Portfolio Activity
An illustration shows a simple electromagnet. The components are as follows: an iron nail, a coiled wire around the nail, and the ends of the wire attached to a battery.
This is a simple electromagnet.
Source: blueringmedia/123RF
Evaluate the experimental design of this experiment:
A group of students want to see if they can make an electromagnet that shows evidence of an electrical/magnetic field. They find a picture in a science book of how to make an electromagnet. First, they gather a battery, some copper wire, and a nail. They wrap the wire around the nail and attach the ends of the wire to the battery. They find a bunch of stuff in a desk: paperclips, erasers, stick pins, and so on. They put the electromagnet near each object and see what happens. Some objects move, and some don’t.
How will you evaluate the experimental design? What should you do first?
Remember that you are trying to decide whether the experiment provides evidence of magnetic/electrical fields. Would you answer: “Yes, the experiment would provide evidence of magnetic/electrical fields? Or would you answer: “No, the experiment would not provide evidence of magnetic/electrical fields.”
Next, you are looking for any area(s) where the plan could be modified to better meet its goal. Evaluate all the areas of the experimental design:
Hypothesis: What is the hypothesis of the experiment? Decide if the experiment is able to test the hypothesis. If so, how?
Materials: What are the materials listed in the experiment? Could the description of materials needed be improved? How?
Methods: What are the methods listed in the experiment? Could the directions be improved? How?
Write a thorough description of your planned investigation. Then write an evaluation of this plan. How would you summarize it? What do you think of this plan? What questions would you ask about it to focus it very specifically? Do you think that this investigation would prove to the person that magnetic fields exist? Why or why not?
To evaluate the experimental design, the first step would be to determine if the experiment provides evidence of magnetic/electrical fields. Based on the information provided, the experiment does provide evidence of magnetic/electrical fields as the students observe some objects moving when the electromagnet is brought near them.
Hypothesis: The hypothesis of the experiment could be that the objects will be attracted to the electromagnet when it is near them. The experiment does test this hypothesis, as the students observe some objects moving and some not moving when the electromagnet is brought near them.
Materials: The materials listed in the experiment include a battery, copper wire, and a nail. The description of materials needed could be improved by specifying the type and size of the battery, the length and thickness of the copper wire, and the type of nail required.
Methods: The methods listed in the experiment include wrapping the wire around the nail and attaching the ends of the wire to the battery. The directions could be improved by providing specific guidelines for the number of coils to wrap around the nail and how to secure the wire to the nail and battery. Additionally, the experiment could benefit from a control group where the electromagnet is not used, to compare the movement of objects in the presence and absence of the magnetic field.
Based on the information provided, the plan is a good starting point to investigate the existence of magnetic fields. It provides a clear procedure for constructing an electromagnet and observing its effects on nearby objects. However, there are areas where the plan can be modified to better meet its goal. Specifying the materials in more detail and providing clearer directions for the experiment would improve the design.
In summary, I think the plan shows potential but could be further refined. Some questions to focus the investigation more specifically could include: How does the number of coil turns on the wire affect the strength of the magnetic field? Does the distance between the electromagnet and the objects affect the strength of the magnetic field? By addressing these questions and modifying the plan accordingly, the investigation has the potential to provide a better understanding of magnetic fields. While the experiment does provide evidence of magnetic/electric fields, it may not be a conclusive proof without further experimentation and refinement.
make it shorter
The experimental design involves creating an electromagnet using a nail, wire, and battery. The goal is to observe the effects of the magnetic field on nearby objects. The hypothesis is that the objects will be attracted to the electromagnet. The materials needed could be specified more clearly, and the directions for the experiment could be improved by providing guidelines for coil turns and securing the wire. While the experiment provides some evidence of magnetic fields, further modifications and investigation are necessary to strengthen the results and draw conclusive proof.
still have all the like categories but make them shorter
Evaluation:
- Hypothesis: The experiment aims to test whether objects will be attracted to the electromagnet. This hypothesis is tested by observing the movement of objects near the electromagnet.
- Materials: The experiment requires a battery, copper wire, and a nail. The description of materials needed could be more specific and include details such as battery type and wire dimensions.
- Methods: The experiment involves wrapping the wire around the nail and connecting the wire ends to the battery. The directions for coil turns and securing the wire could be clearer. It may also benefit from including a control group without the electromagnet.
Overall, the plan has potential but could be improved by specifying materials and providing clearer instructions. While the experiment provides some evidence of magnetic fields, further refinement and experimentation are needed for more conclusive results.