Scientific Inquiry

Key Concepts

• How do scientists investigaet the natural world?
• What role do models, theories, and laws play in science?

Scientific inquiry refers to the diverse ways in which scientists study the natural world & propose explanations.

Processes Scientists use

• Pose ?
• Develop hypotheses
• Design experiments
• Collect & interpret data
• Draw conclusions
• Communicate ideas and results

Inquiry generally starts with a problem or questions about an observation.

A hypothesis is a possible explanation; it must be TESTABLE.

Any factor that can be measured in an experiment is called a parameter.

Variables

• Manipulated: it is purposely changed
• Responding: it "responds" to changes you make-what we expect to change in repsonse
• A controlled experiment has ONE variabke manipulated at a time.

DATA ARE FACTS FIGURES
EVIDENCE Gathered

DATA TABLES --COLLECTS AND RECORDS OBSERVATIONS

GRAPHS HELP INTERPRET DATA

DATA INTERPRETATION ALLOWS SCIENTISTS TO DRAW CONCLUSIONS

RESULTS CAN THEN BE SHARED-- COMMUNICATION IS DONE THROUGH WRITING AND SPEAKING

SCIENTISTS USE MODELS AND DEVELOP LAWS AND THEORIES TO HELP INCREASE UNDERSTANDING.

WHAT IS??

• A MODEL IS A PICTURE, DIAGRAM, COMPUTER IMAGE, OR OTHER REPRESENTATION OF AN OBJCT OR PROCESS.
• A THEORY IS A WELL-TESTED EXPLANATION. IT IS THE WHY IT HAPPENS.
• A LAW IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN EVERY TIME UNDER A CERTAIN SET OF CONDITIONS. IT HAS BEEN PROVED OVER AND OVER. IT IS THE WHAT HAPPENS.

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