Scientific Methods

Question 1

Problems encountered when dealing with scientific data

Answer 1

Confounding variables and bias

Question 2

Define Inductive reasoning

Answer 2

The process of reasoning that a general principle is true because the all of the special cases you’ve seen so far are true.

Question 3

Example of inductive

Answer 3

If all people you’ve ever met from a particular town have been very strange, you might then say “all the people in this town are strange”.

Question 4

Define Deductive reasoning

Answer 4

The process of concluding that something must be true because it is special case of a general principle that is taken to be true.

Question 5

Example of deductive reasoning

Answer 5

If you know the general principle that the sum of the angles in any triangle is always 180 degrees, and you have the particular triangle in mind, you can then conclude that the sum of the angles in your triangle is 180 degrees.

Question 6

Inductive or deductive?

If you take your medicine, you’ll feel a lot better. You take your medicine, therefore, you’ll feel a lot better.

Answer 6

Deductive

Question 7

Inductive or deductive?

Marins first three children were boys. If she has another baby, I will be a boy.

Answer 7

Inductive

Question 8

The scientific method

Answer 8

Discipline of critical thinking that subjects ideas to review and independent repetition in order to reduce the level of uncertainty we may have about how the physical world works.

Question 9

Observation

Answer 9

Collecting and being curious about data or observations and seeing a question or a problem. Observations lead to questions that need to be answered to satisfy curiosity.

Question 10

Construct hypothesis

Answer 10

Educated guess about how things work.

Question 11

Designing an experiment

Answer 11

Collecting data, observations the hypothesis must be properly tested in order for the experiment to be logically valid.

Question 12

Examining and interpreting

Answer 12

Drawing a conclusion from the results

Question 13

Evaluating

Answer 13

Evaluating the results in the context of the hypothesis

Question 14

Peer-reviewed, evaluation, publication

Answer 14

The work can now be examined and tested by others. The hypothesis shows whether to be true or not.

Question 15

Does the scientific method prove things are true?

Answer 15

Science does not prove things to be true, only show things are not true.

Question 16

Law

Answer 16

If a theory is analyzed and shown to be true, then the theory becomes a law.

Question 17

Theory

Answer 17

Experiments and studies on a particular hypothesis and failure to show the hypothesis to be ‘not true’ the hypothesis may come to be known as a theory

Question 18

A changing theory

Answer 18

Theories evolve and can even be completely discredited in the face of new evidence.

Question 19

Alfred Wegener

Answer 19

His first observation was that continents seemed to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, especially Africa and South America

Question 20

Sample (of a study)

Answer 20

The subjects of the study, the individuals or object that were used by the experimenters to collect data

Question 21

Population (of a study)

Answer 21

The entire group

Question 22

Collecting data

Answer 22

Data collected
To be able to determine if the appropriate data were collected, you need to understand the purpose of the study or hypothesis.

Question 23

Confounding variables

Answer 23

Confounder is a variable that influences both the dependent variable and independent variable.

How the independent variable, to see whether that has any affect on the dependent variable.

Question 24

Independent variable

Answer 24

=amount of ice cream

Question 25

Dependent variable

Answer 25

= # of people who eat the ice cream

Question 26

Bias

Answer 26

Favour or against something

Question 27

Selection Bias

Answer 27

Choosing samples for an experiment or bias in setting the parameters for an experiment.

Question 28

Funding bias

Answer 28

Reporting results which favour the funding organization.

Question 29

Confirmation bias

Answer 29

The tendency to use data supporting your beliefs.

Question 30

Publication/reporting bias

Answer 30

Bias un publicizing certain results over other results, or a bias in reporting unexpected results.

Question 31

4 types of Bias

Answer 31

Selection bias
Funding bias
Confirmation bias
Publication/reporting bias

Question 32

Types of selection bias

Answer 32

Sampling bias, Time interval bias, Particular bias, Data bias, Attrition bias

Question 33

Sampling bias

Answer 33

The participants/items selected for a study may introduce a bias in your analysis

Question 34

Time interval bias

Answer 34

Arbitrarily choosing to end an experiment when it supports a certain claim.

Question 35

Participation bias

Answer 35

When individuals volunteer to participate in a study, three might be participation bias

Question 36

Data bias

Answer 36

Choosing to use only a certain subject of the data

Question 37

Attrition bias

Answer 37

Discounting trial subjects/tests that didn’t not complete a study.