Research is Key

Research is one of the main tasks when conducting an experiment. To ask more questions, and get more answers, we need to know the basics. I personally like getting my research from papers written by scientists that have already studied something similarly. For instance, this is s research paper given to me in the laboratory. This paper is about 30 pages and because the topic isn't exact, I went through to highlight what I need to know. I also read through the gene maps to have examples. Other sources I use are the Internet, books, and laboratory peers. 

Lab notebook!

   This is an example of a page from my lab notebook. This notebook contains EVERYTHING. It has every thought, question, procedure, trial, etc. 

   This page in my notebook is an example of how I graph my final results in each trial. I label the graph accordingly and then look for mistakes. Typically, I write all my errors In red. That way I am able to go back and work on them, then after wards I simply ✔️ it off. 

The Process

   The scientific process is something we have all heard of before. Beginning all the way in elementary school, we learn about the basic steps in science class-

MAKE OBSERVATIONS
ASK A QUESTION
START BACKGROUND RESEARCH
CONSTRUCT A HYPOTHESIS
TEST YOUR HYPOTHESIS BY CONDUCTING AN EXPERIMENT
ANALYZE YOUR DATA
DRAW A CONCLUSION

In reality, this process is SO MUCH MORE.
   When making observations, hundreds of questions may pop into my head. I mainly ask "Why?" and " How? " Curiosity is key to finding the answer. I personally despise not getting answers to any questions in general. With science, I find answers all on my own. Researching is the difficult part. We are all open to so many sources that we don't know where to start! But, it's important to take advantage of all of our connections. That means teachers, books, and one of our best friends- Google.
   After research all we have to do is give an opinion.
 "I hypothesize that...."






   Next is the fun part- The experiment. This could be anything, but it involves a series of trials to make sure that there aren't any mistakes on the way. (AKA Scientific errors). I've had experiences with errors in PCR. There were times when I would insert my cell plate incorrectly, label the wrong columns, or even leave units empty. Learning and redoing is all part of the process as well.
   Finally, we get the results. We analyze them and think about why they might have occurred that way. We draw conclusions and state whether or not our hypothesis was correct or incorrect. The part I love is that WE DO NOT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE RIGHT! At the end, I usually contemplate how I can relate this to things happening on a daily basis: Something huge. I also have future considerations such as how I could improve this experiment/ what other factors would I test.

   We all follow a process, but the way we partake in this process differs between every observer.