Week 1 Homework – Assigned: 9/4 - Due: 9/7

“The loftiest towers rise from the ground.” ~ Chinese Proverb

** Please Note: This will be your regular, weekly assignment that will be handed out the first day of the school

week and due the last day of the school week. Most weeks this will be Monday and Friday but holidays (like

Labor Day this week) will change the assignment timing slightly. Please do this work as described and don’t be

afraid to ask questions concerning the work. The vocabulary is for you to do and practice – there will be a

matching test on Friday covering these terms. The attached work will be emailed in subsequent weeks and

also can be found on my webpage. It will be your responsibility to get and do the homework on your time.

Vocabulary: Using the internet/dictionary match the vocabulary term on the left to the definition on the

right. On a separate piece of paper please rewrite the term matched with the definition. Add an original

sentence correctly using the term.

VOCABULARY TERM

DEFINITION

empirical Based on actual measurements, observations, or experience rather than on theory.

claim The skill of selecting and using information in new situations or problems.

apply A proposition based on evidence and logical argument.

critique To make judgments or appraisals based on collected data.

confidence The skill of distinguishing accurately between and among pieces of evidence.

evidence To arrive at a decision or logical conclusion by reasoning from evidence.

evaluate A critical review of a specific topic, process or investigation.

infer Assurance that the conclusions of an investigation are reliable and valid.

analyze To separate into separate parts or basic principles to determine the nature of the whole.

discriminate Observations, measurements, or data collected through established and recognized scientific processes.

Content Introduction: Please complete the following pages. Read and follow all directions

·.f1' ,T .. ' I,."',., lrfti < _1;[

Lesson 1.1Chapter 1 Science as Inquiry

Keysto Unlocking the World

ocity: speed,"or,thedistance trav~Jed in aset amount of time

statistics: math thatdeals with thecollection,organization, and

~,analysis of numencal

The scientificmethod:1.Ask a question.2. Form a hypothesis.3. Design and' conduct

an experitn;~i::raw ~0U'oi::;;lbnsased orl't

results.'·5. Share the, det;!rls

and results of theexperiment withother scientists.

Spectrum ScienceGrade 7

6

What skills do you need to be a good scientist?

Science begins with curiosity. Taking an interest in the world around youand asking questions about how and why things happen is just the first step,though. Scientists depend on a wide range of skills and tools to help theminvestigate and discover the answers.

As a scientist, you'll need to know how to use certain tools. Whether it'sa scale, a microscope, a laser, or a Bunsen burner, you need to be familiarwith each tool's function and how it's used safely. Laboratories can be placesfor discovery, but they can also be places of danger. Being careful, precise,and safe are a scientist's top priorities in the lab.

The specific tools scientists use each day depend on which scientificdiscipline they're involved in and the kind of research they're doing.However, certain skills are used nearly every day in every kind of science.

One of the most basic skills is careful observation. Observation is the keyto all good scientific research. Whether you're conducting experiments,studying animals in the wild, or digging through the ground in search ofancient bones, you need to observe everything closely and take detailednotes. An event that seems minor or unimportant when it happens may turnout to be the reason an experiment fails or succeeds. If you don't bother torecord the event-or even notice it-then your research will be incompleteand your results will be unreliable.

Another important skill used by all scientists is math. Physicists andchemists, for example, need to be familiar with a wide variety ofmathematical formulas. Sometimes, they're easy-velocity is distancedivided by time, or v = d/t. Sometimes, they're more complex-the surfacearea of a sphere is four times pi times the radius squared, or s = 411'r2.

Other scientists, like biologists and -ecologists, commonly use statistics tostudy and compare the data theyrecorded while making observations.

A scientist must be skilled inlanguage and communication, as well.Remember, science is an ongoingprocess that depends on sharingresearch and results. Each newdiscovery builds on the discoveriesmade by scientists in the past and addsto the collective body of scientificknowledge. If you can't communicatewell, how will you be able to explainto other scientists the amazingdiscoveries you've made?

Chapter 1 Lesson 1

NAME _

Circle the letter of the best answer to the question below.

1. Certain skills are important to every scientist. Which of the following is not one of them?

a. typing on a keyboard

h. performing mathematical calculations

c. using a microscope

d. communicating

Write your answers on the lines below.

