Introduction to Reporting And

Graphing Scientific Data

1) What are variables?

Anything that can change or vary in a science experiment.

2) Studies, grades3) Times, training4) mass, damage

5) INDEPENDENT Variables (IV)

6) DEPENDENT Variables (DV)#2 Studies (IV),

grades(DV)#3 Times(DV), training(IV)#4 mass(IV), damage(DV)

7) do NOT have a relationship.

8) Controlled

9) #2 attitude, environment, distraction

#3 weather, shoes, track#4 how fast, surface area,

seatbelt

10) The experimental control is

a standard of comparison. It used in scientific

experiments to prevent factors other than those being studied from affecting the outcome.

Experiment 1: Graphing

1. Y-axis2. Y-axis3. Dependent variable (DV)4. Dependent variable (DV)5. Independent variable (IV)6. Independent variable (IV)7. X-axis 8. X-axis

9) Scientific data (points)

10) Line of best fit (best-fit-line)11) Display the relationship

between the independent and dependent variable.

Or show the trend in the data

Data Tables

a) IVb)DVComplete example 1

Graphing Data page 5

1. ½; 1 line = spread of values number of lines

2. NOT; DO3. 5th

4. Zero, zero5. Example #1 graph the following

data on the graph on page 6/5.

DV

IV

LINE of BEST FIT (LOBF)1. Do NOT connect the dots!2. Place your CPROS on the first & the last

data points.3. Determine if the LOBF is straight or curved.4. There should be the same number of data

points above or below the line.5. Some points might be on the line but rarely

will all of the points be on a LOBF.6. Lets practice complete page 7

Calculating Slope pg 8

1. What is slope?1) Position in miles2) Time in hours3) Constant speed

2. Slope =rise/run1) 10/5 = 2 2) yes, because the 5/2.5 =2

3. Calculating slope using the equation.

1. Slope = y2 - y1 / x2 - x1 so 50-20 / 2-0 = 30/2 = 15

2. y-intercept = 203. y = 15x + 204. y = $15(3 hrs) + $20 = $655. YES, the students can earn $620

( 5hrs x 8 days =40 hrs)

4. Practice calculating the slope

1. 60- 0 / 6-0 = 102. y-intercept = 03. y= 10x

Interpreting Graphs pg12

What is the title?1. Car Washing Moolah2. IV – hours of washing

& DV amount of moneyWhat are the steps for making

your own graphs?

5) Dollars6) Data not spread out

7) YES8) Direct relationship9) $75 x 5 hr X 3 days =1125

Steps for a Line of Best Fit graph (LOBF). Page 5

1. Identify your IV & DV.2. Determine range for data.3. Scale each axis according to the

range.4. Label each axis with name and unit.5. Plot data points. 6. Draw LOBF for the data.7. Title your graph

Interpreting a Bar Graph

1) Teen Workers2) Cities, boys & girls employed3) % vary from city to city4) % of boys to girls employeed

are different5) ANY6) ANY

Interpreting a Pie Graph

1) Teenagers Job2) Types & % of jobs held by teens.3) No4) Retail hires more teens,

service/other hires the least, etc.5) Answers will vary6) Answers will vary

Lab Report Format

1) Purpose/ProblemWhy are we doing the lab? What questions are you trying to answer?

This includes an independent and a dependent variable

 Hypothesis What do you expect the results to be?

This should relate directly to the problem

This includes an independent and a dependent variable

Materials List of all the Materials you will use during the lab Background Information Usually provided by the teacher

Information that is necessary to make an educated guess Procedure Steps should be listed and numbered

Steps should be clearly written, detailed, and brief

It must indicate HOW data will be taken

This should include a control group & an experimental group

Be sure this is controlled This should answer the question posed in the purpose/problem.

Data Must be in the form of a table or a sketch (determined by the procedure)

Be sure to label sketches and/or use units

Data should match the data collection outlined in the procedure Analysis A graph may be needed

What type of graph?Use a line graph if the data is not continuous (example the height of individual trees)Use a bar graph is the data is related(growth of a single tree over a period of time) Conclusion A good conclusion answers 3 questions: 

What did you do in the lab?

Restate the purpose/problem

A brief description of how you tested it

What you used to gather data

What does your data say?Look at your data table or sketch and turn it into a sentence or two. Be sure to include both the control & experimental groups.

What did you learn?