Transcript / Long description

At many points in this course you will be asked to make a prediction; that is, to think about, and write down, what you think will happen before you observe a demonstration. (Such questions will usually ask you to “Imagine...” or “Suppose…”) Note that a prediction in science is not just a guess, but is supported by reasons drawn either from your prior experience or from your general ideas about how the world works. (Scientists call such a set of general ideas a ‘model’.) When you are asked to make a prediction it is very important that you take the time to explain the reasoning behind your response before the demonstration is performed. In the student materials, the prompt for this will be something like, “How did you decide?” Whenever you are being asked to make a prediction in this class you will see this icon, , in front of the question.