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Scamper This! Plants
EXPERIMENTAL
DESIGN One of the easiest approaches to
developing inquiries with plants is to vary the QUALITY (TYPE) and QUANTITY
(AMOUNT) of one or more of the previously mentioned seven requirements, and then to test how a specific
type of plant is affected by the change. In terms of SCAMPER, the qualitative changes are a form of Substitution-the "S" in SCAMPER; similarly, the quantitative changes may increase (Magnify) or decrease (Minify) the amount or number of a particular variable and which is the "M" in SCAMPER.
1. Varying the Quality Plants need water. Is all water the same? There’s salt water, brackish water (in
between salty and fresh), freshwater, tap water, distilled water, mineral
water, hot springs water, mountain water, rainwater, polluted water,
carbonated water, and vitamin water, to name a few. If you want to compare the
effect of different kinds of water on plant growth, it is important to define
what are some of the differences between these various types of water. What is in hot springs water that is not
in tap water, or distilled water, and vice a versa? Basic Knowledge and
Understanding Requirements For Your Inquiry: Plants
and Water. What is
water? How is one type of water
different from other types? How do
plants use water? Where does water go
once it gets inside a plant? How does
water get into the plant? (Remember,
the answers to some of these questions will depend on the specific plant) Plants need carbon dioxide. Basic Knowledge and
Understanding Requirements For Your Inquiry: Plants
and Carbon Dioxide. How do
plants get carbon dioxide? How does
carbon dioxide get into the plant? How
does an aquatic plant obtain carbon dioxide?
How does the plant use carbon dioxide? Can plants use the carbon dioxide found in carbonated
water? Are there other ways of
increasing the amount of carbon dioxide available to the plant? Can I increase the amount of carbon
dioxide gas in the plant’s environment? How do high levels of carbon dioxide affect plant growth or the production of plant metabolites? What other types of gases do plants need? What if I substitute carbon monoxide for carbon dioxide? Plants need soil. Or do they? Some plants can be grown without soil. Instead, they are grown in a liquid
media. This is called
hydroponics. The water that is used
to grow these plants is supplemented with nutrients that the plant would
otherwise obtain from the soil. But not
all plants can be grown using hydroponics.
Scientists know what some plants need to grow under hydroponics
conditions, but not others. Basic Knowledge and
Understanding Requirements: Plants
and Soil. Why do plants
need soil? What’s in soil? What are some soil types? Are all soil types the same? What are fertilizers? Why are they used? Are all fertilizers the same? What is meant by organically grown? Exercise 1: Continue this process using each
of the remaining seven requirements for plant growth varying the type or
quality of the specific requirement. ThinkAbouts… While a
plant may germinate or grow under the experimental conditions you define, the
food (fruit, nuts or seeds) or other products obtained from that plant might
not be safe to eat or use! 2. Vary the Quantity Used:
Too Much or Too Little; Higher or Lower; Bigger or Smaller Plants need water. What happens if you give a
cactus too much water? What happens
if you give any plant too much water or too little? What happens if you slowly reduce the amount of water you give
a plant, but enough to keep it growing, could you select for plants that are
more resistant to drought? What if
you collected the seeds from these plants or cloned these plants, would the
next generation of plants be able to grow in less water to grow? Plants need carbon dioxide. What happens if you increase or decrease
the amount of carbon dioxide available to a plant? Exercise 2: Continue this process using each
of the remaining seven requirements for plant growth varying the amount of
the specific requirement. |
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