2. Why is careful observation such an important part of being a scientist?

3. Imagine that you develop a hypothesis and design an experiment, but your experiment shows thatyour hypothesis is incorrect. Should you still publish the results of your experiment? Why orwhy not?

4. The word interdisciplinary means "involving more than one field of knowledge or study." Explainwhy a good scientist needs to have interdisciplinary skills.

What's Next?The latest and most up-to-date scientific research isn't usually found in books. Scientific magazines,called journals, are often the first place scientists publish their research and results. This way, otherscientists around the world can review the methods that were used and draw conclusions about howreliable the results are. Though you probably will not find scientific journals at your local bookstore, youwill find magazines that describe some of the latest scientific discoveries and news.

spectrum ScienceGrade 7

Chapter 1 Lesson 1

7

Lesson 1.2 Taking a Good Look at the Worldobservation: the actof gathering facts ormaking notes aboutevents

experimentation: theact of conductingexperiments

scientific method: atechnique used forscientificinvestigation

hypothesis: a simplestatement that can betested to see if it's trueor not

variables: parts of anexperiment that canchange and cause achange in the results

Here's a quick reviewof the steps in thescientific method:

• Ask a questionabout the world.

• Form a hypothesisthat answers thequestion.

• Design anexperiment ormake observationsto prove ordisprove thehypothesis.

• If the hypothesisis wrong, form anew hypothesisand design newtests.

• If the hypothesisis correct, test itagain to be sureyou get the sameresults.

• Share the resultswith otherscientists so theycan test thehypothesis aswell.

Why are experiments such an important scientific tool?

Scientists are like detectives trying to solve the mysteries of the universe.They use their skills to investigate what, when, where, why, and how thingshappen. Probably the two most important tools a scientist has at his or herdisposal are observation and experimentation. They're both parts of thescientific method, but they definitely aren't the same thing.

Science always begins with observation. Good scientists are curious, sotheir observations lead to questions. The scientific method begins when aquestion has been asked. Then, a hypothesis can be formed. A hypothesis isonly useful-and scientific-if it can be tested.

The best way to test a hypothesis is to design an experiment.Experiments are one of science's greatest inventions because they allow thescientist to be in control. Each experiment is carefully designed to answerjust one question-is the hypothesis true or false? In nature, there are oftentoo many variables to know for sure why something happened. In anexperiment, the scientist can limit the number of variables. An experimentallows a scientist to see why he or she got one result instead of another.

As important as experiments are to science, they aren't always practical.For example, how does an astronomer test a star that's thousands of light-years from Earth? Observation, however, is almost always possible.Observational science uses scientific facts that are already known to answerquestions about what the scientist sees.

An astronomer can't travel across space, but with observation, he or shecan still discover a lot about the stars. For example, experiments on Earthhave shown that when elements are burned, each one emits a very specificwavelength of color. By observing the colors of stars, astronomers can tellwhich chemical elements the star contains-without ever leaving our planet.

Certain types of science useobservation much more thanexperimentation. Archeology,paleontology, and astronomy relyheavily on observing the world, andthen drawing conclusions based onthe evidence.

Observation is always a part ofexperimenting. How else would youknow what happened in anexperiment if you didn't observe theresults? But observational science isthe method you use whenexperimenting can't be done.

Spectrum ScienceGrade 6

8

Chapter 1 Lesson 2

I

NAME _

Circle the letter of the best answer to each question below.

1. Observing and experimenting are both

a. parts of the scientific method.

b. ways of investigating the world.

c. examples of hypotheses.

d. Both a and b

2. A hypothesis is

a. a scientific question that can be answered easily.

b. a statement that can be proven true or false.

c. a type of experiment used in the scientific process.

d. the end result of an experiment.

Write your answers on the lines below.

Maddie is testing different kinds of soil to see which one is the best for growing plants. She fills one cupwith a mixture of soil and sand, a second cup with soil and gravel, and a third cup with soil and shreddedbark. Then, she plants radish seeds in all three cups.

3. Write a possible hypothesis for Maddie's experiment.

4. What is the variable in this experiment?

5. How will observation be a part of Maddie's experiment?

Read the examples of scientific activities listed below. Write 0 on the line if the scientist is usingobservation. Write E on the line if the scientist is conducting an experiment.

