Lecture 1: Intro to Plants, Intro to Science

Why do we love plants?Plants are:

People and Plants

We affect each other. – how?»We can’t live without them!»They exchange CO2 for O2 – mitigates

greenhouse effect.

Plants are sources

of foodof paperof fibersof medicines

Life without

chocolate sugar vanilla cinnamon pepper mahogany cherry wood ebony cotton linen roses orchids paper oxygen aesthetics

The word science is derived from a Latin verb meaning “to know”

Science developed from our curiosity about ourselves and the world around us

THE PROCESS OF SCIENCE

The Process of Science: "The Scientific Method"

Communicate results

Test the hypothesis

Develop one or more testable hypotheses

Ask Questions about what you see

Observe the Natural World

What’s a Scientific Question?

Scientific Questions are….

What’s a Hypothesis?

Tentative, but untested explanations

Make predictions that can be tested

How do you test a Hypothesis?

Via controlled experiments or pertinent observations

Kinds of variables:

Experiments of classical design

Individuals studied divided into two groups» Experimental group

» Control group

How does science really work in today’s world?

Exhaustive literature search + observations hypothesis

Prediction Write a proposal, design experiment Get money $$$$$ Revise proposal based on $$$ Experiment/collect data Statistics Write manuscript of results Publish or perish

Fact LAW

A fact leads to a law, eventually. What is a law?

Observation

What happens if all of our experiments fail to negate our hypothesis?

What if workers in other parts of the community, county, state, country, or world also fail to negate your hypothesis?

Theory Definition:

Observations

Hypothesis

LAW

Experimentation

Theory

Finished?

How long do theories last?

To Prove or Not to Prove Experimentation can either support or reject a

hypothesis. Experimentation can never prove a hypothesis

100% correct. – why?

After each each experiment we need to re-evaluate our results and observations to either make changes in our hypothesis or more likely design a new experiment.