Lecture 1

Question 1

what is the Scientific Method

Answer 1

1. make observations
2. form a question (testable)
3. propose a hypothesis (testable, falsifiable)
4. test your hypothesis
   experimental manipulation
5. assess, reject or accept all or part of the hypothesis, start over again at number 1

Question 2

what should a testable question be

Answer 2

A testable question is one that will allow you to set up an experiment to learn the answer
should be measurable
This means avoid using words like “best” or “better” or “worst” because it could be unclear what you mean

Question 3

Is this a testable question? “Do fingers wrinkle faster in hot or cold water?”

Answer 3

yes

Question 4

Is this a testable question?Why do I like coffee?”

Answer 4

No.

Question 5

Is this a testable question? “What does the biggest volcano look like?”

Answer 5

no.

Question 6

how to Turn a question into a hypothesis

Answer 6

the best and easiest way is to form an if…, then…, because statement

Question 7

what is important to note about Correlations

Answer 7

they do not imply causation

Question 8

number of drownings goes up as ice cream consumption goes up– what is this an example of

Answer 8

they are not directly related, people do not drown more simply because they eat more ice cream
rather, both happen in summer! People swim in the summer and are at more risk of drowning and they also eat ice cream

Question 9

Does this mean that things that are correlated are never causally related?

Answer 9

No, in fact, correlations help point out what to test. Just can’t assume they are causal.

Question 10

How to test a hypothesis

Answer 10

First, collect data, the more the better
Sampling and sample size
who and how many individuals are in your study?
representative
need to make sure you have a wide range
large
need to make sure you have a large group

Question 11

what are 2 types of validity in an experiment

Answer 11

Internal Validity—

External validity—

Question 12

what is internal validity

Answer 12

whether your study is well-designed and free from biases or confounds

Question 13

what is external validity

Answer 13

wether you can generalize to a larger population based on your data sample

Question 14

how do you know if something has internal validity

Answer 14

same selection criteria applied to everyone 
double blind (neither you nor they know what group they are in)

Question 15

what is mean

Answer 15

average (sum of values/number of values)

Question 16

what is variance

Answer 16

the average squared distance from the mean

Question 17

what is standard deviation

Answer 17

the square root of the variance

Question 18

What makes a good science media source

Answer 18

clear links or reference to the original research so you van track it down
description of the data, how it was collected, not just the interpretation
interviews with the authors(s) of the study
interviews with other scientists not involved in the study