8th Grade 1-3: How Scientists Work

​Science Root of the Day:

DO NOW: Write what you think the example words mean in your lab manual.

Extra Credit: Find three additional words that use this root and write them and their definition in your lab manual (6 Points Max)

How Scientists Work

In 1979, Doctor Susan Horwitz discovered that the drug paclitaxel can play a crucial role in slowing down the growth of cancer cells. Despite starting as a history major, her experience in science courses drew her to switch her major to biochemistry, and ultimately changing medical science forever and saving countless lives.

Word Cloud

In one or two words What do scientists do?

Lesson Objectives

• Identify the skills scientists use to learn about the world

  • Relate those skills to a real-world example of a scientific discovery

• Explain what is involved in Scientific investigations

  • Discuss what characterizes science and its methods

• Compare and Contrast Scientific vs. Nonscientific Views

How do Scientists explore the Natural World?

• Science: a way of learning about the natural world

  • Gaining knowledge through exploration​

    • Everyone does this as they grow, even babies

  • Uses a variety of skills to form and test ideas

    • observing

    • classifying

    • making models

    • inferring

    • predicting

Observing

• Observing: using one or more of your senses to gather information

  • Sight, Touch, Smell, Taste, Sound​

  • Can use a variety of tools to help with observations

    • microscopes, telescopes, microphones, computers

• Example: Paclitaxel is made from the bark of Pacific yew tree, which has poisonous leaves and seeds

  • Native Americans observed that while other parts of the plant were dangerous, the bark could be safely eaten/brewed into tea

Types of Observations

• Observations that are collected in a scientific inquiry are known as data

• Two types of observations

  • Quantitative Observations: deal with numbers or amounts

    • Example: This​ Clematis flower has four petals

  • Qualitative Observations: Deal with any description that can't be described with numbers

    • Example: This Clematis flower is dark purple

Multiple Choice

Is the following observation Qualitative or Quantitative:

Peter is 12 Years old.

• Qualitative

• Quantitative

Multiple Choice

Is the following observation Qualitative or Quantitative:

I have two pitchers of Lemonade.

• Qualitative

• Quantitative

Multiple Choice

Is the following observation Qualitative or Quantitative:

The lemonade tastes sour

• Qualitative

• Quantitative

Multiple Choice

Is the following observation Qualitative or Quantitative:

The lemonade has a pH of 3

• Qualitative

• Quantitative

Classifying

• Classifying: Grouping together items that are similar

  • a Means of organizing Data into understandable groups

  • In 1962 scientists collected samples from many different types of trees

    • Samples were tested for their effects on cancer cells​

    • When Pacific Yew tree samples were collected and studied, they were put in a group​ of plants with anticancer effects

Making Models

• Models are creative representations of complex objects or processes that allow us to study things that can't be directly observed

  • Can be physical objects, or non physical

    • Mathemat​ical equations or computer programs

    • representations of atomic structure help us to recreate natural compounds synthetically

Inferring

• ​Inferring is explaining or interpreting things you observe

• An inference is an interpretation of data based on reasoning from observations and prior knowledge

  • Not a guess, but rather something supported by data

• When certain cancer cells were treated with paclitaxel, scientists saw that they stopped dividing and inferred that the chemical could help treat people with cancer​

  • Tested by seeing how many cells grew when exposed to the drug​

Reorder

Rank the tablets from most effective at killing bacteria to least effective.

• D

• B

• C

• A

1

2

3

4

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

Multiple Choice

Looking at the plates in the picture, what might you infer about the two types of soap?

• All soaps work the same at killing bacteria.

• Solid Soap is better at killing bacteria than liquid soap.

• Liquid Soap is better at killing bacteria than solid soap.

