Chemistry

[UNIT 1 STUDY GUIDE: SCIENTIFIC METHOD]

Origins of Science
Aristotle

made observations about the natural world that were often insightful and accurate
made first attempts to classify and categorize living and non-living things
often made inferences about his observations, many of which were not necessarily correct, which were held onto for 1000s of years

Epistemology the theory and study of knowledge and its scope and limitations
Galileo Galilei often regarded as the first true scientist - did an experiment to test Aristotles theory about heavier objects falling to
Earth faster, and showed that it was false
Ways of knowing observation, second-hand information, experimentation, revelation
Scientific Method

Observation about the natural world or conclusion from a previous experiment Question/problem Hypothesis
Experiment Conclusion

Observation vs. inference

o Observation is the information you gain only from using your senses (e.g. the sky is getting brighter).

Qualitative observations (e.g. the desk is rectangular)

Quantitative observations (e.g. the desk has a rectangular surface that is 100 cm x 150 cm).
o Inferences are assumptions or conclusions made based on observations (e.g. the sun is rising)

Inferences can also turn into hypotheses

o Experiments are done to avoid faulty inferences

Experiments
o Independent variable (IV) the variable being manipulated by the
experimenter to determine its effect.

May have more than 1 independent variable in a study (which can

be composed of multiple experiments), but only one per
experiment

E.g. You may do a study to determine what variables could be

responsible for increasing incidences of ebola (e.g. higher
temperatures, overpopulation, mutation), but each of these tested
variables has to be treated separately, where all other variables are
being controlled (e.g. test the effect of temp. while population and
genetic factors are held constant).
o Dependent variable (DV) the variable being measured in response to the
independent variable (it depends on the indep.)
o Control variable (CV) all other variables that need to be controlled in order to make the experiment valid
o Experimental group: Group exposed to treatment of the independent variable (e.g. new drug to regrow hair)
o Control group: Group not exposed to treatment of the independent variable, for comparison (e.g. placebo)

Writing procedures: Third person passive voice

o I immersed the cloth in hot water. Immerse the cloth in hot water. The cloth was immersed in hot water.
o Need to be specific and detailed enough to be repeatable. All steps need to be well-documented.

Data Analysis
o Needs to be done to determine what relationship there may be, if any, between the IV and the DV
o Graphs are helpful tools to visualize and interpret data

Pie graphs used to show demographic relationships (%)

Chemistry

[UNIT 1 STUDY GUIDE: SCIENTIFIC METHOD]

Bar graphs used to show relationship between DV and IV when the IV occurs in fixed, discrete values (for
example, days of the week), where data points on the graph cannot be connected in any meaningful way

Line graphs used to show relationship between DV and IV where data points can be connected together,
and only one DV value is shown for each IV value (may contain multiple lines on same chart when multiple
there are a range of options for the IV)

Scatter plots used to show relationship between DV and IV with many data points that cannot be
connected together with a single line, and where there are multiple DV values for one or more IV values
o Graphing steps

Identify variables (IV on x axis, DV on y axis)

Determine range (how high your IV and DV values go, and thus, how high the numbers on your axes go)

Determine scale (interval between axis markings on the graph, based on min and max values)

Number and label each axis with a title and units being measured

Plot graph points, and connect (if line graph), or determine line of best fit (if scatter plot)

Title graph
o Using graphs to make predictions

Interpolation: predicting a point on the graph between two points based on

where the line is traveling

Extrapolation: predicting a point beyond the range of the graph based on

where the line is traveling
Conclusions
o Summarize findings of experiment, revise hypothesis

Revised hypothesis may become or contribute to a theory

o May be able to establish a correlation by showing a relationship between IV and DV data (e.g. can show higher
incidence of flu in colder weather)

May be much harder to demonstrate a causal relationship (e.g. are colder temperatures causing the flu, or
is it spreading because people are indoors more, or still other reasons?)
Determining limitations done by the experimenter and through peer review
o Acknowledge experimental error inherent limitations of your instruments and procedures (not mistakes)
o Look for faulty data - are results accurate relative to expectations? Are they precise?
o Acknowledge potential for bias
o Decide on validity of results

Scientific Theory and Law

A theory never becomes a law

Laws are used to state that something is happening with consistent regularity, based on repeated observations (e.g. what goes
up must come down)
Theories are the explanation given for scientific phenomena, including laws (e.g. theory of gravity explains why things come
down at an atomic level, and has equations to model the rate at which things come down)
o Theories are used to predict and model what may not yet be known

The strength of a theory is often gauged by its explanatory power

o Must be falsifiable and testable, otherwise it is of no scientific use
o Can be supported with evidence to achieve a great degree of confidence, but can never be proven

Can be disproven or adjusted with new evidence

Measurement

See metric system handout

Know how to:
o Convert from standard numbers to scientific notation
o Correctly report significant figures from measurement and calculation
o Convert from one metric unit to another using the Kangaroo Helps Dingo Because Dingo Cant Multiply staircase, or
whatever else works for you