Research methods midterm

Science

• knowing about the natural world

  • uses inquiry to understand phenomena

  • driven by human desire to understand

  • aims to provide testable explanations about natural phenomena

Process of science

• careful observations and clear questions

• rigorous and repeatable testing

  • explanations obey the physical laws of nature

  • based on logic and reason

  • must be quantifiable

• considers all evidence when providing an explanation

[T/F] Can science “prove” anything?

False; only reject or fail to reject

Good scientific questions:

• has real answers

• testable

• has a falsifiable hypothesis

• interesting

• not too broad/too narrow

Proximate question

“how” question

Ultimate question

“why” question

Scientific method steps

1. observation

2. question

3. hypothesis

4. predictions

5. experiment

6. collect data/data analysis

7. draw conclusions

iterative

repetitive process

[T/F] is science predetermined?

False; initial question may lead to new paths

Primary literature

original/novel research

peer reviewed; in scientific journals

Secondary literature

syntheses/summaries of original data

peer reviewed/peer edited

where do you start when reading a journal article?

Start with title, authors, Journal name, year published. then, read the abstract.

Should you cite an article after only the abstract?

NO

What do you do after you read the abstract?

identify the main objectives of the study

What do you do after you identify the main objectives of a study?

Jump to the conclusion and determine the main findings

What do you do after you determine the main findings of a study?

turn the paper into an outline

What do you do after you turn the paper into an outline?

read; take notes in your own terms; highlight; analyze figures/tables

what do you do after you read a paper completely + take notes?

determine if the methods are important/they did enough

What do you do after you validate the importance of a paper?

ensure you understand what you read; reread multiple times if needed

Should there be citations in the abstract?

NO

Abstract

• section of paper geared to generate understanding for those outside your field

• no confusing terminology, unless necessary + explained

Introduction/background

• background of the project w/sources

• identifies goals of the project

• states why YOU think the project is significant

Objectives

• end that can reasonably be achieved

• bigger in scale than a “goal”

  • may have several individual goals

• has a time frame

Proposal

• Describes project design

• identify questions and hypotheses

• provides methodology

Timeline

• critical dates of a proposed project

• prep phase

  • development of methods

  • acquisition of materials

• experiment phase

  • how long trials will take

  • what could go wrong

budget

• itemization of costs may be necessary

• costs may need to be justified to receive funding

lit cited

• cite all sources

• preferably primary lit

• keep citations relevant

Ethics

• conduct defining acceptable/unacceptable behavior

  • avoid conflict of interest

  • don’t falsify data

  • give credit where credit is due

flow of ideas

the transitions between ideas in a paper

idea discussed in each section

compare how sections start/end; compare their content

best way to improve writing?

read more

3 biggest problems in writing

1. awkward sentences

2. wordiness

3. excessive passive voice

Goals of an introduction

• put a study in broad context

• set up objectives and goals

• demonstrate relevance of work

• predict patterns

  • proposal

• know key results

  • final paper

• explain why decisions were made

• orients reader

• prepares reader for results

Methods and materials

• outlines steps

• justifies procedure

• repeatable

• credible basis

• measurable

  • metric only

• proof of consent

• taxonomic info

• chemicals used

examples of taxonomic info?

• species

• weight

• sex

• age

examples of chemical info?

• quantities

• source

• composition

• growth media

examples of equipment specification

• manufacturer

• model

• sampling devices

• dimensions/schematics

  • if handmade

descriptive study

describes a sample or population

• who, what, when, where, how

correlational study

tests the relationship between multiple variables

• does not test for causes

experimental study

tests the relationship between multiple related variables

• conditions will be manipulated to try and find a result; result not known in advance

qualitative

• nominal scale

• not expressed as numbers

  • names, categories

quantitative

• ordinal, interval, ratio scale

• expressed as numbers

Ordinal data

natural, ordered categories

Interval data

equal distance between values

ratio data

specify how much of something

discrete data

only having particular value

• color, sex

continuous data

has any value over a continuous range

• height, weight, length

median

middle value in a data set

mode

most common number in a data set

mean

average;

• add up all values

• divide it by the amount of values

What goes on the X-axis of a graph?

independent variable

What goes on the Y-axis of a graph?

dependent variable

independent variable

variable that is changed/causes change

• ex. amount of water a plant gets

dependent variable

variable affected by change

• change is brought on by independent variable

• ex. size of a plant

  • independent variable: amount of water received

What are the two Most important goals of a paper/proposal’s intro?

• explain what you are doing

• explain why you are doing it

What is an RFP?

a proposal to find the best person to fund your research