BELLWORK : 8/16-17/12
Think of a question that you could answer through
an experiment:
What is the question?
How would you setup the experiment?
Introduction to Science
1 – The Nature of Science
2 – The Way Science Works
3 – Organizing Data
Online Textbook Access
• Go to URL
– http://my.hrw.com
• Username
– rcsps
• Password
– rutherford
1 – The Nature of Science
Key Terms
• Science – Knowledge obtained by observing
natural events and conditions to learn facts,
principles, laws
• Technology – Application of science for practical
purposes
• Law – A descriptive statement or equation that
predicts events under certain conditions
• Theory – System of ideas explaining related
observations and supported by evidence
How Science Takes Place
• A scientist may perform experiments to find a
new aspect of the natural world, to explain a
known phenomenon, to check the results of other
experiments, or to test predictions of current
theories
• Examples – New materials for computer chips that
make processing speeds/phones more advanced
How Science Takes Place
• Examples – TVs were built after the early cathode
ray tubes were developed in the late 19th century
Scientists Experiment
• Answer questions by investigating
• Sometimes these are old questions, sometimes new
• Often, questions arise from observations
• Investigate by designing/conducting experiments
• Experimental results are confirmed ( repetition )
Observe
Branches of Science
• Natural Science: Biological, Physical, Earth
Working Together
• Different branches of science work
together, along with technology
– Example: Applying newer computerchip materials into actual designs (
Razr, self-cooled labtops )
Laws & Theories – Always Tested
• Laws allow predictions to be made about how a
system will behave under given conditions
– GRAVITY
• Theories explain HOW a process takes place
– PLATE TECTONICS
Models
• Mathematics is useful to describe events
– Gravity has an equation
Models
• Models can represent physical events
• Used in daily life
– Hurricane trajectories
– Weather predictions
BELLWORK : 8/20/12
Which popcorn is the better deal?
Last Week
• Discussed the fundamental nature of science
• Also worked on observation skills
• Anyone observe something interesting over the
weekend?
Introduction to Science
1 – The Nature of Science
2 – The Way Science Works
3 – Organizing Data
2 – The Way Science Works
Science Skills
• Identifying problems
• Planning experiments
• Recording observations
• Correctly reporting data
Critical Thinking
• Involves asking questions, making observations,
and using logic
• Surprise!!
BELLWORK : 8/20/12
Which popcorn is the better deal? Discuss
Units of Measurement
• In your notes, list 5 you can think of.
• Do these relate to length, mass, weight, time,
volume
Units of Measurement
• Scientists use standard units of measure – SI
System
• Meters, grams, Seconds
Units of Measurement
• SI ( System Internationale ) used for consistency
• Prefixes allow for easy converting
• EXAMPLES:
• m  km
• kg  g
• seconds  milliseconds
Exit Pass – Unit Conversions
• Study Guide – Pg 3
• Problem 3
• Remaining Time – Problems 1, 5 & 6
Bellwork – 08/21/12
• Study Guide – Pg 3
• Problem 3
• Finished? – Questions 1, 5 & 6
Help with # 1, pg 3
• Microscopes – magnify ( make larger ) small objects
• Telescopes – magnify objects far away
• Radio telescope – detect radio waves from objects
• Spectroscopes – separate light into a rainbow
• Ruler – finds length
Key Terms
• Variable – A factor changing in an
experiment
• Length – Measure of the straight-line distance
between two points
• Volume – The space occupied by an object
• Mass – Amount of matter in an object
• Weight – Amount of gravitational force on object
Scientific Method – Use Colors!!
• Notice there is more than time where you observe
Are They The Same?
• Are they the same? - Hypothesis
• How can we test your hypothesis?
