Ch1: The Scientific Method Flashcards
What is biology?
The study of living things
Name 3 areas of study in Biology
-Botany: study of plants
-Zoology: study of animals
-Microbiology: study of small living things
What is the scientific method?
Process of investigation in which problems are identified and their suggested explanations are tested by carrying out experiments
What is the process of the scientific method?
-Observation
-Hypothesis
-Experimentation
-Collection and interpretation of data
-Conclusion
-Relating the conclusion to existing knowledge
-Reporting and publishing the results
What is an observation?
When something is noticed
What is a hypothesis?
An educated guess based on observations
-Leads to a theory then a principle
What is an experiment?
Designed to test a hypothesis
Explain experimentation
Results will either support or contradict the hypothesis
What is data?
The measurements, observations or information gathered from experiments
What is a conclusion?
The summary of the results of an experiment
Explain how you can relate the conclusion to the existing knowledge
On the basis of the conclusion, the hypothesis is:
-Supported if the results agree fully
-Changed if the results agree only partially
-Rejected if the results contradict it
Explain reporting and publishing the results
-Experimental procedures and results are often published in scientific journals, magazines and online.
-These experiments should be repeatable
What is a theory?
A hypothesis that has been supported by many different experiments
What is a principle or law?
It arises from a theory that has been shown to be valid when fully tested over a long period of time
What is a variable?
A factor that may change in an experiment
What is a control?
Used to provide a comparison (or standard) against which the actual experiment can be judged
What are the principles of experimentation?
-Careful planning and design
-Ensure the experiment is safe
-Design a control experiment
-Experiments must be fair
How can you carefully plan and design an experiment?
-Only one variable is tested
-All other variables are kept constant
How do you design a control experiment?
-Should only be on variable (or difference) between the test experiment and the control
-Placebo
What is a placebo?
Used in drug trials, control patients are given harmless pills as a comparison to the test experiment
How can you make a fair experiment?
-Larger sample sizes to produce more reliable results
-Random selection to prevent bias
-Experiments must be replicable
-Double-blind testing
What is double-blind testing?
Neither the person being tested nor the tester should know who is receiving the real treatment or who is receiving the placebo
What are the limitations of the scientific method?
-The extent of our knowledge
-The basis of the investigation
-Interpreting results
-Changes in the natural world
-Accidental discoveries
Explain how the extent of our knowledge is a limitation
The ability to form a hypothesis and design an experiment is dependant on the amount we know, relating to our observations
Explain how the basis of the investigation is a limitation
If the experiment is badly designed, improperly carried out or has a lack of suitable controls, it leads to invalid results
Explain how interpreting results can be a limitation
If results are interpreted incorrectly, faulty conclusions and hypotheses may be drawn
-e.g. Thalidomine incident
Explain how changes in the natural world can be a limitation
Sometimes results only apply to living things at one particular time
e.g. some bacteria have emerged that are resistant to some or all antibiotics
Explain how accidental discoveries can be a limitation
Some insights have discovered by accident, rather than through the scientific method process
e.g. Penicillin antibiotics by Alexander Fleming
What are ethics?
Whether conduct is right or wrong
Explain ethical issues and give 3 examples
Sometimes there are arguments over whether the application of the scientific method are good or bad
e.g.
-The use of captive animals in experiments
-Medical issues (Contraception, abortion, IVF)
-Organ transplants, especially from animals to humans
