QUEZON CITY HIGH SCHOOL

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING (STE) PROGRAM

NAME: _________________________________________________________ GRADE AND SECTION: ________________________

ACTIVITY 2: Observations vs Inference

Objectives: 1. Differentiate an observation from an inference.

2. Draw an organism based from its observed characteristics.
Materials: Record of exploration written by an astronaut.

Procedure: Read the record of exploration by an astronaut. Determine which are observations and which are inferences.
Write O if it is an OBSERVATION, and I if it is an INFERENCE.
OBSERVATION – the act of recognizing or noting a fact or occurrence.
INFERENCE – a conclusion or opinion that is formed because of known facts or evidence.

ASTRONAUT’S ADVENTURE TO MARS

An intergalactic spaceship was sent to Mars. The astronaut

successfully land on the said planet and made an deep exploration around it.
In his exploration, the astronaut encountered a strange organism. He
observed and interacted with the said organism. He carefully recorded all his
experiences in making contact with the organism.
___________1. The organism made faces showing that it did not like us.
___________2. The organism’s skin is brown and rough.
___________3. The organism is living with its own kind.
___________4. The organism made unpleasant sound.
___________5. The organism has one big eye at the middle of its face.
___________6. The planet must be cold because the organism is trembling.
___________7. The organism can turn its head 360 degrees.
___________8. The organism moves quickly, so it must be young.
___________9. The organism may be capable of picking up object with its
big mouth and teeth.
___________10. The organism legs are shorter than its arm.
___________11. The organism’s feet are webbed.
___________12. The organism must be carnivorous because of its large fangs.
___________13. The organism ran away from us because it was
frightened.
___________14. The organism have two large wings.
___________15. Flying high can be an organism’s skill because of its large wings.

Draw the organism based on the astronaut’s notes

Place your drawing inside the box on the right.

OBSERVATION and INFERENCE in the LABORATORY:

SITUATION NO. 1 – Observation: I am in the lab seeing if adding sugar to water affects how long it takes the water to boil. In the first test I
boil 100 mL of water only in a beaker over a Bunsen burner and observe it takes 5:15 mins to boil. Next I add 2 grams of sugar to 100 mL of
water and stir to dissolve, then boil making sure everything is the same. This time it takes 7:05 mins to boil the sugar-water mix. Next I add 4
grams of sugar to 100 mL of water. This time it takes 10:35 mins to boil the sugar-water mix.

What could we infer about the effect sugar has on the boiling time of water? _________________________________________________________________________
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SITUATION NO. 2 - Observation: I want to know what effect salt has on the growth of grass. So I measure out 3 equal sized squares of grass
out the back of the Green Building. The first square of lawn I water with 5 litres of pure water from a watering can every day. The second
square of lawn I water with 5 litres of pure water with 2 grams of salt mixed in, every day. The third square of lawn I water with 5 litres of
pure water with 4 grams of salt mixed in, every day. I measure the height of the grass after 14 days and note the following observations. The
first square is green and 15 cm high. The second square is greeny-yellow and 6 cm high. The third square is yellowy-brown and looks dead
and is only 2cm high.

What could we infer about the affect salt has on the growth of grass? __________________________________________________________________________________
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