• You should never use soap to wash your hands

Predicting

• Predicting: Making a statement or claim about what could happen in the future

  • A good scientist looks at Inferences to help make predictions

    • Inference: what has already happened

      • Example: you see a fallen tree and can infer a storm came through

    • Prediction: What Will happen

      • You see the sky turn dark and can predict a storm is coming

  • When Paclitaxel was tested on mice with breast tumors, they showed signs of recovery, causing scientists to predict that it would be effective in treating breast cancer in humans

Analyizing

• Analyzing: Evaluating observation to reach a conclusion about them​

  • Comparing data to make proper inferences​

  • Involves multiple experiments to compare different data sets and be sure that the conclusions reached are correct.

• Multiple tests were done on Paclitaxel to guarantee it was safe to use for treating cancer

Multiple Choice

_______ is a way of learning about the natural world through exploration

• Observing

• Science

• Classifying

• Predicting

Multiple Choice

_______ is a way of organizing data

• Observing

• Inferring

• Classifying

• Predicting

Multiple Choice

_______ using one or more of your senses to gather information

• Observing

• Inferring

• Classifying

• Predicting

Drag and Drop

​

Placeholder

makes conclusions about what has already happened while ​

Placeholder

makes claims about what can happen in the future.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

Inferring

Predicting

Observing

Classifying

Modeling

Multiple Choice

To draw a conclusion, scientists must ____________________ data from an investigation.

• Model

• Classify

• Predict

• Analyze

Multiple Choice

True or False: A qualitative observation involves descriptions that cannot be expressed in numbers.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

True or False: Tools, such as the microscope, can help scientists when they are observing.

• True

• False

What do Scientific Investigations involve?

• ​In additions to the skills scientists practice, a scientist needs to have a specific attitude toward their work

  • Creative, honest, curious, open-minded​

  • Need to be willing to accept new ideas, but also be skeptical

    • Skepticism: having an attitude of doubt​

      • Helps keep scientists from accepting faulty ideas blindly

  ​

Scientific Methods

• Scientists also need to preform investigations in a scientific way

  • Collecting evidence and using that evidence to make inferences and conclusions

Collecting Evidence

• Data: Facts, figures, and other evidence collected during a scientific investigation

  • Empirical evidence: Data collected using scientific processes that describe particular observations​

• All scientific investigations involve collections of empirical evidence

  • During the crow study, researchers wrote down their observations of the crows in notebooks as they walked

• After data is collected, scientists carefully look through it to find patterns

  • Patterns can help in making good inferences​

Objective and Subjective Reasoning

• Objective Reasoning: Reasoning that is based on evidence

  • Can't be easily disproven

  • Example: Crows have two wings, so they can fly

• Subjective reasoning: Reasoning based on feelings or personal values

  • Can be argued or debated​

  • Crows are ugly birds, so they aren't very smart

​Science vs Pseudoscience

• Pseudoscience: a set of beliefs based on science, but draws conclusions without objective reasoning

  • Can be confused with legitimate science

    • Astronomy is a real science that studies and observes the planets and stars.

    • Astrology is a pseudoscience that guesses how people's lives will go based on the movement of the stars​

Multiple Choice

Is the following objective or subjective reasoning: Red is a bright annoying color, so people who wear red are always loud and annoying

• Objective

• Subjective

Multiple Choice

Facts and other evidence collected during a scientific investigation are what type of evidence

• Empirical

• Amazing

• Critical

• Numerical

Multiple Choice

What are Facts, figures, and other evidence collected during a scientific investigation

• Data

• Math

• Qualifications

• studies

Multiple Choice

Science or Pseudoscience: Taurus is the name of a constellation, or pattern of stars

• Science

• Pseudoscience

Multiple Choice

Science or Pseudoscience: If you are a Taurus you are automatically a loyal and trustworthy person.

• Science

• Pseudoscience

Multiple Choice

Science or Pseudoscience: The star Aldebaran is the brightest burning star in the constellation taurus

• Science

• Pseudoscience

Open Ended

Why is it important to distinguish between science and pseudoscience? Give an example of how someone could be effected by a mistake.