SCIENCE SKILLS
The Fire Triangle
Fires need three components :
fuel, oxygen, and heat. Removing or
disrupting one of the points of the
fire triangle will prevent or extinguish
a fire.
Reducing the amount of fuel available to support a fire is
important. For most fires, it is not the flammable liquid that
is burning, but rather vapor from the liquid that mixes with
air and burns. Removing the liquid, however, will quickly
reduce the amount of vapor.
Smothering the fire will reduce the amount of oxygen and
extinguish the fire.
Fire Extinguisher Technique
P is for Pull
A is for Aim
S is for Squeeze
S is for Sweep
What are Science Skills?
Science skills are used to gather, organize, and communicate information. They include:
1. Observing - Look at what’s going on
2. Researching - Check
to see what’s already
known
Therabbitin the
the hat.
What are Science Skills?
3. Measuring - Using a device to give measurable, repeatable data.
4. Inferring - “What do I understand from this so far?”
5. Classifying - Putting stuff into
groups by some characteristic
6. Organizing - Making logical
groups
7. Predicting - Tell/Think what will
happen next
8. Hypothesizing –
If …. Then….
9. Modeling - A slice of the real
world; not all of it
10. Analyzing - “What does this
mean?”
11. Communicating - Passing the information you found on to
others (report/table/graph, etc.)
Laboratory Instructions:
READ and FOLLOW DIRECTIONS!
93% of lab accidents happen because someone didn’t follow directions!
Mistakesand Errors
Why did we not get the results we
expected?
There are 2 reasons:
A MISTAKE:
can be fixed:
adding or other math operation wrong
not following directions
having a scale set to ounces (oz) rather
than grams (g)
electronic scale not zeroed before
weighing
misreading data
setting up a graph incorrectly
A mistake can be fixed by going back and redoing the procedure correctly.
A MISTAKE is something that can be fixed:
adding or other math operation wrongnot following directionshaving a scale set to ounces (oz) rather than grams (g)electronic scale not zeroed before weighingmisreading datasetting up a graph incorrectly
A mistake can be fixed by going back and redoing the procedure correctly.
MISTAKES
EX: Mistake: Multiplied instead of divided/ wrote 1.54 instead of 1.45.
Mistakes can be corrected once they are pointed out (or by being careful the first time!)
AN ERROR:
cannot be fixed, as it isn’t a mistake:
how fast you chew
saliva makeup
electronic scale off
ruler not accurately marked
timer running slow or fast
An error can’t be fixed – you may not even be aware it’s happened or is even there!
ERROR
Every measurement has some error. This is different than a mistake. An error is the difference between the measured value and the actual or theoretically correct value.
ERRORS
EX: Error: Inaccuracy of a
measuring device
Errors include inaccuracy of stopwatches, metersticks, etc., as well as human reaction time when timing. Any variable that cannot be completely controlled by the experimenter is open to error.
EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
CAN YOU IDENTIFY THE COMPONENTS?
2 Kinds of Variables
Independent Variable: something that is changed by the scientist.
It is what we choose. (time is a good
example).
It is what is tested.
2 Kinds of Variables
Dependent Variable: something that might be affected by the change in the independent variable.
It is what we measure.
It is the data that changes as the
independent variable changes.
It is the data collected during the
investigation
First Example
People of different ages were asked to
put a puzzle
together. They
were timed.
What was the independent variable?
Ages of the peoplePeople of different ages were chosen by the scientist. Ages varied.
What was the dependent variable?
The time it to put the puzzle together
The time was measured by the scientist
What was a control?
Same puzzleAll of the participants were tested with the same puzzle.It would not have been a fair test if some had an easy 30 piece puzzle and some had a harder 500 piece puzzle.
IDENTIFY THE VARIABLES & CONTROLS
IN THIS INVESTIGATION.
AN INVESTIGATION WAS DONE WITH A ELECTROMAGNET: A
BATTERY AND WIRE WRAPPED AROUND A NAIL. DIFFERENT SIZES OF NAILS WERE USED. THE NUMBER OF PAPER CLIPS THE ELECTROMAGNET COULD PICK UP WAS MEASURED.
What are the variables & controls in this investigation?
Independent Variable:
Different sizes of nails were chosen by the scientist.
Dependent Variable:
How many paper clips were
picked up. The number of
paper clips was measured.
Controls:
Same battery, wire, type of nailNone of these items were changed
HYPOTHESIS:IF THE TEMPERATURE OF WATER IS HIGHER, THE EGG WILL COOK
FASTER.
ONE MORE:
Independent variable:
temperature of water
Dependent variable:
time to cook an egg
Control: type of egg, the stove, the pot, the amount of water, type of water, temperature of the water
THE TEMPERATURE OF WATER WAS MEASURED AT DIFFERENT DEPTHS IN A POND.
LAST ONE:
Independent variable: depth of the
water
Dependent variable: temperature
Control: thermometer, same lake,
same time of day
Designing Investigations
The greater the amount of soap in a soap and water mixture, the bigger a soap bubble can be blown.
Design an investigation to test this hypothesis.
Identify the variables & controls
What exactly will be changed?
How will it be changed?
What exactly will be measured?
How will it be measured?
The farther a ball drops, the higher it will bounce.
Design an investigation to test this hypothesis.
Identify the variables & controls
What exactly will be changed?
How will it be changed?
What exactly will be measured?
How will it be measured?