Friday, July 31, 2015

Imagine that you are a future scientist, living in space today. Identify a testable question for an investigation in space, and design a citizen...

This is a question about the scientific method, the list of steps scientists use to find answers to questions they have.  In this example, we are in space, which would tend to suggest something based on weightlessness.  Eventually, the "scientists" will return to earth, where they will experience earth's gravitational pull on their bodies. 


I think a great scientific investigation would be the effects weightlessness has on muscle maintenance in the human body.  On earth, every motion the human body goes through fights against the pull of the earth.  This is what gives objects their weight.  When people go to space, objects don't weigh much at all.  So they need little in terms of muscular power to pick something up.  Over time, muscles become atrophied, which means they waste away.  It's the old "If you don't use it, you lose it" quotation.


For the question, I would put it like this:  "What are the effects on muscle maintenance in zero gravity environments (space)?"


The next step in the scientific method requires a hypothesis, your best educated guess as to what you think the outcome will be.  Something like "The less gravity in the environment, the more muscle loss a scientist will experience in his/her body."


Now we need an experiment to test the hypothesis.  At the very least, the scientist should take a tape measure and measure specific muscles on his/her body.  Data should be taken over an extensive period of time, such as four to six weeks.  The data could be arranged in graphs, which would provide excellent graphical presentation to consider.  Measurements should be made at the very onset of the experiment, which would represent muscle measurements while on earth with gravity.


An analysis of the data should be considered.  Were the scientists right?  Were they wrong?  Why?


The end of the scientific method  offers a conclusion.  The scientists were right about their idea, or they were wrong.  Being wrong can offer as much educational experience as being right.  What possible explanation could be offered for why the results did not turn out as expected?

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