The Scientific Method
The Job of the Scientist is to study the surrounding world and explain why the world is the way that it is.
The way that this is carried out is by experimentation.
The methods for producing experiments comprise what is called THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD.
The Scientific Method uses a process of CONTROLLED EXPERIMENTS.
CONTROLLED EXPERIMENT: an experiment in which only one variable is manipulated at a time in order to establish a cause/effect relationship.
You don't want more than one variable, or thing that you're testing, because then, you don't know which variable produced the result you obtained.
In a controlled experiment, you use two setups: THE CONTROL SETUP and the EXPERIMENTAL SETUP.
CONTROL SETUP: uses all the same equipment, same conditions, but no variables are tested. Provides a baseline for which to compare the results with the experimental setup.
EXPERIMENTAL SETUP: is set up exactly the same way as the CONTROL, but one thing that you want to measure is factored in. Uses the independent variable (cause) which determines the dependent variable (effect).
By running the two setups together, the scientist will have an excellent idea as to what the effect of changing one item has on the outcome, with the results of the an unchanged comparison handy also.
The Process for running both the CONTROL and the EXPERIMENTAL setups will be the same; both will follow the steps of the Scientific Method.
QUICK CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING:
What did the scientist do wrong in the following procedure?
A Scientist wants to test the vapor pressure (ability to vaporize, or "boil") of two liquids. He suspects the pressures will become equal at different temperatures. One is distilled water, the other is distilled water with 50 grams of salt added.
A liter of each liquid is put into each of two pans that happen to be handy: the distilled water is put into one that is cast iron, the salty water is put into an aluminum pan. Thepans are set on the same size burners on a gas stove and two identical mercury thermometers are used.
It is found that the solution without salt boiled slowest and needed much more heat to do so. However these results were not in agreement with previous experiments, which said that salty water takes longer to boil, but when it does so, it boils at a higher temperature.
So what was done incorrectly?
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