keepany chemicals away from pets andyounger brothers or sisters.


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Processing the Results of theExperiment

STEPS:

1.Classifying data;2.Calculating and summarizing data; and

3.Interpreting data.


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Classifying Data

lQuantitative data based onmeasurements and use a scale of equalinterval.

lQualitative data gathered usingnonstandard scale or unequal intervalsor discrete categories.

B th tit ti d lit ti d t


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Both quantitative and qualitative datacan further be sub-divided into 4 scales

of measurement.

1.Nominal data data placed in discrete

categories which can not be ranked inascending and descending order.

2.Ordinal data data placed into categories

that can be ranked or ordered in theascending or descending manner.


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3. Interval data data collected using ascale with equal interval but no absolutezero value.

4. Ratio data data collected using a scaleof equal and an absolute zero value.


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Calculating and Summarizing Data

A spreadsheet program such asMicrosoft Excel may be a good way toperform calculations, and then later thespreadsheet can be used to display theresults. Be sure to label the rows and

columns.


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You should have performed multipletrials of your experiment. Think about thebest way to summarize your data. You

may want to calculate the average foreach group of trials, or summarize theresults in some other way such as ratios,percentages, or error and significance.


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Perform any calculations that are necessaryfor you to analyze and understand the data

from your experiment.

lUse calculations from known formulas

that describe the relationships you aretesting.

lPay careful attention because you mayneed to convert some of your units to doyour calculation correctly. All of the unitsfor a measurement should be of thesame scale.

G h ft ll t t


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Graphs are often an excellent way todisplay your results.

For any type of graph:

lGenerally, you should place your independentvariable on the x-axis of your graph and thedependent variable on the y-axis.

lBe sure to label the axes of your graph dontforget to include the units of measurement.

lIf you have more than one set of data, show

each series in a different color or symbol andinclude a legend with clear labels.

l


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Few of the Possible Types of Graphs

A bar graph might be appropriate forcomparing different trials or differentexperimental groups. It also may be a

good choice if your independent variableis not numerical. (In Microsoft Excel,generate bar graphs by choosing chattypes Column or Bar.)


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Example


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Time-series plot can be used if yourindependent variable is numerical andyour independent variable is time.

In MS Excel, the line graph chart type

generates a time series. By default, Excel puts acount on the x-axis. To generate a time series plotwith your choice of x-axis units, make a separatedata column that contains those units next to your

dependent variable. Then choose the XY (scatter)chart type, with a sub-type that draws line.)


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Example:


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X-Y Line Graph shows the relationship

between your dependent and independentvariables when both are numerical and thedependent variable is a function of theindependent variable.

In MS Excel, choose the XY (scatter)chart type, and then choose a sub-type that

does draw a line.

Example:


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Example:


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Example:


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Example:


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Interpreting Data

Steps:

1.Write a topic sentence stating the independentand dependent variables giving reference toyour tables and graphs.

2.Write a sentence comparing the measure ofcentral tendency of the collected data.

3.Write a sentence describing the variations; and

4.Write a statement on how the data support thehypothesis.


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Evaluating the Science Research

It is the last step of the science

research process which involvesdrawing conclusions and formulatingrecommendations.

Drawing Conclusions and


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Drawing Conclusions andRecommendations

lYour conclusions will summarize whetheror not your science research support orcontradict your original hypothesis.

lIf the results of your science experimentdid not support your hypothesis, dontchange or manipulate your results to fityour original hypothesis, simply explainwhy things did not go as expected.


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lScientific research is an ongoing process,and by discovering that your hypothesisis not true, you have already made hugeadvances in your learning that will lead

you to ask more questions that lead tonew experiments. Science fair judgesdo not care about whether you prove or

disprove your hypothesis; they carehow much you learned.

the science research complete ms powerpoint 2007

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