A Biology student wants to know if Mountain Dew will make plants grow faster than water.
As a Chemistry student, you have agreed to assist in the planning of the experiment to
make sure the student designs a valid experiment.
1) What is the experimental question?
2) What is the variable in this experiment?
3) What are some controls that would be needed in this experiment?
Write a procedure for this experiment with at least 5 steps (How/when will you give
them water or Mountain Dew? When will you check? Where will the plants be? Etc.)
I shall be happy to critique what you write.
1) The experimental question in this case would be: "Does Mountain Dew promote faster plant growth compared to water?"
2) The variable in this experiment would be the type of liquid used to water the plants. In this case, the two variables are Mountain Dew and water. The plants will be divided into two groups, with one group being watered with Mountain Dew and the other group being watered with regular water.
3) To design a valid experiment, it is important to establish proper controls. Some controls that would be needed in this experiment include:
- Control Group: This group should consist of plants that are watered only with regular water, without any additives. This will be the baseline group to compare the effects of Mountain Dew on plant growth.
- Number of Plants: The same number of plants should be used in both the Mountain Dew group and the water-only group. This helps ensure that any differences observed in plant growth are due to the liquid being tested and not the variation in the number of plants.
- Type of Plants: The same type of plant should be used in both groups to eliminate any variations in plant growth due to differences in plant species.
- Environmental Conditions: To maintain consistency, it is important to keep all environmental conditions (such as light, temperature, humidity) the same for both groups. This minimizes the chance of these factors influencing plant growth differently in each group.
By incorporating these controls, the experiment will provide reliable results and allow for a valid comparison between the effects of Mountain Dew and water on plant growth.