Question

Scenario – You are very interested to find out if eating Apples can improve IQ scores.

Supplies:
20 randomly assigned students we will call “Group A”
20 randomly assigned students we will call “Group B”
20 randomly assigned students we will call “Group C”
Apples
‘Mock Apples’ (looks and taste like an apple but is really a plum),
IQ test
Clipboard

Describe in detail how you would conduct your experiment.





In this experiment:

What is the Independent Variable?

What is the Dependent Variable?

Which Group was the Control Group?

Which Group was the Experimental Group?

Was there a Placebo and if so, what was it?


Let’s say your experimental results showed that the Placebo Group increased their IQ score just as much as the Experimental Group. Name 2 possible explanations for these results.




Name 2 ways you could improve on the experiment to determine if eating apples has any special effect on people?



In the above experiment, describe how to conduct it as a double-blind study.

Answer 1

independent variable: group who get apples
Dependent variable: students grades
Experimental group: group who get apples
Control group: group with no apples
Placebo group: group who get mock apples
2 explanations why grades increased
1. It’s a state of mind; they told them they would do better so the students felt smarter which could of caused the to focus more on the quizzes or maybe study more for quizzes
OR
2. Apples really do improve iq and so do the mock apples
How to improve experiment
1. Give some students apples at night and some in the morning to see if the time affects the students iq
OR
2. Test if the type of apple (ex. Company or like colour or brand etc) make a difference in the students iq