the nature of science Flashcards
Bias
a preference for or against one idea, thing, or person.
constant
A quantity that is unknown but assumed to have a fixed value in a specified mathematical context
control
one in which the subject or a group would not be tested for the dependent variable
density
mass of a unit volume of a material substance
dependent variable
It is something that depends on other factors.
experiment
a scientific test in which you perform a series of actions and carefully observe their effects in order to learn
graph
that represents the variation of a variable in comparison with
hypothesis
an idea that proposes a tentative explanation about a phenomenon or a narrow set of phenomena observed in the natural world
independent variable
It is a variable that stands alone and isn’t changed by the other variables you are trying to measure.
mass
a quantitative measure of inertia, a fundamental property of all matter
model
a physical and/or mathematical and/or conceptual representation of a system of ideas, events, or processes
scientific law
the description of an observed phenomenon
scientific method
a method of procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting in systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, a
standard
a reference that is used to calibrate measurements
technology
systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through
scientific theory
the carefully thought-out explanation for observations of the natural world that has been constructed using the scientific method
variable
any factor, trait, or condition that can exist in differing amounts or types
volume
the three-dimensional space occupied by matter or enclosed by a surface
SI
also called the metric system
