7 Steps to the Scientific Method

the scientific method to explore observations and answer questions pertaining to nature. By asking a question, the scientist then figures out his or her observations by knowing the how, what, when, which, why or where. Background research involves planning after answering the question. At this step, the scientist does research at the library and online. Constructing the hypothesis helps with answering the question. Testing the hypothesis is when the scientist does the experiments. This tests whether their hypothesis is true or false. When the hypothesis is determined, the scientist then analyze the data and draw a conclusion. Finally, the scientist communicate their results with a final report that shows the thought process and analysis that took place to arrive at the conclusion presented.Though the steps to the scientific process are constant, it does not mean that the scientist has to follow each step to the end; in fact, at any point in the process, an unexpected result can cause the scientist to go back a step or two to see if another result is given if one of the variables is changed or altered in some way. This particular event where a scientist repeats steps is known as the iterative process. Normally, only one variable is considered the "wild card" and the rest remain the same to ensure the integrity of the test as a whole. By maintaining a close journal of the cause and effect of the test process, a scientist can then reach a very accurate answer to their hypothesis. More reference links: http://www.slideshare.net/mrmularella/scientific-method-95777 http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_scientific_method.shtml