1.2. The Scientific Method http://www.ck12.org
c. chance
d. theory- What is the next step if a particular experiment is inconsistent with the hypothesis?
- Why do scientists repeat experiments?
- What is the difference between the independent variable and the dependent variable in an experiment?
- What makes a theory different from a hypothesis?
- What is a scientific journal and what is meant by the term “peer review”?
Problems
- A student decides to test the effect of added salt on the boiling point of water. He collects the following data (
Table1.1).
a. What is the independent variable?
b. What is the dependent variable?
c. What is the purpose of the first experiment, when no salt was added to the water?
d. What needs to be kept constant during the experiment in order for the results to be valid?
TABLE1.1:Effect of Salt on the Boiling Point of Water
Amount of added salt (g) Boiling Temperature (°C)
0 100
20 101
40 102
100 105Further Reading / Supplemental Links
- Scientific Method History, (http://scientificmethod.com/sm5_smhistory.html
- Steps of the Scientific Method: An Explanation, (http://scientificmethod.com/sm4_stepsofsm.html
Points to Consider
Chemistry is the study of matter and the changes that it undergoes. Before beginning to examine those changes, it is
important to be able to classify matter according to certain common characteristics and be able to recognize when a
chemical change is occurring.
- What properties of matter allow it to be classified?
- What clues allow a chemist to recognize a chemical reaction?