6. ____ A paleontologist decides that a dinosaur is a meat-eater because it has sharp teeth.

7. ____ A physicist tests three types of gases to see which one is densest.

8. ____ A chemist mixes water and sodium to prove that an explosion will occur.

9. ____ An archaeologist digs up an arrowhead and concludes that the ancient people who used itwere hunters.

Spectrum ScienceGrade 6

Chapter 1 Lesson 2

9

Lesson 1.7composition: theparts something ismade of, and how 'theparts are put together

The Riseand Fall of Planet X

calculations: resultsor answers found bysolving mathematicalproblems

Astronomers at theLowell Observatorychose to name thenew planet Pluto,which was suggestedby an ll-year-old girlfrom England.Hundreds of differentnames had been sentto them forconsideration, butPluto's first twoLetter;' worked as atribute to the manthey wanted tohonor-PercivalLowell,

After more than 70years as our solarsystem's ninth planet,Pluto's status wasrecently changed tothat of dwarf planetPluto is consideredone of the largestobjects in an areacalled the Kuiper Belt.

Has the mysterious Planet X been found?

By the beginning of the 1800s, astronomers had discovered seven of oursolar system's planets. Each planet's mass, composition, and orbit werestudied carefully. Astronomers noticed that Uranus's orbit was slightlydifferent than their calculations predicted it should be. Their explanationwas that gravity from an undiscovered planet was affecting it. Newcalculations were made to predict where this unknown planet might be.

On September 23, 1846, Neptune was discovered where the astronomershad said it would be. They realized that Neptune's orbit wasn't following thepredicted path, either. Their explanation was yet another planet.

Astronomer Percival Lowell named this undiscovered planet Planet X.Lowell had used his fortune to build the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff,Arizona. He spent nearly ten years calculating where to find the planet andobserving the skies. When he died in 1916, Planet X still hadn't been found.The search stopped for more than a decade.

During the 1920s, Lowell's reputation began to suffer. One of his mostfamous theories had been that life existed on Mars. Lowell thought he hadseen canals on the planet's surface and argued that they must have been builtby intelligent creatures. By the 1920s, it was clear that no life existed onMars, and that Lowell's "canals" were natural parts of the Martian landscape.

The new owners of the observatory wanted to restore some dignity toLowell's name, so in 1928, they resumed searching for Planet X. A youngastronomer from Kansas named Clyde Tombaugh was hired for the task.

Tombaugh used Lowell's calculations, but he also compared photos ofthe night sky taken one night with photos taken several nights later. Helooked carefully for any points of light that had moved. Tombaugh knew thatstars would be in the same position night after night, but a planet would havemoved along in its orbit. On February 18, 1930, Tombaugh spotted Pluto.

Tiny Pluto wasn't nearly asmassive as Lowell's Planet X wassupposed to be. Was there still a giantPlanet X orbiting even farther out inspace? For decades this remained amystery.

In 1989, the voyager 2 spacecraftflew near Neptune and sent backprecise measurements of the planet'smass. Earlier calculations had beenwrong. Neptune's orbit made perfectsense based on the new informationand was not affected by the mysteriousPlanet X.

Chapter 1 Lesson 7Spectrum ScienceGrade 6

18

•

NAME _

Circle the letter of the best answer to each question below.

1. Percival Lowell

a. discovered Pluto.

b. discovered Neptune.

c. made predictions about where to find Planet X.

d. Both a and c

2. Lowell's reputation suffered because

a. he believed intelligent creatures lived on Mars.

b. he predicted a giant Planet X existed in the solar system.

c. Pluto wasn't found during his lifetime.

d. Clyde Tombaugh took over his job at the observatory.

Write your answers on the lines below.

3. After Uranus was discovered, why did astronomers believe they should begin looking foranother planet?

4. In order to solve the-mystery of Planet X, why were observing and collecting evidence used insteadof experimenting?

5. How did advances in scientific technology help solve the mystery of Planet X?

Unifying Concepts and ProcessesWhen you think of scientific tools, you might imagine test tubes, rulers, and microscopes. A tool can beanything that helps get a job done, though. For example, math and photography were tools used todiscover Pluto. Explain how they were used.

Spectrum ScienceGrade 6

Chapter 1 Lesson 7

19