Scientific Inquiry

1. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
Section 3:
Scientific Inquiry
scientific inquiry: the diverse ways in which
scientists investigate the natural world and
propose explanations based on the evidence
they gather

2. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
1. Pose a Question
• Ask a question based on experiences from
observations and inferences.
• Scientific inquiry can’t answer questions about
personal taste or judgments.

3. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
2. Develop a Hypothesis
• hypothesis: a possible explanation for a set of
observations or answer to a scientific question
• Hypothesis must be testable, which means a
scientist must be able to carry out investigations and
gather evidence that will either support or disprove a
hypothesis
• Many trials trial may need to be run to prove a
hypothesis right or wrong

4. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
3. Design an Experiment
• Define the Variable
• Variable: factor that can change in an experiment
• All variables must be the same except one to make
the experiment credible
• Controlled experiment: an experiment in which only
one variable is changed anytime

5. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
3. Design an Experiment (continued)
• manipulated variable: the variable that is changed,
a.k.a.: independent variable
• Responding variable: the variable that is affected by
the manipulated variable, a.k.a. dependent variable

6. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
3. Design an Experiment (continued)
• Control: part of the experiment to which you can
compare the results of other tests
• The control group has no manipulated variables
• Operational definition: a statement that describes
how to measure a variable or define a term

7. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
4. Collecting and Interpreting Data
• data: the facts, figures and other evidence gathered
through observations
• Can be in the form of a table, a graph or a list

8. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
5. Draw Conclusions
• conclusion is a summary of what you have learned
from the experiment
• You must support or disprove your hypothesis with
evidence
• this is the answer to “why?”

9. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Process of
Scientific Inquiry
6. Communication
• Communicating: sharing of ideas and experimental
findings with others through writing
• Lab reports or published results

10. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
Collecting and Interpreting Data
A data table helps you organize
the information you collect in
an experiment. Graphing the
data may reveal any patterns in
your data.

11. Chapter 1 What is Life Science?
The Nature of Inquiry
There is no set path that a scientific inquiry must follow.
Pose Questions
Communicate
Draw
Conclusions
Form a
Hypothesis
Design an
Experiment
Collect and
Interpret Data