Practice Nature of Science Exam

What variable in an experiment is measured? - it is also called the responding variable.

For example: measuring the amount of mold on bread

• Dependent variable

• Operational Definition

• Independent Variable

• Control Variable

What are diverse ways that scientists study the natural world and propose explanations based on evidence?

• Scientific Law

• Scientific Theory

• Scientific Inquiry

• Scientific Calculator

What can be defined as:

a possible explanation for a set of observations, or an educated guess that must be "testable."

• Scientific Theory

• Communicating

• Hypothesis

• Claim

If plants are exposed to sunlight, then they will grow taller.

What part of the scientific method is this an example of?

• Procedure

• Hypothesis

• Question

• Results

When you explain why the sugar is dissolving faster than the salt.  This is an example of a(an) ________________

• classification
• experiment
• prediction
• inference

A scientist conducts an experiment to test a hypothesis. The experiment confirms that the hypothesis could be true. When will the hypothesis most likely become a scientific theory?

• when the hypothesis is first thought of by the scientist

• when the hypothesis has survived extensive testing

• when a competing hypothesis has failed testing

• when the hypothesis is published

Which of the following best describes how science is different from other activities involving thought?

• Science can only be done by an individual person and not by groups that have a common goal.

• Science is the only activity that sometimes requires creativity to accomplish a goal.

• Science is the only activity that requires making thoughtful decisions.

• Science specifically involves observing, asking questions, and doing experiments on natural phenomena.

Robert studies ocean life. He observes that a species of octopus squirts a large cloud of black ink whenever a predator approaches. Which of the following is a scientific question that Robert could ask about what he observed?

• Does a predator like the taste of an octopus more than the taste of a squid?

• Does an octopus release a cloud of ink whenever it feels scared?

• Does a big octopus have a prettier ink cloud than a small octopus?

• Does releasing a cloud of ink make the octopus more likely to escape a predator?

Which of the following statements is true regarding scientific hypotheses?

• A testable hypothesis is valuable, even if evidence shows that it is false.

• There are no valuable hypotheses.

• Every hypothesis is valuable, whether or not it is testable.

• A testable hypothesis is valuable only if all evidence supports it.

Which of the following is a good scientific question?

• How do star fish fall in love?

• Why do crickets chirp?

• Does eating less fat increase a mouse's life span?

• Are dragons lizards or birds?