Scientific Investigation

Science means "to know" (Latin verb).

Today's biological scientist wants to know about or study the "phenomena of life." In order to do this, he/she must ask questions, make observations, develop hypotheses, and test those hypotheses in order to "investigate" a specific topic, i.e., perform research.

He/she must be a creative, competitive, and careful researcher.
He/she must closely follow other investigators' work in his/her specific field, attend scientific meetings, and publish his/her own work.

Today's biological scientist or researcher may be classified as a(n):

• Biochemist
• Biochemical Engineering
• Botanist
• Cell Biologist
• Developmental Biologist
• Ecologist
• Environmentalist
• Entomologist
• Evolutionary Biologist
• Geneticist
• Ichthyologist (fishes)
• Immunologist
• Marine Biologist
• Microbiologist
• Molecular Biologist
• Neurobiologist
• Paleontologist
• Physiologist (Plant or Animal)
• Virologist
• Zoologist

However, though a biologist's expertise may vary, all biological scientists follow the same general guidelines, referred to as the "Scientific Method" or hypothetico-deductive method, when attempting to research a specific question. In this laboratory, you will review the Scientific Method in order to develop the skills to propose, conduct, and present scientific investigations of your own.

Main Page | Introduction and Objectives | Scientific Investigation | Experimental Procedures | Writing Procedures |Mendelian Inheritance |  Monohybrid and Dihybrid Exercises | Reference | Miscellaneous | Overview | The Question | The Hypothesis | The Experiment | The Scientific Paper |