Scientific Method Scenarios

Read the scenario carefully and answer the questions given below.
Q1. Bruno, the gorilla loves to eat banana that is firm and not mushy. So, his keeper, Mr. Barbalo
decided to do an investigation to find out the best method of preservation to store bananas for
Bruno. He hung a dozen of bananas in an airy, dry place. He kept a dozen of bananas in an airtight
container and finally he stored a dozen banana in the refrigerator.
At the end of 5 days of observation, Mr. Barbalo concluded that the bananas that were hung in a
dry, airy space were the freshest of all.
i) Write the question that Mr. Barbalo wanted to investigate?
ii) Frame the hypothesis as “if and then” statement.
iii) Write the procedure followed by Mr. Barbalo, to conduct the investigation.
iv) Draw a data table based on the conclusion reached by Mr. Barbalo.
v) Reflect – Did Mr. Barbalo do a fair and reliable test. Give reason for your answer.

Q2. Jenn is a nutritionist. She designed an experiment to determine the effect of full fat milk on
the
Mr. weight
Barbaloofbrought
children. She used
a dozen 10 children
of bananas. Heand splitthem
divided themin
in3two groups.
equal parts.Each group was given
the same conditions.
He kept first set in the refrigerator, second set covered in cling film on the kitchen counter and
The only difference
the third set hung inwas - Group
a dry, A was given 500ml of skimmed milk (milk without fat) and Group
airy space.
B was given 500ml of full fat milk along with their diet, each day for 4 weeks.
He observed the bananas for a period of 5 days and recorded the data in a data table.
At the end of a month, Jenn collected the following data:

Weight Week 1 Weight Week 2 Weight Week 3 Weight Week 4

Group A 35kg 35kg 36kg 36kg
(Skimmed milk)
Group B (Full fat 35kg 37kg 38kg 40kg
milk)
a. Frame the hypothesis for the above investigation.
b. Did Jenn conduct a fair test? Explain your answer.
c. Write the conclusion
Q3. A Medicine company wanted to test a new medicine to lessen the effects of common cold.
To test this medicine, scientists selected
50 volunteers of same age group, each of whom was suffering from the effects of cold.
25 of the patients were given drug pills and 25 patients were given sugar pills. None of the
participants knew who got which pill. All participants received one pill at 8:00am for five days of
the study.

i) What was the question that the Medicine company asked?

ii) Form the hypothesis.
iii) Identify the variables in the experiment.
iv) Conclusion

Q4. Sam wonders if a heavier cart will roll down a ramp faster than a lighter one.
Given materials- a toy cart, a ramp and a stopwatch. He starts by measuring the time taken for
cart without any weight to travel down the ramp.
Then he takes the first trial adding 100 gm weight to the cart and noting the timing. He then
adds an additional 100 gms to the cart for every successive attempt. He records 21 s, 19s and 22
secs as timings for the three trials.
He concluded that adding weight did not affect the time taken for the cart to roll down.
a) Identify the independent, dependent and any one of the controlled variables.
b) Create a data table for this investigation using the data given.
c) Reflect on the conclusion and explain how Ron might have arrived at that conclusion.
Q5. Ron decided to investigate if the brightness of light affected the colour of the leaves on a plant.

He took two healthy, potted plants (A and B) of the same variety and same number of leaves on
them. He placed them in the same room. He watered the plants with same amount of water.
Ron put Plant A under bright light and Plant B under dim light and recorded the change in the colour
of the leaves.
Ron found that Plant A had dark green-coloured leaves while Plant B had dull green-coloured leaves.

A. Write the testable question for the Ron’s investigation.

B. Construct the hypothesis for the above experiment as “if and then” statement.
C. Identify the variables in the experiment.
1. Independent variable
2. Dependent variable
3. Controlled variables (any two)
D. Ron conducted a fair test. Explain how?

