This is the most important thing to learn when undertaking a research project. The
scientific method is a complete scientific process, a series of the following steps:
- Problem
- Hypothesis
- Control
- Experiment
- Results / Analysis
- Conclusions
These steps, when followed carefully, can yield a successful evaluation of scientific
data.I will proceed to detail the steps, in order.
Problem
The problem is a statement of a particular topic you will address and attempt to solve. This is the focus of your
entire experiment. For instance, a problem would be “I noticed that my steel nails always rust when they are left
on the ground in the rain.” Look at the problems around you and try to pick out something that interests you,
that you think you could solve.
Hypothesis
The hypothesis is a statement of how you intend to solve the noted problem. It has been described as an “educated
guess,” where you more or less give an estimate of how the problem will be remedied, or what you intend to find
after solving the problem. The point here is to take your best shot at how the problem will be fixed, and what
will happen to this problem after you fix it.
Control
You must have a set of data in which no experiment was performed on that set. This allows you to compare data with the
set in which the experiment was performed, for accurate results. In other words, let a set stand in which you do
no experiments on that set. For instance, if you are growing plants in different lights, you would
need to let one plant stand out in regular sunlight, as you would do for any normal plant. This is so you can
make an accurate comparison between the plant in sunlight (your control) and the
other plants in the different forms of light.
Experiment
There must be a set of data on which you perform analysis for a solution to the problem which you have
identified. Your experiment will be the process in which you will attempt to fix your problem, or somehow make it
better, through a certain process. In the same plant example, your experiment would be to put
the plants in different lights. Or if you were looking to solve the rusting problem with the nails, you might try
to coat the nails with something that will stop the nails from rusting.
Results / Analysis
From both the experiments and the control sets, you will receive data which you can compare to both sets to
analyze the differences. Your results may be good, as you might have stopped the nails
from rusting, or they may not be positive results, as maybe the plants in the different lights died.
In either situation, you achieved results, from which you can make any type of analysis. You analysis might be
“I noticed that the plants in the darker light had a harder time growing,” or “The nails reacted positively towards
coating B.”
Conclusions
After the analysis, you can state what your results were in comparison to your
hypothesis and how this did or did not solve the problem. The conclusion is a short summary of what happened and
how this affects your topic.
