Question

A scientist who is researching marshes observes that marsh grass, Spartina bakeri, grows to different heights at different locations in the marsh.

If the scientist wants to find the reason for this difference, what is the correct first step?


A) Conduct an experiment and change only one variable at a time.

B) Determine which technology would assist most in answering the question.

C) Make an inference based on knowledge of the marsh.

D) Establish a control group for comparison.

Answer 1

The correct option is A. All valid research usually have two types of variables, dependent variables and independent variables. These variables allow a researcher to determine the exact relationship between the variables. In the question given here, if the scientist want to find out the reason for length difference in the marsh grass, he has to conduct an experiment using dependent and independent variables.