What is a Hypothesis?
A hypothesis is a testable prediction based on background knowledge and some prior observation. It is a critical initial building block of the scientific method.
Hypotheses are often formatted in an “if-then” statement which gives a cause and then effect of a certain possibility [6].
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A good hypothesis is simple, testable, and can be proven wrong [6]. Hypotheses lead to experiments that are used to prove whether predictions are supported or not [6].
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If you worked through the activity from lesson 1, you probably came up with a solid hypothesis - likely something similar to the following: “If I plant the seed in a pot with soil and water it the same amount 1x a day, everyday, then the seed will grow into a distinguishable plant.”
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Null hypothesis - predicts there will be no difference or relationship between experimental groups [6].
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Alternative hypothesis - predicts that there will be a difference or relationship between experimental groups [6].
A hypothesis can be expressed in two ways
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Type I Error (False Positive) - Null hypothesis is rejected when it is true [6].
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Type II Error (False Negative) - Null hypothesis is not rejected when it is false [6].
Errors can occur during an experiment
This hypothesis is:
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Simple - a pot, some seeds, and water are easily obtainable resources,
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Testable - you are just investigating plant growth (dependent variable) by routinely giving it water (independent variable),
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and can be proven wrong if your plant does not end up growing.
Eventually, theories combine multiple hypotheses to generally explain a wide range of phenomena [6]. Although a hypothesis can be rejected or modified, it can never be proved correct 100% of the time, therefore it cannot be completely accepted [6]. Further, a theory that cannot be proved wrong is unscientific [6].
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*In future learning modules we will be expanding on the concept of null hypothesis, alternate hypothesis, and type I and type II errors.*
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