Principles of Scientific Research Design

  • Principles of Scientific Research Design

    • Importance of validation through replication.

  • Key Principles

    • Randomization:

    • Process of randomly assigning treatments to minimize bias.

    • Purpose: Remove extraneous variation not controllable by researchers.

    • Example: Assign numbers to subjects, draw randomly.

    • Replication:

    • Repeating experiments to improve accuracy.

    • Increases precision and decreases experimental error.

    • Each treatment needs multiple runs for reliability.

    • Local Control:

    • Balancing and grouping experimental units.

    • Purpose: Increase design efficiency, reduce error by creating homogenous groups.

  • Application in STEM Research:

    • Randomization assigned within blocks to test treatment efficiency.
    • Each patient as a replicate in a randomized control.
    • Local control helps organize data based on environmental conditions.

  • Summary of Key Points:

    • Randomization: Randomly assigns samples to treatments.
    • Replication: Conduct at least three trials for reliability.
    • Local Control: Create blocks for homogeneous grouping to minimize errors.