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Laura03
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:36 pm
Occupation: Student:10th grade
Project Question: If I place hot (or cold) water into a container, which type of container will keep the water warm (or cold) the longest?
Project Due Date: December
Project Status: I am just starting

Project help

Post by Laura03 »

My question for the science project is : If I place hot (or cold) water into a container, which type of container will keep the water warm (or cold) the longest?
The problem is that I'm having problems identifying the independent and dependent variable in this experiment. Please help. :(
deleted-143835
Former Expert
Posts: 118
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 5:19 pm
Occupation: Mentor/Moderator
Project Question: I'm registering because I'm interested in volunteering with the Ask an Expert program to help students with their science fair projects.
Project Due Date: n/a
Project Status: Not applicable

Re: Project help

Post by deleted-143835 »

Hi Laura03,

The independent variable is generally defined as the factor you are changing or testing in your experiment. The dependent variable is what "gets changed" as a result of changing the independent variable. For example, in the scenario you have, the independent variable would be the type of container, and the dependent variable would be the temperature of the water (which depends on the type of container). I would suggest that you test many different types of containers in order to have a wide comparative study, if possible.

Hope this helps, and good luck!
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