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01 Scientific Process

Lab safety is crucial to prevent accidents and ensure a safe working environment, particularly when handling hazardous materials that are labeled with specific hazard symbols. Proper experimental planning, including identifying variables and accurate data collection, is essential for meaningful conclusions. Additionally, effective data presentation and analysis are necessary to support scientific findings.

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2 views55 pages

01 Scientific Process

Lab safety is crucial to prevent accidents and ensure a safe working environment, particularly when handling hazardous materials that are labeled with specific hazard symbols. Proper experimental planning, including identifying variables and accurate data collection, is essential for meaningful conclusions. Additionally, effective data presentation and analysis are necessary to support scientific findings.

Uploaded by

zunirabuttleftl
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Why is lab safety important?

Warnings about hazards are often seen in everyday life. If these warnings are ignored, accidents
can happen. In the lab it is important to know what hazard symbols mean.
If materials are hazardous then they are labelled with hazard symbols.
On the bottle of hazardous chemical, there were three hazard symbols. Name one of them.

Circle on the 'flammable' hazard symbol.

Click on the 'toxic' hazard symbol.

Click on the 'corrosive' hazard symbol.


Click on the 'oxidising' hazard symbol.
What is the name for a label on a bottle that tells us a substance could cause harm?

Lab safety
Click on the main hazard in the photo.

Click on five precautions taken by the scientists in the photo.


Click on four precautions taken by the scientist in the photo.

Click on four hazards in the photo.


What colour is the flame when Busen Burner is being used for heating?
Why do scientists ask questions?
True or false?
Science can provide answers to all questions.
What type of variable is changed during an experiment?
What can be used alongside a list of numbered instructions in a method to make the experiment
clearer?
Accurate measurements may or may not be precise, and similarly, precise measurements may or may not be
accurate.

Plan an experiment well to get accurate and precise data. Without good quality data, conclusions won't be
meaningful.
STEP 1 – Asking the question
Include the question that needs an answer. A hypothesis can help answer the question too.
STEP 2 – Identifying variables
Identify the independent and dependent variables, including a list of variables to control and how
this process will be done.
STEP 3 – The prediction
Make a prediction - Say what will happen and why.
STEP 4 – Equipment
List the scientific equipment needed.
STEP 5 – Method
Make a numeric list of how equipment will be used to collect accurate and precise data.

Parallax error is caused by a student not reading the measurement at eye level. It can lead to the reading being
too high or too low.
How do scientists collect data to help answer questions?
True or false?
Dependent variables can be continuous or discrete.
The way in which data is presented depends on the reason for presenting data, and what else?
If both the independent and dependent variables are continuous, how should data be
presented?
When drawing a line graph, it’s important to look at the range for the data before drawing a
simple scale. When plotting the ‘Xs’ on the graph, the data must be presented accurately.
When drawing a bar chart, it’s best to see how many bars need to be drawn first. Look to see
how big the tallest bar will be to help with the scale. If the independent variable is not
continuous, leave a gap between each bar.

When drawing a pie chart, make sure the correct equipment is used. Use a pair of compasses and
a protractor.

True. If the independent variable is not continuous, leave a gap between each bar.
A step-by-step guide on drawing a line of best fit

1. After plotting points on a graph, draw a line of best fit to present the data and make it easier to
analyse. If there is no link between variables, then there will be no clear pattern of points and a
line of best fit would not be drawn.
2. If there is a link, then draw a line of best fit. The line could be a curve, or a straight line,
depending on the positions of the points plotted. Either way, make sure the line goes through as
many points as possible with equal numbers of points above and below the line.

3. If the line of best fit is a straight line, use a ruler to draw it.

4. If the line of best fit is a curve, draw with confidence as a sweeping curve, not sketched or
feathered.

5. Remember to ignore any outliers when sketching the line of best fit. If they are included then
it will alter how the line of best fit looks.
6. If one variable increases at the same rate each time as the other increases and the line of best
fit passes through the origin, then the relationship is described as directly proportional.
What is the name of a result that should be ignored when drawing the line of best fit?

On these graphs, which variable goes on the horizontal (x) axis?


What do you analyse to draw a conclusion in science?
What can be drawn to help spot patterns in data?
Step-by-step guide to using information to support
conclusions
Step 1 - Data interpretation
A good conclusion describes the relationship between variables, interpreted from a table of data,
a graph or a chart.
Step 2 - Experiment carried out
An experiment was carried out to model the concept of erosion. Sugar cubes were shaken in a
container and weighed every 20 seconds to see how the mass had changed. Any small parts of
the cubes that had broken off during the shaking were removed before the mass was measured.
Step 3 - Results interpretation
Results from the sugar cube experiment would be recorded in a table. Results would show that
the longer the sugar cubes were shaken for, the less their mass was. A good conclusion using this
information would be: ‘the results show that the mass of the sugar cubes decreased as they were
shaken for longer. The conclusion supports the hypothesis because it shows that erosion wears
away material over time.'
Step 4 - Data presentation
The results from the experiment can also be shown using a graph, helping to spot patterns in the
results. The conclusion would be the same as the one made from the table.
Step 5 - Using scientific knowledge
To make a conclusion better, scientific knowledge should be used to explain the findings.
Sometimes using the information from the table or graph is good too. For example, from the
sugar cube experiment, the amount of mass lost every 20 secs could be written down.
In the experiment modelling erosion, which was the dependent variable?

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