Unit 1 Exam Study Guide Flashcards
Science is a ___________ about the _______.
Science is a way of knowing about the natural world.
The natural world is also known as the _________.
Physical world
Science knowledge is based on ____________.
empirical evidence
Ideas can be _____________ by others.
tested and reproduced
Knowledge __________________ and is strengthened by multiple lines of evidence.
builds on previous knowledge
Knowledge is durable, but _________ over time with new evidence.
can change
In constrast to scientific ways of knowing, non-scientific ways of knowing rely on what?
Non-scientific ways of thinking rely on tradition, personal experience, intuition, feelings, and authority.
What is a scientist’s habits of mind?
The scientists ways of thinking and approaching their work.
What are science practices?
Scientists do a number of things as part of their jobs. These are called science practices.
What are seven scientist’s habits of mind?
- Curiosity
- Creativity
- Collaboration
- Persistence
- Skepticism
- Open-mindedness
- Attention to detail
What are seven science practices?
- Ask scientific questions and identify problems
- Plan and conduct investigations
- Analyze and interpret data
- Use mathematical and computational thinking
- Use evidence to explain observations
- Argue conclusions based on evidence
- Communicate information through publishing papers.
What is the scientific process?
The scientific process brings together the habits of mind and scientific practices.
What is the first step of the scientific process?
Exploration and discovery. The scientific process starts with questions and wondering.
In the first step of the scientific process,_____________________, which may come from these four things:
scientists begin an investigation by asking questions
1. Making observations
2. Chatting with colleagues about an idea
3. Finding inspiration through reading
4. Out of curiosity
In the second step of the scientific process…
questions lead to possible explanations (called hypotheses), which can be tested by collecting data.
What is the second step of the scientific process?
Testing ideas (gathering/interpreting data). Testing ideas is at the center of the scientific process.
What is the third step of the scientific process?
Community analysis and feedback. The community of scientists evaluates ideas.
In the third step of the scientific process…
scientists communicate their ideas and data at conferences and in publications so that they can be evaluated by other scientists.
What is the fourth step of the scientific process?
Benefits and outcomes. Science influences society and is influenced by society.
In the fourth step of the scientific process…
Over time the process of science builds knowledge that can benefit society.
What is a scientific question?
A scientific question has to do with the natural world and the answer can be tested.
What are four examples of scientific questions?
- Questions are about understanding the natural world.
- Answers/explanations based on evidence.
- Answers/explanations can be tested/rejected.
- Answers/explanations can be revised as scientists gather more evidence.
What are three examples of non-scientific questions?
- Questions are about many subjects (natural, supernatural events, philosophy).
- Answers/explanations based on opinion, culture, beliefs, and values.
- Answers/explanations are based on authority and not always open to revising.
What do scientific and non-scientific questions have in common?
Answers and explanations can be used to inform decisions.
How can hypotheses be tested?
Hypotheses can be tested by doing experiments and/or making observations.
What is an experiment designed/used for?
An experiment is a manipulation designed to test a hypothesis. Used to collect data (empirical evidence).
What is the control group?
The control group is used as a comparison group. Helps establish cause and effect.
What is the experimental group?
The experimental group receives the treatment or is otherwise manipulated for the sake of the experiment.
What is a positive control group?
It’s the control group with a treatment that you know will produce a result that already works.
What is a negative control group?
It’s the control group with a treatment that will not produce any result.
What is the purpose of the negative and positive control group?
Both show whether experiments are working and act as a benchmark for comparison to the experimental group.
Ideally, control and experimental groups should….
be the same in every way except for the one variable that is changed/manipulated.
What is a variable?
The variable is any value that changes in an experiment.
What is the explanatory variable?
The explanatory variable is the variable that is manipulated/changed (to show possible cause).
What is the response variable?
The response variable is the variable that is measured (to show possible effect).
What are the controlled variables?
The controlled variables are kept constant between the treatment groups/test subjects.
The investigator should…
manipulate only one explanatory variable at a time, while all other variables are controlled.
