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Fiirst, on a separate page and in short answer format, address the following questions:
Explain the process of experimentation and why science uses experimentation.
Identify characteristics of a good experiment or experimental design.
How do scientists determine how large a sample is large enough? What factors play into this determination?
Then, referring to you answers to the questions above, complete the following:
Write a hypothesis. (Hint:Make your hypothesis something that is easily testable and which is based on an observation. The clearer your hypothesis, the easier it will be to create an experimental design. Easily testable hypotheses address a single relationship between two factors, are clear and concise, with all terms clearly defined).
Examples of easily testable hypotheses: these are just examples
If the rate of photosynthesis is positively related to temperature, then increasing temperature will increase the rate of oxygen production.
If root growth is related to gravity, then roots will always turn toward the earth regardless of a seed’s orientation.
If hatching of brine shrimp is related to salinity, then the greater the salt concentration, the higher the hatching rate.
If the thickness of annual growth rings in trees is related to annual rainfall, then examining wood samples will reveal correlations between the growth rings and past rainfall for trees in their environments.
Design an experiment to test your hypothesis. Remember you are under no obligation to actually test the experiment. So be creative but make sure the experimental design is sound (i.e. that it controls for random variables, and addresses the hypothesis specifically).
Finally, write a 2 page paper providing:
The hypothesis and prediction(s) of the hypothesis.
How, when, and where the experiment would be set up. Please justify why.
The variables you would need to control for given your hypothesis.
How large a sample size you would need.
The time you think you would need to run the experiment (elapsed time for the experiment’s results to be observable).
The type of data you would collect and how you would go about analyzing it to determine if your hypothesis would be supported. Predict what pattern you think you will see with the collected data and what conclusions you anticipate drawing from these patterns?
How many times the experiment would need to be run to generate sufficient data. Include any other information pertinent to the experiment.
Include relevant sources (i.e. similar studies to yours) supporting why you chose to design your study the way you did (i.e. the length of study, the sample size, the time frame needed to observe a given aspect of the study, etc.)
