gizmo scientific method
TRANSCRIPT
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Name_________________________ Block: ________
Scientific Method Gizmoadapted from www.explorelearning.com
Warm-up (do BEFORE your lab)1. List two important features of a valid experiment:
a) ________________________________________________________________
b) ________________________________________________________________
2. Define the following:a) Dependent variable: _________________________________________________
b) Independent variable: ________________________________________________
c) Control group: _____________________________________________________
d) Experimental group: _________________________________________________
Part 1 New Life FormsLaunch Effect of Environment on New Life Form gizmo
Animals tend to be found in environments that are well-suited to them. Some animals thrive in arctic conditions. Others do best in warm jungles. The environment can affect the type of animals that you find in different places. The environment can also affect some traits of the animals living there. In this gizmo you will work with a new life form discovered on a very remote island. These aliens range in size, and you have been assigned the task of trying to determine what causes the alien thickness to change. You will explore the affect of sunlight, water, and temperature on alien size.
Time EffectYou have 100 aliens to work with. To start, 74 are thin, 19 are medium, and 7 are thick. You will experiment with how time affects alien thickness.
1. To start, you should see that the aliens are getting 12 hours per day of sunlight, 10 drops of water per hour, and the temperature is 25 degrees Celsius. Click on the Bar tab to see a model of how many of each alien are present. Click on the Graph tab and you can see any changes as days on the x-axis increase. Press the PLAY
control button on the lower right hand corner( ). Allow roughly 90 days to pass and click on the PAUSE control button( ).
2. Describe in your own words what happens to the number of thin, medium, and thick aliens after you pressed the Play button: ________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________
3. Does it seem that alien thickness changes over time when the environment is constant? Explain. ____________________________________________________________
Sunlight EffectsIn the previous section you allowed time to pass while observing the aliens. All other conditions were held constant. You will now explore the effect of sunlight on aliens.
1. Press the RESET control button ( ) and select the Graph tab. Press the PLAY button. Adjust the SUNLIGHT slider and observe what happens when you decrease
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the amount of sunlight. Click the PAUSE control button and describe what happened. __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Press the RESET control button and select the Graph tab. Press the PLAY button. Adjust the SUNLIGHT slider and observe what happens when you increase the amount of sunlight. Click the PAUSE control button and describe what happened. __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Did the amount of sunlight have an effect on the number of thin, medium or thick
aliens?
Explain.____________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
Water EffectsIn the previous section you observed the aliens while changing the daily amount of sunlight. All other conditions were held constant. You will not explore the effect of water supply on the aliens.
1. Press the RESET button and move the sunlight slider back to 12 hours. Select the Graph tab. Press PLAY. Adjust the water slider and observe what happens when you decrease the amount of water. Click the PAUSE button and describe what happened. __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Press the RESET control button and select the Graph tab. Press the PLAY button. Adjust the water slider and observe what happens when you increase the amount of water. Click PAUSE and describe what happened.__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Did the amount of water have an effect on the number of thin, medium, or thick
aliens?
Explain. ____________________________________________________________
Temperature EffectsIn the previous section you observed the aliens while changing the water supply. All other conditions were held constant. You will now explore the effect of temperature on the aliens.
1. Press the RESET button and move the sunlight slider back to 12 hours and the water slider back to 10 drops of water. Select the Graph tab. Press PLAY. Adjust the temperature slider to 5 degrees Celsius and observe what happens. If you start to see a change, click PAUSE and answer the following:
A) Which thickness of alien increased at this temperature? ____________
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B) Which thickness of alien decreased at this temperature? ____________
2. Press the RESET control button and select the Graph tab. Press PLAY. Adjust the
temperature slider to the left and then to the right and observe what happens.
Click PAUSE and describe what happened. ______________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________
3. Did the amount of temperature have an effect on the number of thin, medium, or
thick aliens? Explain. ______________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Click RESET and adjust the temperature slider to answer the following questions:
a) Which thickness of alien population does the best in a colder temperature?____________________________________
b) Which thickness of alien population does the best in a warmer temperature?____________________________________
Alien analysis questions1) Which thickness of alien population seemed to stay constant when you varied the
different environmental factors? _______________________________________
2) Why do you think it was important to just change one environmental factor at a
time in this simulation instead of two or three all at the same time?
_____________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________
3) What was the dependent variable in our experiments? __________________________
4) What were the independent variables we tested in our experiments (LIST ALL OF THEM)? _________________________________________________________
5) In this experiment you could control sunlight, water, and temperature. What other
environmental factors could cause a population to change over time? _____________
________________________________________________________________
6) Scroll down below the gizmo and read & answer each assessment question. Click on Check your answers to submit your answers to me.
Part 2 Growing Plants- Click on the “MY HOMEPAGE” button in the upper right hand corner
Launch Growing Plants gizmo
Activity A- Wet and dry
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1. Form a hypothesis. Do you think seeds need water to start growing? Explain why or
why not.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
2. In the Gizmo, set up the three pots like the following: (use the mouse select the seeds and place them in the appropriate pots, click on the lights to turn them on and off, and adjust the slider to change water level)
Pot A - Bean seed, two lights on, 0 mL water per day Pot B - Bean seed, two lights on, 50 mL water per day Pot C - Bean seed, two lights on, 100 mL water per day
3. Click PLAY and wait until the simulation is done. Observe the plants. Fill in the data table below with the height and mass of each plant on day 50. (Remember the mass of a plant is the amount of matter in the plant.) In the last column describe what each plant looks like.
4. Using your data, was your hypothesis supported or rejected? _______________Explain. _____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
5. Click the RESET control button. Create your own experiment to find if more water is
ALWAYS better for plants. Explain your findings: _______________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Activity B- Light and Dark
1. A variable is something that can be changed in an experiment, such as the amount
of light. How do you think the amount of light affects how plants grow? _____________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Set up three pots with 50mL of water per day, plain soil and turnip seeds. Turn on three lights over pot A, one light over pot B, and zero lights over pot C. Click PLAY and after 30 simulated days click PAUSE. Record your data below:
POT # of lights
Height (cm) on day 30
Mass (g) on day
30
Appearance on day 30
A
POT Water/day (mL)
Height (cm)
Mass (g)
Appearance
A
B
C
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B
C
3. Select the Data tab. Look at the graphs for Plant Height and Plant Mass. In your own
words, how did the amount of light affect the growth of plants?
__________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
4. Select the Experiment tab. Click PLAY and let the simulation continue to 50 days.
Based on what you observe, what do seeds need to grow into healthy plants?
______________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________
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Activity C - Design an experiment
You will come up with your own question and experimental design to answer your questions.
1. Create a question: Fill in the blanks with the variable and the type of plant you would like to study in this activity. (DO NOT repeat an experiment you have already done.)
How does ________________________________ affect a _____________ plant?
2. Form a hypothesis: What is your prediction for the question you are asking?
__________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
3. Set up the pots to test the variable you are investigating. Describe how you set up each pot in the data table below:
POT Type of seed Water/day # lights Type of soil
A
B
C
4. Click the PLAY button to start your experiment. When the simulation is done examine your plant data on the Data tab and record your results below:
POT Height (cm)
Mass (g) Appearance
A
B
C
5. Conclusion: What did you discover (did your data support your hypothesis)?
_______________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
6. Scroll down below the gizmo and read & answer each assessment question. Click on Check your answers to submit your answers to me.