Week 3 ODL - Scientific Methods

This week, we learned about scientific methods. Scientific methods are mathematical and experimental steps employed in sciences. Generally, it is the steps used in the construction and testing of a scientific hypothesis.

Scientific Methods

1. Observe your environment - Use all your senses including sight, smell, touch, sound, and even taste. Note these observations in a journal or notebook if it can help you solve a problem or set of problems.
2. Ask questions- Remember the five W's of questions: Who, What, When, Where, Why. Brainstorm ideas about the current situation or problem. Analyze the ins and outs of the situation.
3. Make an educated guess (hypothesis) - This educated guess also called a hypothesis. Based on observations, this guess should reflect your experiences in observing the situation around you. Remain objective without using too many emotions to form this guess. Opinions can affect the outcome and cloud judgment in a situation.
4. Conduct an experiment - Once you've developed a hypothesis, you must design and conduct an experiment that will test it. You should develop a procedure that states very clearly how you plan to conduct your experiment. It is important that you include and identify a controlled variable or dependent variable in your procedure.
5. Conclude results - After a few experiments are done, make a conclusion based on the previous steps. Write these conclusions down in a journal or type the results in a word processing program on a computer.
6. Share the results of your observation, hypothesis, and conclusion - Sharing shows you have successfully completed the scientific method process. It allows others to see you have gained practical knowledge and can solve problems by thinking like a scientist.

Scientific methods chart

Case Study of Great Scientist

Besides, we also are required to do a case study about any great scientists who give significant contributions to the science world. My group chooses to discover the journey of Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone. Besides the telephone, he also invented gramophone, twisted pair, and metal detector. In 1881, Bell nearly saved the life of President James Garfield using one of his inventions.

The photo of Alexander Graham Bell

Heat Conductor Experiment

The next activity in class is Madam Fairuz ask us in a group to demonstrate the scientific method in a simple experiment. We choose the heat conductor experiment as our topic.

1. Observe - There are several materials that can conduct heat and some are not.

2. Ask a question - Which material between wood, metal, and plastic is the best heat conductor?

3. Hypothesis - Among wood, metal, and plastic, metal is the best heat conductor.

4. Experiments steps:

a. Set up a small glass bowl and place 3 spoons made of different types of material such as wood, metal, and plastic. 
b. Take a small pat of butter and place it on the top of each of the spoons.
c. Then, place a bead on the butter for each spoon.
d. Next, straighten out the spoons to make it lay evenly on the corner of the bowl.

e. Pour hot water into the bowl and make sure the spoons do not fall into the water.

 

5. Analyze and measure data - After a few minutes, the butter on top of the metal spoon began to melt which causes the bead slides downward. But, the bead on top of wood and plastic spoon stay intact on the spoon because the butter does not meltdown.

6. Conclusion - Since the bead on the top of the metal spoon slides downward first rather than other types of spoon, thus metal spoon is the best heat conductor among the wood and plastic spoon. Metal is an excellent conductor of heat, while plastic and wood are insulators.