Science

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science

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A way of learning about the natural world through observations and logical reasoning; leads to a body of knowledge.

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observing

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The process of using one or more of your senses to gather information.

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inferring

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The process of making an inference, an interpretation based on observations and prior knowledge.

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predicting

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The process of forecasting what will happen in the future based on past experience or evidence.

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classifying

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The process of grouping together items that are alike in some way.

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evaluating

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Comparing observations and data to reach a conclusion about them.

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making models

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The process of creating representations of complex objects or processes.

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variable

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A factor that can change during the experiment.

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independent variable

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The one factor that a scientist changes during an experiment; also called manipulated variable.

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dependent variable

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The factor that changes as a result of changes to the independent variable in an experiment; also called responding variable.

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skepticism

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An attitude of doubt.

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ethics

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The rules that enable people to know right from wrong.

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personal bias

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An outlook influenced by a person's likes and dislikes.

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cultural bias

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An outlook influenced by the beliefs, social forms, and traits of a group.

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experimental bias

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A mistake in the design of an experiment that makes a particular result more likely.

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objective

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Describes the act of decision-making or drawing conclusions based on available evidence.

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subjective

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Describes the influenced of personal feelings on a decision or conclusion.

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deductive reasoning

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A way to explain things by starting with a general idea and then applying and then applying the idea to a specific observation.

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inductive reasoning

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Using specific observations to make generalizations.

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metric system

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A system of measurement based on the number 10.

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International System of Units

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A system of units used by scientists to measure the properties of matter.

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mass

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A measure of how much matter is in an object.

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weight

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A measure of the force of gravity acting on an object.

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volume

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The amount of space that matter occupies.

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density

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The measurement of how much mass of a substance is contained in a given volume.

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estimate

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An approximation of a number based on reasonable assumptions.

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accuracy

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How close a measurement is to the true or accepted value.

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precision

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How close a group of measurements are to each other.

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significant figures

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All the digits in a measurement that have been measured exactly, plus one digit whose value has been estimated.

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percent error

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A calculation used to determine how accurate, or close to the true value,an experimental value really is.

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mean

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The numerical average in a set of data.

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median

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The middle number in a set of data.

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mode

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The number that appears the most often in a list of numbers.

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range

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The difference between the greatest value and the least value in a set of data.

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anomalous data

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Data that do not fit with the rest of a data set.

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graph

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A picture of information from the data table; shows the relationship between variables.

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linear graph

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A line graph in which data points yield a straight line.

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nonlinear graph

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A line graph in which the data points do not fall along a straight line.

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scientific inquiry

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The ongoing process of discovery in science; the diverse ways in which scientists study the natural world and propose explanations based on the evidence they gather.

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hypothesis

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A possible explanation for a set of observations or answer to a scientific question; must be testable.

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controlled experiment

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An experiment in which only one variable is manipulated at a time.

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data

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Facts, figures, and other evidence gathered through observations.

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repeated trial

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A repetition of an experiment to gather additional data and determine whether the experiment's results support the hypothesis.

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replication

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An attempt to repeat a scientist's experiment by a different scientist or group of scientists.