Q6. Roshi wanted to investigate if the amount of food affects the weight of goldfish. She took two
bowls (A and B) of the same type and filled it with same amount of water. She put one goldfish of
the same variety in each bowl. She gave 5gm food to the goldfish in Bowl A and 10gm food to
goldfish in Bowl B. After a week, Roshi measured the weights of goldfish in Bowl A and Bowl B. She
found that goldfish in bowl A weighed 200gm and goldfish in Bowl B weighed 500gm.
a. Write the testable question for the investigation.
b. Frame the hypothesis.
c. Identify the variables:
i. Independent variable:
ii. Dependent variable:
iii. Controlled variables (any two):
d. What did Roshi conclude at the end of her experiment.
 ANSWERS:
Q1.
i) Write the question that Mr. Barbalo wanted to investigate?
Ans – What is the best method to store bananas?
ii) Frame the hypothesis as “if and then” statement.
Ans – If bananas are stored in a dry, airy space then they will remain fresh for long.
iii) Write the procedure followed by Mr. Barbalo, to conduct the investigation.

• Take 3 dozen bananas of the same variety, texture and firmness.

• Place a dozen of bananas in a dry, airy space. Another dozen in an airtight container and
the last dozen in the fridge.
• Observe the bananas for 5 days and record the data in a table.
• Analyze the data collected.
• Reach conclusion and share findings with others.
iv) Draw a data table based on the conclusion reached by Mr. Barbalo.

Dry and airy space Airtight container Fridge

Day 1 fresh fresh fresh
Day 2 fresh Black spots Black spots
Day 3 fresh Colour of skin changes More black spots
Day 4 fresh Banana becomes mushy Banana becomes soft
Day 5 fresh Turns fully black Turns fully black

v) Reflect – Did Mr. Barbalo do a fair and reliable test. Give reason for your answer.
Yes, because Mr. Barbalo changed only one factor – place where bananas were stored.
Yes, because he observed the bananas for a period of 5 days and recorded the data.
Q2.
a. Frame the hypothesis for the Jenn’s investigation.
Does full fat milk affect the weight in children?
b. Did Jenn conduct a fair test? Explain your answer.
Yes, because she changed only one factor – type of milk.
c. Write the conclusion.
Yes, the type of milk that children drink does affect their weight.
Q3.
i) What was the question that the Medicine company asked?
Does the new medicine reduce / lessen the effects of cold?
ii) Form the hypothesis.
If the new medicine is taken, then the effects of cold will reduce.
iii) Identify the variables in the experiment.
IV – Type of Pill
DV – Number of tissues used
CV – Same number of hours and type of activities, same diet, same place of stay during
experiment, same health conditions to begin with etc.
iv) Conclusion
Yes, the new pill did reduce / lessen the effects of common cold.

Q4.

a) Identify the independent, dependent and any one of the controlled variables.
IV- total weight in the cart
DV- time taken to roll down the slope
CV- same inclination of slope, same cart, same distance
b) Create a data table for this investigation using the data given.

S.no Weight ( grams ) Time (seconds)

1 Cart +100g 21
2 Cart+200g 19
3 Cart+300g 22
c) Reflect on the conclusion and explain how Ron might have arrived at that conclusion.
Adding weight did not affect the time taken for the cart to roll down
Ron concluded this because there was no fixed pattern / trend in the timings collected.
For cart + 100gm the timing was 21 seconds but for cart + 200gm the timing reduced to 19
seconds and again for cart + 300gm the timing increased to 22 seconds. The data did not
show a pattern thus it was clear that the weight in the cart did not affect the time required to
by the cart to roll down the slope.
Q5.
A. Write the testable question for the Ron’s investigation.

Does the brightness of light affect the colour of the leaves on a plant?

B. Construct the hypothesis for the above experiment.

If plants are kept in bright light, then their leaves will be dark green in colour.
C. Identify the variables in the experiment.
1. Independent variable – Brightness of light
2. Dependent variable - the colour of the leaves
3. Controlled variables (any two) – same variety of plants, same area, same type of soil, same
amount of water etc.
D. Ron conducted a fair test. Explain how?
Yes, because he changed only one factor that is the brightness of light.

Q6.
a. Write the testable question for the investigation.
Does the amount of food affect the weight of goldfish?
b. Frame the hypothesis.
If the goldfish are given more amount of food, then their weight will increase.
c. Identify the variables:
i. Independent variable: Amount of food
ii. Dependent variable: Weight of goldfish
iii. Controlled variables (any two): same variety of fish, same size of bowl and amount of
water, same brand of food, same number of times food is given etc.
d. What did Roshi conclude at the end of her experiment.
Yes, goldfish that are fed more food, gain more weight.