Was Aristotle Right or Wrong free essay sample

Was Aristotle Right or Wrong? Jennifer L. Chadwick Grand Canyon University Biology Concepts Lab June 1, 2011 Resource 1: Was Aristotle Right or Wrong? Directions The exercise below presents a scenario that begins with an observation made by Aristotle (4th century BC). The theory of Spontaneous Generation, which suggests that life originated from inanimate matter, was popular in the ancient world. Your assignment is to apply the scientific method beginning with Aristotle’s observation by answering the questions in this document.All your responses to this assignment should be based on the information given on â€Å"Was Aristotle Right or Wrong? † Scenario Imagine that you live in the 4th century BC. You and Aristotle (your friend and companion of many years) are talking about the many wonders of the universe when your friend makes the following observation: â€Å"So with animals, some spring from parent animals according to their kind, whilst others grow spontaneously and not from kindred stock; and of these instances of spontaneous generation some come from putrefying earth or vegetable matter, as is the case with a number of insects†¦. We will write a custom essay sample on Was Aristotle Right or Wrong? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page (Wilkins, 2004, para. 12) Well, you think to yourself, Aristotle is a really good friend and an equally great guy, but you aren’t so sure about this Spontaneous generation thing. Just because he observed insects arising from spoiled vegetables doesn’t mean that these bugs just appeared out of the blue. Insects dont just spontaneously arise from spoiled vegetables or, do they? You decide to do a little research of your own by following the steps of the Scientific Method. I. Observation/QuestionIf vegetables are covered then no insects will hatch. III. Prediction This is more specific than your hypothesis. What do you predict will happen in your experiment? Your prediction will include a statement concerning the predicted affect of your independent variable. By changing the environment that the vegetables are stored in and also the climate but keeping the vegetables covered the vegetables will not produce insects. IV. Experimental Design Design an experiment as a tool to find out if your prediction is right or wrong.Remember that good experiments do not set out to prove that a hypothesis is correct, but to test whether or not it is wrong. Four bunches of carrots, open basket, Tupperware container, and cellophane. The control group bunch left on a plate, uncovered on the counter. One test group outside in a basket, one test group in the refrigerator in cellophane and one test group in Tupperware on a shelf inside a kitchen cupboard. Never open or unwrap the containers the carrots are in, just observe through the plastic every 12 hours until they begin to rot. Once they begin to rot I will observe more frequently. The Independent Variable The independent variable is the variable that you intentionally change. Independent variable is the climate the vegetables are kept in. The Dependent Variable The dependent variable is the variable that is being measured. This is your data. It is the difference between the experimental group and the control groups after you adjust the independent variable. I will observe what happens regarding the insects by what I did to change the environment they are kept in. The Controlled Variables Controlled variables are the vegetables. GCU style is not required for the document as a whole, but solid writing skill is expected. The experiment had three test subjects, carrots wrapped in cellophane in the fridge, carrots in Tupperware in a kitchen cupboard and carrots in a basket sitting outside. The control was carrots left on a plate on the counter. This experiment could be conducted with different vegetables, fruits and even meats at different times of the year and in different climates and I believe the results would be the same. Covered fruits, veggies or meats may get gross and smelly if left to rot but will not birth insects.