________ influences __________
Explanatory (Cause) influences Response Variable (Effect)
What are two components of a good experimental design?
- Large sample sizes to account for variability.
- Reduce bias, such as randomly allocating test subjects to groups.
What are the two components of interpreting results?
- Scientists look for a relationship between explanatory/response variables.
- Scientists graph their results to see a relationship.
What is a correlation?
A correlation is an association between two or more variables (interrelated). Not necessarily a cause-and-effect relationship.
What is a positive correlation?
Positive correlations are variables that behave in the same way (positive scatter plot).
What is a negative correlation?
Negative corrections are variables that behave in an opposite way (negative scatter plot).
What type of graph is useful for seeing correlations?
Scatter plots
Two variables can be _______ but have no __________.
Two variables can be correlated but have no meaningful relationship.
To show that a correlation is…
To show that a correlation is casual you typically need to do experiments, if you think it’s a sensible correlation.
What is empirical evidence?
Facts that can be observed, measured, or tested.
What is a scientific theory?
An explanation supported by a lot of evidence.
What are primary sources?
Documents that provide full description of the original research.
What are secondary sources?
Article commenting on scientists’ research.
___________ are how scientists communicate with their peers.
Primary sources
Scientists communicate their research in _________________ and by _________________.
Scientists communicate their research in scientific conferences and by publishing their studies.
What is the purpose of scientists communicating with their peers?
Allows other scientists in their discipline know about the research and allow other scientists to evaluate the research.
Scientific papers can be…
- Peer-reviewed
- Non-peer reviewed
What is peer-review as it pertains to community analysis and feedback?
Scientists work is reviewed and evaluated by other scientists in the same discipline.
What is non peer review as it pertains to community analysis and feedback?
Ex. published in online repositories or presented at a conference.
Peer reviewers are _____ in a discipline.
experts
Why do peer reviewers review a study?
Peer reviewers review a study to find errors or other problems.
What happens if a peer reviewer is satisfied/ not satisfied with the outcomes of a study?
If reviewers are satisfied with the study, the study is published. If they are not satisfied with the study, it is rejected/revised.
What are the four factors of an expert in science?
- have specialized in an area of study.
- have up-to-date information on technical subjects.
- accurately interpret information.
- identify errors or biases in information.
What are four signs of expertise in science?
- Qualifications (PhD/advanced degree)
- Appointed at university/scientific organization
- Publications in peer reviewed journals
- Record of making contributions to their field.
Scientists are ______ in specific _______.
Scientists are experts in specific disciplines.
Biology is a _______ of science. There are many _________ within biology.
Biology is a discipline of science. There are many sub-disciplines within biology. (Ex. Biochemistry, microbiology, botany)
Scientists are _____ in their specific _________.
Scientists are experts in their specific sub-disciplines.
A scientist can be knowledgeable about many areas of science but…
is not an expert in all scientific disciplines.
What is a consensus? What is the purpose of a consensus?
- One expert can be wrong and you want to know what a majority of experts say (consensus).
- Consensus provides the best information based on the available evidence.
______ sources are how science ____________.
Secondary sources are how science gets to the public.
What are five examples of secondary sources?
- News organizations
- Reference sources
- Government
- Academic/Research institutions
- Private groups and individuals
Why are some secondary sources more reliable than others?
Some are more reliable than others for science because they reflect the scientific consensus.
What are four examples of primary sources?
- Scientific papers
- Conference papers
- PhD thesis
- Patents
What are the two types of false information?
- Misinformation
- Disinformation
What is misinformation?
It is when people share something they think is true, but isn’t.
What is disinformation?
It is when people share false or misleading information on purpose. The goal is to influence and cause harm. (Ex. hoaxes, conspiracy theories).
What are two ways to evaluate online content?
- Vertical reading
- Lateral reading
What is vertical reading?
It is “staying on the page”, examining the content closely to determine if you think it’s reliable.
What is lateral reading?
It is “leaving the page”, examining other sources, and analyzing what others have to say.
What are four examples of vertical reading?
- Checking to see if the website “looks” professional.
