Environmental Biology

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Science

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*involves objective, logical, and repeatable attempts to understand the principles and forces working in the natural universe

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Scientific Skepticism

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*also referred to as a skeptical inquiry, questions claims based on their scientific verifiability rather than accepting claims based on faith

*uses critical thinking to analyse such claims and opposes claims which lack scientific evidence

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Deduction

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*involves determining a single fact from a general statement, it is only as accurate as the statement

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Induction

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*involves determining a general statement that is very likely to be true, from several facts

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Scientific Method

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*the process of scientific investigation

*based on gathering observable, empirical

(produced by experiment or observation), and measurable evidence that is critically evaluated

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Hypothesis

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* a suggestion explanation based on evidence that can be tested by observation or experimentation

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Observation

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*the act of noting and detecting phenomenon by the senses. For example, taking measurements is a form of observation

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Experiment

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*a test that is used to eliminate one or more of the possible hypotheses until one hypothesis remains

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Controls

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*subjects that are not tested during the investagation

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Variable

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*a factor that can change over the course of an experiment

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Independent Variable

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*factors whose values are controlled by the experiment

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Dependent Variable

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*change in response to the independent variable

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Constants(controlled variables)

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*variables that are kept constant to prevent them form influencing the effect if the independent variable or the dependent variable

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Acuracy

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*the measure of close or calculated or measured quantity is to its value

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Precision

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*reproducible or repeatability

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Error

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*a boundary on the precision and accuracy of the result of the measurement

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Scientific Theories

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*hypotheses which have stood up to repeated attempts at falsification and are thus supported by a great deal of data and evidence

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Theroy

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*guess or an opinion

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Scientific Laws

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*similar to scientific theories in that they are principles which can be used to predict the behavior of the natural world

*typically well-supported by observation and/or experimental evidence

*usually refers to rules for how nature will behave under certain conditions

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Scientific Journals

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*communicate and document the results of research carried out in universities and various other research institutions

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Peer Review

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*peers review your work to ensure that articles meet the journal's standards of quality, and scientific validity

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Bias

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*a position for favoring one particular point of view over another, and it is usually based on preconceived ideas about a situation

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Ethics

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*also called moral philosophy, is the discipline concerned with what is morally good or bad, right or wrong

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Biotechnology

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*technology based on biology, it involves the use of organisms or biological processes and can be especially used in agriculture , food science, and medicine

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Bioremediation

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*the use of microorganisms to clean up contaminated sites such as an oil spill

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Stimulation

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*a model that runs over time, brings a model to life and shows how a particular object or phenomenon will behave