Science Safety

• Science requires hands-on learning via experiments and demonstrations. Many laboratory procedures require the handling of dangerous or toxic substances. You must grasp first-aid and emergency procedures, safe chemical and substance disposal methods, proper cleanup procedures, fire prevention methods, and heat and electrical equipment handling procedures at all times. You should also take important safety precautions, such as wearing splash-proof goggles and aprons while working with dangerous materials or substances.
  
  

Scientific Method

• Asking a question, making an observation, forming a hypothesis, conducting an experiment to test the hypothesis, analyzing data and forming a conclusion are the six steps of the scientific method. An inquisitive nature is the driving force behind scientific study and experimentation. You must also possess critical thinking skills in order to compare your observations about the world around you with collected evidence or data and form conclusions. You must be precise to conduct accurate research and carry out successful experiments. These skills will help you to learn science through use of the scientific method.
  
  

Conducting Experiments

• Familiarize yourself with the parts of an experiment. You must be able to design an experiment correctly by using the appropriate variables. The independent variable represents the treatment under study, which is applied to three or more groups. The dependent variable is the condition that may change within a group due to the independent variable. Controls are conditions that stay the same. For example, the control for an experiment involving plants may consist of watering times, amount of sunlight and the amount of plants per group. Each group must be given a treatment (independent variable) with the exception of one group: this is the control group.
  
  

Units of Measurement

• You should have a working knowledge of the international system, in which there are seven base units of measurement. Distance is measured in meters, mass in kilograms, time in seconds, electrical currents in amperes, temperature in kelvins, atomic quantity in moles and light intensity in candelas. Memorize these units and learn how to convert them.
  
  

Science Equipment

• It is important to know how to operate a scale. You should also know how to operate a compound microscope and understand what each part does. Slides, pipettes and syringes are tools that may be used in conjunction with the microscope to examine microbes and other living organisms. You should also know how to operate a Bunsen burner, since many substances must be heated. Become comfortable with handling test tubes and flasks.