Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I was wondering whether there really is a control for a vitamin C project testing the amount of vitamin C in an array of different fruits, not just oranges? Would it be the standard solution? I've always been told a control is mandatory for a science project. Thanks.

Hi,

In this case, you are running into different ideas of a control. In this case, your standard solution would be what we call a positive control--a liquid in which you know there is Vitamin C. If you want to include a traditional negative control, you can use distilled water. This should not react, since there should be no vitamin C in it.

Hope this helps!