Class Update

Tuesday, January 19. Today we worked in small groups to define investigable questions about dry ice and how it behaves. We defined what kinds of questions can be answered by either a systematic observation ("What Happens If" and "Measurement" questions) or an experiment ("Comparison" questions and extensions of systematic observations). "How" and "Why" questions are not as easily answered by classroom investigations. We looked at the importance of clear procedures, variables that need to be controlled, outcome variables, and how we might quantify our results if possible. Each group worked on developing and evaluating each of these steps in the process. Some of the questions include: "Will dry ice produce the same amount of gas in different liquids?", "What happens when you put different kinds of glue on dry ice?", "Will food coloring change the color of the steam/fog produced by dry ice?", and "Which is heavier, carbon dioxide or regular air?" Thursday, January 21, we will carry out these investigations. No homework.