The Scientific Method 3

Consider the example of the tomatoes in the garden. I like to garden and notice that some tomatoes are bigger than others and wonder why? Because of this personal experience and interest in the problem, I decide to learn more about what makes plants grow. I think about the scientific method which is a logical and rational order of steps by which I can come to the conclusions around me. Scientific method helps to organize thoughts and procedures so that I can be confident in answers I find. I will think through various possibilities using the Scientific Method to come to an answer to my original question.
Observation is done first by me so that I know how I want to go about my research. Hypothesis is the answer I will find. Prediction is my specific belief about scientific data. The experiment is the tool that I invent to answer the question and conclusion is the answer that the experiment gives.
OBSERVATION:
This step could be called ‘research.’ It is the first step in understanding the problem I chose. I will need to research everything that I can find about the problem. Here, I have taken the example of tomatoes in the garden and notice that some tomatoes are bigger than others and want to know what makes plants grow. For this stage of the Scientific Method, I must use as many sources as I can find.
HYPOTHESIS:
Next stage of Scientific Method is known as ‘hypothesis.’ This word means ‘a possible solution to a problem, based on knowledge and research.’ Hypothesis is a simple statement which defines what one thinks the outcome of experiment will be. The observation or research stage is designed to help me express the problem in a single question (‘Does the amount of sunlight in a garden affect tomato size?’) and propose an answer to question based on what I know. Experiment that I will design is done to test the hypothesis.
Using the example of the tomato experiment, given below is an example of a hypothesis:
TOPIC: ‘Does the amount of sunlight a tomato plant receives affect the size of tomatoes?’
HYPOTHESIS: ‘I believe that the more sunlight a tomato plant receives, larger the tomatoes will grow.’
This hypothesis is based on:
1. Tomato plants need sunshine to make food through photosynthesis, and logically, more sunlight means more food, and;
2. Through informal, exploratory observations of plants in a garden, those with more sunlight appear to grow bigger.
PREDICTION:
Hypothesis is my general statement of how I think the scientific phenomenon in question works. My prediction lets me get specific. The experiment that I will design is done to test the prediction. A good prediction would be: Increasing the amount of sunlight tomato plants in my experiment receive will cause increase in their size compared to identical plants which received same care but less sunlight.
EXPERIMENT:
This part of Scientific Method will test my hypothesis. An experiment is a tool I design to find out if my ideas about my topic are right or wrong. Two groups of plants which yield tomatoes are used in the experiment and which are identical in all ways (size, age, species, health, etc.). One of the groups becomes control group. This is the reference group to which other experimental groups are compared. All factors (variables) are kept constant between control; group and experimental group(s) except for one which is the independent variable.
In this example, tomato bearing plants of same height, age and species are selected for all groups and given same amount of water, airflow, nutrients, etc. Difference is that the control group is exposed to more sunlight whereas experimental group is exposed to less sunlight or no sunlight.
CONCLUSION:
This is a summary of experiment’s results and how those results match up to my hypothesis. After conducting my experiment I found that tomato plants which received more sunlight grew bigger than tomato plants grown in the shade or without sunlight. Therefore, I may conclude my investigation with the following:
It was clear that tomato plants form bigger tomatoes when they are exposed to bright sunlight. Original hypothesis was supported.
Note: A tomato plant (Lycopersicon esculentum) requires lots of sunshine in order to bear an abundant, full-size crop. A minimum of 6-8 hours sunlight exposure daily is recommended for tomatoes. If the plant receives less than that amount of sunlight, its fruits will be smaller than they would be with more sunlight.