Scientific Method Problem/Hypothesis

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

Your procedure should be detailed enough so that anyone reading your project will be able to do exactly what you did and obtain the same results. So, for the materials, you would include a list of everything that you used. If you have used something unusual, you can include the brand name and store where you bought the item. You would describe what material you used to construct the maze and the size of the maze. It will probably be easiest to simply take a picture of the maze to show what it looks like and include a one or two sentence description of the construction technique. Anything you can do to make your project more visual with pictures and diagrams will help the science fair judges understand what you did.

Does this help?

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Great! I have some great pictures when I was making the maze and the completed maze before the actual experiment started. So would just give a 1-2 sentence step for making the maze with a picture(s) next to it? I also have my plans for it written in my science logbook. Should I have my log book with my Science Fair Display too?

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

A step-by-step photograph sequence of constructing the maze would be absolutely perfect. You should display your logbook with your project for the judging, as it will complement the display board and probably has more details in it.

Donna

[deleted-89755]

Help!!
I am still stuck on the maze part of the procedure how to describe the construction of it in two sentences. This would be step one and two of the procedure correct? Do I start out by saying ...1. Take 14" X 10" box lid, cut 3" X 2.5" hole in the center of the 10" side, and cut the same hole on the opposite side in the left corner. 2. Use the sides of another 14" X 10" box to make two 6" dividers and one 3.5"divider. 3. Glue the dividers in the box lids evenly spaced out with a 6" divider towards the center cut hole, a 6" divider on the opposite side of the lid in the center, and the 3.5 " inch towards the light source. 4. To create the Independent Variable with the mirrors, glue the four mirrors in the box so that the light reflects off each one towards where the plant will be placed. 5. Take two 16 " X 10. 75" box lid, cut openings on the 10.75" to match the openings for the plant source and the light source.

This seems to be so detailed and I didn't even tell about my actual experiment yet.

Could you please help?

Thanks

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

You have a good question. I can see the problem. Your description is excellent; very detailed and precise, but not very helpful for the reader to understand what you did. I would include this description in your research paper, and accompany the text with photographs. For your science board, I think it would be better just to show the pictures and state that” the maze was constructed of cardboard and glue as shown in Figure 1” or something similar . You will run out of room on your board, so you want to save room for your experiment.

Does this help?

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Thank you Donna! I am feeling much better about my procedure. I am moving on to getting ready to figure out what is the best way to figure out my data for my independent variables ( length of the plant and number of leaves). I have read through the science buddies suggestions but seem more confused. Do you have any suggestions on where to begin?

[deleted-89755]

Donna... I made a mistake I meant to say my Dependent Variables on the above message. It's late! How do I figure the % of leaf growth on both plants in both the control maze and the mirror maze?

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

You are right; the leaf growth is your dependent variable. Your quantitative result that you measured is length of plant and number of leaves, so you can’t calculate percent of leaf growth with these measurements. You could make two bar graphs; one for plant length and one for number of leaves. Make one bar in each graph for the control and one for maze results. That way you can compare results side by side. If this doesn’t make sense, then please post your results and I’ll try to make additional suggestions.

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Donna...

These are my results for the Creeping Charlie and the English Ivy in the mirror maze and the control maze. I still have one more day to get data so it's not complete.

Mirror Maze
Length of Plant Day1 Day2 Day3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 Day 9 Day 10

Ivy 10cm 12cm 13.5 16cm 19cm 21cm 23cm 25cm ?


CC 5cm 7cm 7.5 8 8 3/8 8 5/8 9 1/8 9 1/2 ?

This is the data for the Mirror Maze that I measured every 3 days on 10 different observations.
Should I do line graph or bar graphs?
If you could respond back as soon back as soon as possible since i am working on it tonight it would be greatly appcreciated!

[deleted-89755]

This is the data for the control maze with the Ivy and Creeping Charlie


Length of Plant (centimeters) Control Maze

Ivy : 10,11,12,12,12.5,13,14,15,?

CC: 4,5,5,6.5,6.5,6,7,7,?

Thanks,

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

I’m sorry I was not able to respond yesterday. Your data is excellent! I think the best way to present data like this is in a line graph. I have attached a graph of your ivy results to show you what the data looks like. I graphed the difference in growth at time 0 in cm vs. time. You can see that the graph shows a big difference between the reflected light and the control. The line graph works best because you can “see” the progression of the experiment over time. You should do two graphs; one for each type of plant.

If you know or can learn to use Excel, you can do a graph on the computer. Otherwise, do the graph for your science board neatly by hand. You would of course add a title and label the x and y axis of the graph.

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Thanks a million! I was working on a line graph.

[deleted-89755]

How do you view the graph you did?

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

I apologize, but I didn't notice the error message that the color graph was too large to attach. The black & white version is also too large to attach, so I will describe the graph in more details. For the ivy growth, the y axis is labeled from 0 to 5 cm; the x axis ranges from 0 to 8. The control line goes from 0 to 2 and the maze line goes vrom 0 to 4.5. It sounds like you understand how to do a line graph, so I'm sure your graph will be similar to mine.


Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Thank you for your tips! I can make a graph. Do you think I should do the same thing (2 different graphs- 1 for Ivy and 1 for Creeping Charlie) for the number of leaves data?

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

Yes, you should make 4 graphs altogether. To make it easier for your reader to understand your results, color code all of the graphs the same way, using one color for control and another color for the maze results.

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Well, I finally have everything done except for my observation write up and my conclusion write up. For my conclusion, I am just saying if my hypothesis was supported by my experiment and what I may want to do in the future. How is my observation write up different than my conclusion? Don't I refer to my data graphs in the conclusion? What do you think?

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

Yes, you should refer graphs in your discussion write up and simply describe the results of each experiment in sentences, preferably with quantitative results.

Your graphs will be labeled Fig. 1, 2, 3, and 4, etc and you can say that your hypothesis was supported as shown in the figures, and briefly summarize in words what the results were. In the conclusion section, you should include a discussion about why the plants were able to grow better with the reflected light to show the judges that you understand the science behind your project. You should mention any difficulties you had in doing the project and you should describe what you would do differently if you were to do the experiment again (more plants, longer time, etc.) You can describe a possible practical application of your project if you would like.

Here is the information from the Science Buddies website on doing a conclusion:

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ions.shtml

You should also go back to your teacher’s written assignment and go over it and make sure you have included all of the details. Sometimes teachers have specific requirements for class assignments.

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Hi, Donna!

For practical application, I wrote this ... Knowing that reflective light helps plants grow better, people who live in city homes with very little yards can effectively grow plants in their home. I suggest adding a few mirrors strategically in their home to help these plants. Is this what you are referring to?

Thanks,

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

Yes, this is perfect; you have thought of a good example of a good application of your research. I like science projects that have practical applications like this. You’ve done a really good job. I see your project is due tomorrow. Good luck at the science fair! Let us know how you do.

Donna Hardy

[deleted-89755]

Donna,

Thanks for all of your help. I earn highest honnors and a blue ribbon.

Thanks,

[donnahardy2]

Hi,

Congratulations! I'm so happy that you won. Thanks for letting me know.

Donn