Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Posted on behalf of student. Project: How Does Soil Affect the pH of Water? https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ml#summary

I am trying to determine which data graph I should be using for this project.
Would be the line graph, bar graph, etc..
What is your input on this? What is the best to present this project using graphs (example what goes on the x-axis and what on the y-axis?

Your input is greatly appreciated.

Hello,

The best place for you to start is the helpful Science Buddies information on Data Analysis & Graphs: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ysis.shtml

In general, the x axis is your independent variable - the one that you changed. The y axis is your dependent or response variable - the one that changed in response to the independent variable, usually the thing that you measure.

For your project, you want to know how pH changed according to soil type. So you would put pH (or change in pH) on the y axis, and soil type on the x axis. For a categorical (non-numerical) variable like soil type, a bar graph is often a good way to present the data. If you want to graph pH changes over time, then some sort of line graph with time on the x axis would be appropriate.

I hope this helps you get started. Please post again (in this same thread) if you have more questions.

Heather