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Observations and Questions

• Most scientific evaluations begin with someone making observations about something that is occurring in nature or the world around them. Observations are the first step in the scientific method, and they set the foundation that the proceeding steps are based on. Once a scientist has made observations, they are often curious about what they have seen and want to learn more. At this point, scientists begin to ask questions about their observations, which is the second step in the scientific method. These questions can be very broad or specific depending on the topic being investigated.

Hypothesis

• After a question has been asked, the next step in the scientific method can occur. The third step is to formulate a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a proposed explanation that aims to answer the question formulated, and the hypothesis must be testable through experimentation. The development of a hypothesis is a very important step in the scientific method because it is what the remaining steps are based on, and it will be returned to after more steps are completed. Once the hypothesis is created, scientists make predictions about what should happen if the hypothesis is found valid, and therefore supported, and also what should happen if the hypothesis is not valid and is rejected.

Experiment

• Conducting an experiment is the fourth step in the scientific method. An experiment is an activity designed to gather data that will be used to support or reject the hypothesis. An experiment involves multiple variables, which are specific factors that can be manipulated. Most experiments include an independent variable, which is the factor that the scientist alters, and a dependent variable, which is the factor that is being measured. When an experiment includes these aspects, it is referred to as a controlled experiment because the scientist is in control of how each variable influences the experiment. This is an important part of the scientific method because by controlling the variables in the experiment, the scientists can determine which variable is causing the predicted result.

Interpret Results and Make Conclusions

1. Once the experiment has been conducted and all of the data has been collected, the next step in the scientific method is to interpret the results. The interpretation of the results includes analyzing the data and making conclusions about the hypothesis. First, the data is analyzed statistically to determine how the data from the experiment relates to the hypothesis and predictions proposed.

1. After the analysis, conclusions are made by comparing the data with the hypothesis. If the data are found to not support the hypothesis, then the hypothesis is rejected and the scientist must return to step three and formulate a new hypothesis. They will then conduct a new experiment and determine if their new data supports or refutes their new hypothesis.