1.5 Experimental Design Flashcards
What is a control group?
The group that doesn’t include changing the independent variable.
What is a control group used for?
Comparison
What is the experimental group?
The group you change
What is the independent variable?
The variable you change
What is a dependent variable?
The variable you measure
What are control variables?
Factors that you keep the same between the control and experimental groups.
Why is it important to control variables?
To make sure any change between groups is due to the independent variable
How many independent variables may you have at one time?
One
Is it better to have a larger or smaller sample size?
Larger
What does a statistical test do?
It analyzes your raw data
Which axis does the independent variable go on?
The x-axis
Which axis does the dependent variable go on?
The y-axis
Name the variables.
If water is given to a plant, then its height will increase.
Dependent: height
Independent: water
What are some control variables for an experiment about plants?
Water
Sunlight
Fertilizer
What is this an example of?
If water is given to a plant, then its height will increase.
Hypothesis
Describe some ways to avoid bias
Label with letters
Do things in random orders
Try to make your experiment random and anonymous
If…then…
because…
When testing how patients respond to a new medicine, what should the control group be given and why?
A sugar pill
To control variables and
Avoid bias
What is another name for the independent variable?
Manipulative variable
