Chapter Outline

Analyzing and Evaluating

(See page 67)

Analyzing and evaluating: breaking scientific data down into its basic parts to better understand how it works; judging its value and logic

Distinguishing Facts from Hypotheses and Opinions

(See pages 67–70)

scientific facts—conclusions based on evidence upon which scientists agree
hypotheses—reasonable explanations of evidence or predictions based on evidence
opinions—personal beliefs that may or may not be based on evidence but are based on a person's own value system

Recognizing Unstated Assumptions

(See pages 71 and 72)

An unstated assumption is something that is taken for granted as being true.
An unstated assumption is often based on opinion, not on scientific fact.

Identifying Cause and Effect

(See pages 73–76)

A cause is a condition or event that makes another event occur as a result.
An effect is the result that occurs because of a cause.
In a cause-and-effect relationship, the cause always occurs before the effect.

Drawing Conclusions

(See pages 77–80)

To draw a conclusion is to express an idea that is logically connected to given information.

Judging the Value of Information

(See pages 81–83)

Before making a decision or drawing a conclusion, you must judge the value of all available information.
Some information may be relevant information—any facts that directly affect a decision or a conclusion.
Some information may be irrelevant information—any facts that do not affect a decision.

Judging the Adequacy of Information

(See pages 84 and 85)

A skill related to judging the value of information is judging the adequacy of information.
Information is adequate when there are enough details to support a conclusion.
Information is inadequate when there are not enough details to support a conclusion.

Recognizing the Influence of Values

(See pages 86 and 87)

A value is a principle or quality that is important to people.
Values result from a person's own decision making.
The goal of scientists is to be guided by values but to not let personal values overly influence the direction of scientific research or the interpretation of scientific discovery.
Personal values and religious teachings often change as new information becomes available as a result of scientific discovery.

Using the Scientific Method

(See pages 88–92)

Scientists have developed a special research method for collecting, organizing, and evaluating evidence. This method is known as the scientific method and consists of the following steps:

Step 1: Ask questions to clearly identify a problem
Step 2: Collect information
Step 3: Form a hypothesis
Step 4: Test the hypothesis by designing an experiment
Step 5: Analyze results and draw conclusions

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