Final answer:
A quantitative measure of problem-solving ability can include the number of correctly solved puzzles or the time taken to solve problems, providing a numerical value to assess the impact of caffeine consumption on cognitive functions.
Step-by-step explanation:
Hosea is looking to operationalize problem-solving ability in a quantitative way while studying the impact of caffeine on this cognitive function. A possible quantitative measure of problem-solving ability could involve having participants perform certain tasks or puzzles, such as math problems or logic puzzles, and then measuring their performance through the number of problems solved correctly within a given timeframe or the time taken to solve each problem correctly.
Operationalizing a variable means defining it in such a way that it can be measured or quantified. Since problem-solving skills are critical in physics and other scientific disciplines, they are often assessed through the ability to apply knowledge to new situations and solve problems rather than merely recalling facts. Therefore, the speed and accuracy of solving these problems would provide a clear, numerical quantification of problem-solving ability that can be directly compared across participants with different levels of caffeine consumption.
This method provides a solid framework for investigating the research question while ensuring that the problem-solving ability is defined in a measurable way, which is essential in the pursuit of collecting analytical intelligence data.