Scientific Inquiry Review

At one time, most people believed that the Universe was static, meaning it did not change. When larger and better telescopes were invented in the early 1900s, however, it was discovered that light from objects in space shifted toward longer wavelengths. Scientists concluded that only an expanding Universe could explain this shift. Which of the following statements is supported by this example?

• The principle of the expanding Universe is a scientific law.

• Once a scientific theory has been accepted, it can never change.

• Scientific knowledge can change when new evidence or interpretations arise.

• The theory of the expanding Universe cannot change, even if new evidence arises.

Scientific knowledge must be supported by evidence. An idea that is not supported by evidence but is made to appear scientific in order to make people think it is a part of science is called pseudoscience. Pseudoscience cannot be considered scientific because pseudoscientific ideas lack evidence. Which of the following ideas is considered scientific?

• Genes are made up of DNA and affect how an organism looks.

• The way the stars are positioned can be read to know the future.

• Bigfoot lives in the forest and travels around the U.S.

• Crop circles are made in fields by alien organisms.

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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.

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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?

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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.

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Since the beginning of time, some people have believed that the Earth is flat. Beginning around 300 B.C., however, some began to wonder if the Earth is actually spherical in shape. Those that favored the flat Earth theory made the following observations: The Earth is stable because it is a flat landmass sandwiched between a flat layer of air and a flat layer of water. If the Earth is spherical, then oceans should be curved on top, but they aren't. Some rivers flow for hundreds of miles but only fall a few feet. The rivers should fall farther if the Earth is spherical. If the Earth is spherical, people and animals that inhabit the Earth would notice as they walked along its surface. Since mariners are able to use flat compasses to navigate their ships without crashing, the Earth must not be a sphere. Those that disputed the flat Earth theory countered the claim by observing that Christopher Columbus was able to sail around the Earth without falling off the edge and later, by presenting satellite imagery taken from space of a spherical Earth. This example demonstrates that

• it is easy to resolve a scientific argument.

• it is not possible to settle a dispute.

• argumentation is a necessary part of scientific inquiry.

• scientific knowledge is unattainable.

Eric wants to perform an investigation on red blood cells, but before beginning his investigation, he wants to learn more about them. Which of the following is an appropriate reference material that Eric could use to learn more about red blood cells?

• a science-fiction book about blood

• a scientific journal

• a friend from school

• a newspaper editorial

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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?

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Raul wants to study how pot size affects the growth of plants. To do this, he intends to purchase three different pots of varying diameter. Then, he will fill each pot with the same amount of soil and plant different kinds of flowers in each pot. Finally, he will place the pots side by side in a sunny location and water each pot daily with the same amount of water. Will Raul's experimental set-up produce valid results?

• Yes; Raul set up his experiment correctly so the results will be valid.

• Yes; Raul has a testable hypothesis so the experiment is valid.

• No; Raul doesn't have a testable hypothesis so the experiment is pointless.

• No; Raul changes more than one variable so the results will be invalid.

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Jay wants to know how the amount of acidity in rainwater influences the weathering rate of limestone. To answer his question, Jay performs an experiment in which he soaks identical pieces of limestone in 200 mL of different carbonic acid solutions. The pH of the solutions range from 3.0 to 5.5. After performing his experiment once, he reports his data and draws a conclusion. What can Jay do to improve the reliability and accuracy of his data?

• He can repeat his experiment multiple times and ask someone else to replicate his experiment.

• He can increase the volume of the carbonic acid solutions.

• He can repeat his experiment using a sodium hydroxide base instead of carbonic acid.

• He can use different types of rocks but follow the same experimental procedure.

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