Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I have my questions formulated for my this year's project. I though cannot decide how to narrow it down to one or two hypothesis. I know hypothesis is if and then statements... It just is not making sense to me this year. I know what I am going to do... I want to test for mold with an air study, test for mold by culturing, redo the swabs on the key boards from last year, compare the bacterial growth on keyboards at elementary, junior high and high school...
I want to do a lot. I just do not know how to tie it into a couple hypothesis. Here are my questions I hope to answer:
• Why was there mold on the nurses Petri dishes last year and not much bacteria? Did the mold inhibit the bacteria?
• What kind of mold was it?
• Are the nurses over killing the normal bacteria in their environment making the mold spores more proliferate?
• Is the nurse’s office environment more prone to mold than the classroom? Why?
• Does the amount of bacteria found on a student’s keyboard decrease with grade level? Supporting as one’s age increases so does their knowledge and ability to wash one’s hands?
• Which door handle in the school has the most bacteria?
• What location in the school contains the most bacteria?
How do I get this in hypothesis format?

Hi,

You seem to me to be starting to formulate the start of your project question pretty well. You may want to be careful to distinguish between your project question(the question you are trying to answer) and your hypothesis (the if … then… statement, your guess at what the answer will be).

I suggest you carefully read the Science Buddies Project Guide, paying particular attention to the pages on the Scientific Method, Your Question, and Hypotheses.

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

ItBest wishes for a very successful project!

Barrett L Tomlinson