the nature of science and technology chapter 1: what is science?
TRANSCRIPT
The Nature of Science and Technology
Chapter 1: What is Science?
Section 1: Thinking Like a Scientist
• Key concepts– What skills do
scientist use to learn about the world?
– What attitudes are important in science?
Skills that Scientists Use
• Scientists use skills such as observing, inferring, predicting, classifying, and making models to learn more about the world.
Skill: Observing
• Using one or more of your senses to gather information
• Senses– Sight– Hearing– Touch– Taste– Smell
Types of Observations
• Quantitative– Deal with a
number, or amount
– Examples of Quantitative Observations are…
• Qualitative– Deal with
descriptions that cannot be expressed in number.
– Examples of Qualitative Observations are …
Skill: Inferring• When you explain
or interpret things you observe
• Based on things you already have knowledge about
• What can you infer about the frog?
Skill: Predicting
• Guessing what can happen in the future
• Based on past experience or evidence
• Examples of prediction are…
Skill: Classifying
• Grouping items that are alike in some way
• Examples of classifying are…
Skill: Making Models
• Creating representations of complex objects or processes
• Help with understanding things that are complex
• Examples of models are…
Scientific Attitudes
• Successful scientists possess certain important attitudes, or habits of mind, including curiosity, honesty, open-mindedness, skepticism, and creativity.
Key Concepts
• What skills do scientist use to learn about the world?
• What attitudes are important in science?
Section 2: Scientific Inquiry
• Key Concepts:– What is scientific
inquiry?– What makes a
hypothesis testable?
– How do scientific theories differ from science laws?
What is Scientific Inquiry?
• Refers to the diverse ways in which scientists study the natural worlds and propose explanations based on the evidence they gather
• Process of Discovery
Posing Questions
• Begins with a problem or question about an observation
• Questions come from experiences (from observations and inferences)
• Curiosity
• 1st step in inquiry
Developing a Hypothesis
• A possible explanation for a set of observations or answer to a scientific question
• Not a fact• One possible way
to explain a group of observations
• MUST be testable• Researchers can
carry out investigations and gather evidence
• Evidence will support or disprove the hypothesis
• Trials
Designing an Experiment
• After you make a hypothesis• An experiment is designed to test it• Experiment elements
– Variables (factors that can change in an experiment, must be exactly the same)• Independent• Dependent
– Controlled
Independent Variable
• Purposely changed to test a hypothesis
Dependent Variable
• Changes in response to independent variable
Controlled Experiment
• An experiment which only one variable is manipulated at a time
Importance of Controlling Variables
• Accuracy• Consistency in results
Collecting and Interpreting Data
• Tables• Data are the
facts, figures, and other evidence gathered through observations
• Graphing Data0
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Drawing Conclusions
• Gather and interpret data
• Make conclusions about hypothesis
• Summary of what you learned from an experiment
• Support or disprove your hypothesis
Communicating
• The sharing of ideas and experimental findings with others through writing and speaking
Scientific Theories and Laws
• Theories– Well-tested
explanation for a wide range of observations or experimental results
• Laws– Statement that
describes what scientists expect to happen every time under a particular set of conditions