- Reading the “About” page to see if the organization is legitimate.
- Reading a story to test for legitimacy.
- Catching inconsistencies/errors (photoshopped images).
What are three examples of lateral reading?
- Using Wikipedia to learn about a source’s reputation.
- Checking if a story has been reported by other reliable sources.
- Using the web to trace information back to original source.
Fact checkers use ________ to vet sources of information.
lateral reading
________ is a quick way to determine whether a source is reliable.
Lateral reading
Why trace information to the original source?
- You want to know if information is real by figuring out where it came from.
- Sometimes information is changed either intentionally or by error.
Once you have established a story is “real” you can dig in deeper with five ideas…
- Beware of click-bait
- Look for signs of expertise
- Look for signs of consensus
- Look for signs of bias
- Check scientific standards
True or false: In a Google search, top results are the most reliable.
False. You can pay to have your results at the top and most popular sites are usually at the top.
True or false: professional-looking websites are most reliable.
False. That’s more a reflection of how much money you have to spend on your website.
True or false: .org is more reliable than .com
False. It was true once but not today, many advocacy groups are .org.
What are news organizations?
Provide content to inform about current events (but also entertain and sell ads):
What are three examples of news organizations?
- Print publications
- Broadcast news
- Online media
What are reference sources?
Provide summaries of topics to help inform you quickly.
What are three examples of reference sources?
- Encyclopedias
- Dictionaries
- Textbooks
What are government sources?
Provide public information, research and statistics to help you stay informed.
What are two examples of government sources?
- Government departments
- Government agencies
What are academic/research institutions?
Produce independent research to inform or influence decisions.
What are three examples of academic/research institutions?
- Universities
- Academic journals
- Major hospital/museum
What are private groups and individuals?
Produce information to inform, sell, or influence.
What are examples of private groups and individuals?
- Businesses/non-profit organizations
- Professional associations
- Community groups
- Lobby groups/think tanks
- Social movements/social advocacy groups
What are the four components of a professional association?
- Bring together experts of a discipline.
- Promotes networking and sharing of ideas.
- May advocate for policies and funding.
- May provide consensus statements.
What are the two components of an advocacy group?
- Group that brings together people (not necessarily experts) focused on a particular issue or issues.
- Aims to influence public policy/decision-making.
What is a hypothesis?
A hypothesis is a possible explanation for a phenomenon that
can be tested.
Hypotheses are not _________; they are formulated within the context of a __________.
wild guesses, scientific theory
What is a scientific theory?
A scientific theory is a generally accepted, thoroughly tested, and
confirmed explanation for a set of observations or phenomena.
What are scientific laws?
Scientific laws (expressed in mathematical formulas) describe how elements of nature will behave under certain conditions.
__________ do not become ________ and _______ do not become _____ – these terms do not
represent a progression.
Hypotheses do not become theories and theories do not become laws – these terms do not
represent a progression.
________ are the day-to-day ideas that scientists work with, and
they are developed within the context of _________.
Hypotheses, theories
What are theories?
Theories are broad explanations of an
area of science.
What are laws?
Laws are explanations that are amenable to mathematical description.
All scientists must abide by ____________ and ensure that their research and
communications are original and truthful, provide details about funding sources and methods used, and follow safety standards
academic honesty standards
To test a hypothesis, a researcher will gather data through _______ or by conducting one or more _________.
observations, experiments
What is basic science?
It seeks to expand knowledge regardless of the short-term
application. Not focused on developing a product or a service of
immediate value. (Knowledge for knowledge’s sake).
What is applied science?
Applied science aims to use science to solve real-world
problems.
What is an explanatory variable?
It is the independent variable. It’s the variable that is manipulated in an experiment.
What is a response variable?
It’s the dependent variable. It’s the variable that is observed and measured.
What is the purpose of a positive control group?
Positive control group tests the validity of an experiment as you are testing it against factors that already work,
What is the purpose of a negative control group?
There should be no factors that affect the negative control group. If there is a reaction in the negative control group, then there might be outside factors that need to be considered in the experiment.
