Observation: Quantitative vs Qualitative Observation: Observation vs Inference Observation: Influence

1. Science is a Process
Scientists:
! ask questions about how the world
works
! they discover pieces of the answer of
what we know could CHANGE

2. Scientific Inquiry
! Is a way scientists answer questions
about the world.
! Is a way to investigate an observable
event
! Is a way of getting new knowledge, as
well as correcting and integrating
previous knowledge

3. Scientific Method – Scientific Inquiry
! Make an Observation
! Ask a question
! Research
! Form or construct a Hypothesis
! Experiment (Test the Hypothesis)
! Analyze the Data
! Draw a Conclusion
! Communicate Results

4. Make an
observation

5. Observation
! Information
gathered using
one or all of
your five
senses.

6. Observation
! Factual information that describes an object.

7. Observations
! The plant is green.
! The piece of metal is orange.
! It is raining outside.
! The car alarm is beeping.
! The wall has cracks in it.
! The room feels humid.

8. Observations are:
Quantitative or Qualitative

9. QUALITATIVE
! measureable or
countable
ü 3 meters long
ü 4 marbles
ü 50 kilograms
ü 25 degrees Celsius
QUANTITATIVE
! describable, not
measureable
ü red flowers
ü smells like fresh
baked cookies
ü Tastes bitter
Observations are:

10. Qualitative or
Quantitative?
Qualitative - (not measureable)
! emerald-green bird possesses
black edging to the feathers of
the head, mantle and breast,
characterized by a red band
across the forehead and
conspicuous white eye-rings.
The primary wing feathers are
a soft blue, the tail is green,
and the bill and feet are flesh-
coloured, voice noisy and only
native parrot of Puerto Rico.
Quantitative - (measurable)
– 1 of the 10 most
endangered birds in
the world,
– measures ~ 28 –
30 cm (11–12 in)
– weighs ~ 250–300 g
(8.8–11 oz.), or 275 g
(9.7 oz.).

11. Qualitative or Quantitative?
_ The candy was sour
_ The bug was 5 cm
long
_ The flower is red
_ The mass of the
beaker was 122 g
_ My fingernail is 2 cm
long
_ The slug was slimy
_ That laptop is white
_ She is 150 cm tall
_ His hair is black
_ You have three
sisters

12. Inference
! A conclusion drawn using
observations and reasoning
! An explanation NOT a fact you
can detect using one of the five
senses

13. Inference
! A statement based on your
interpretation of the facts.
! Cannot be directly observed.
! The process of drawing a
conclusion from given evidence

14. Inferences
! The table looks like it is made of wood.
! The piece of metal is red, so it must be hot.
! The plant is green, so it must be healthy.
! The room is dark, so the light bulb must not
be on.
! Andrea is studying, so she probably does well
in school.
! The street is wet, so it must have rained.

15. OBSERVATION VS. INFERENCE
OBSERVATIONS
! That plant is
extremely wilted.
! The car stopped
running.
INFERENCES
! That plant is extremely
wilted due to a lack of
water.
! The car stopped
running because it was
out of gas.

16. Observation or Inference?
The guy doing a reverse vault is wearing a white
tank top.

17. Observation or Inference?
The guy doing a reverse vault is the best traceur.

18. Observation or Inference?
The grass is wet, so it must have
rained last night.

19. What do you observe?
! In your notebook write 3 observations

20. What do you infer?
! In your notebook write 3 inferences
based on your observations

21. Influences
! Several things can influence our
observations and our inferences
– Experience
– Knowledge
– Emotion
– Attention to detail.