Bellwork – 8/23/12
• Study Guide
• Finish pg. 3 - #2 , #4
Introduction to Science
1 – The Nature of Science
2 – The Way Science Works
3 – Organizing Data
Presenting Scientific Data
• Scientists use written reports and oral
presentations
• To share results
• Organizing/Presenting this info is important
Line Graphs
• Show continuous changes
• Time : Independent Variable
(x-axis)
• Doesn’t DEPEND on anything
• Gas Volume : Dependent
Variable (y-axis)
• Depends on something else
Demonstration
• Gas-Producing Reaction
• Lots of gas at first, then slows down
• Adding Vinegar to Baking Soda makes CO2
Bar Graphs
• Compares similar data for different items or events
Pie Chart Graphs
• Shows parts of a whole ( or parts of 100% )
Lab Activity – Motion Graphing
• If we do not take this seriously or respect the
equipment, we will not use this setup again
Lab Activity – Motion Graphing
• Each group goes to their station
• One person logs into network/labtop
• Open Logger Pro Software
• Open file “01a Graph Matching”
Procedure
• Collect data by hitting green “Collect” button
• You will hear Motion Detector “clicking”
• You will also see data collected an graph
Lab Activities
• Turn the detector on and stand still in front of it
• What do you see on a distance vs. time graph?
• Repeat the test but slowly move away from the
detector
• What do you see?
Lab Activities
• Turn the detector on and move back and forth in
front of it ( get far away, move closer )
• What do you see on a distance vs. time graph?
GRADE - Graph
• Setup a graph of distance vs time for a person
• What would it look like if someone is moving
away from these detectors at constant speed?
• What type of graph is this ( line, bar, pie chart )?
Bellwork - 08/27/12
• What does it mean to be precise?
• QUIZ – Thursday ( 6th ) and Friday
Precision & Accuracy
• Precision: the exactness of a measurement
• Accuracy: how close a measurement is to the
true value
Applying Precision - Accuracy
• Scientists use significant figures to show precision
of a measured quantity
• Significant figure: Prescribed decimal place
determining the amount of rounding-off when
assessing the precision of a measurement
• Round your answers to the correct significant
figures
LAB Activity - GRADE
• Get 50 points for participation
• If I see not participating in one way or the other –
less than 50 points
• Document on Projector Screen ( 1 / group )
Bellwork - 08/29/12
• Think of the paper-wad toss we did yesterday.
Would it be accurate, precise, neither, both in the
following situation?
– 4 made it in the basket, 1 landed far away
• QUIZ – Thursday ( 6th ) and Friday ( 3rd, 5th, 7th )
Significant Figures – Counting
Rules
• ALL non-zero digits are Significant
• Leading and trailing zeros are not significant
– 2500 and 0.000036 have TWO Significant Figures
• Zeros in between Non-Zeros are significant
– 2501 and 2003 have FOUR Significant Figures
• Zeros after a decimal point ARE SIGNIFICANT
– They do not begin the number
– 25.00 and 15.10 have FOUR Significant Figures
Chpt 1 Quiz
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Key Terms
Scientific method
Branches of science
Metric conversions
units (length - meters, mass - grams, time - sec)
Types of graphs
Precision and accuracy
Significant Figures –
Adding/Subtracting
• The answer cannot have more decimal places than
the least number of decimal places in the
calculation
• Add 15.1 to 3
• The answer is 18
Scientific Notation
• Earlier examples with TWO Significant Figures:
– 2500 and 0.000036
• Want to reduce number of characters by:
– Move decimal to get a number between 1 and 10
– Multiply by a power of 10 to end up with same value
Scientific Notation
• Earlier examples with TWO Significant Figures:
– 2500 and 0.000036
• Becomes ( but they are the same number ):
– 2.5 x 103
– 3.6 x 10-5
Scientific Notation
• How to write this out:
– 2500 ( have to move 3 places to left)  2.5
– 0.000036 ( have to move 5 right )  3.6
• Positive or Negative Exponent on Power of 10?
– 2.5 x 103 : 2.5 is SMALLER than original 2500
– 3.6 x 10-5 : 3.6 is LARGER than original 0.000036
Study Guides – Pg. 4
• Do entire page ( Take home, study this and notes )
• Look at/Work through Pretest to study also
• When done
– ask for Unit Conversions worksheet back
– Correct/Finish Worksheet
Unit Conversion/Scientific
Method Worksheets
• Improve your work ( finish blanks / correct
mistakes )
• Show work on separate piece of paper
• No work – grade stays the same
• Something similar will be for homework next time