Bio 107 Laboratory Exercise 1 Scientific Investigation

In this lab, we will be modeling the scientific method at work by investigating the association of an independent variable or treatment (smoking, regular exercise, sex, age, etc.) on cardiovascular fitness level. The procedures for this lab are as follows:

Determine the objective of your investigation. (ie. what are we trying to test? In this case we will be testing the effect of ???? on cardiovascular fitness.)

Propose specific, testable hypotheses. (eg. Working out 3x/week increases cardiovascular fitness. Smoking 2 packs of cigarettes/day decreases cardiovascular fitness. Etc.)

Make predictions about resting heart rate, heart rate after exercise, and recovery time that allow us to measure the validity of these hypotheses. (eg. If working out 3x/week increases cardiovascular fitness, then those who workout 3x/week should have lower resting heart rates, lower heart rates following exercise, and faster recovery times than those who don’t.)

Test the hypotheses by measuring and recording the resting heart rate of our two experimental groups (treatment and control). Have our subjects make five trips up and down the stairs and measure and record their heart rates immediately upon completion of the last trip. We will then measure and record their heart rates each minute for the next 5 minutes. We will then compare the heart rates and recovery time of our two groups and compare the data with our predictions.

What can you say about your predictions?

Were our hypotheses regarding the influence of our treatments on cardiovascular fitness supported or refuted?

Should we refine our hypotheses?

Can you think of anything that could have been problematic in testing our hypotheses? Are there variables that we didn’t consider that could be influencing the outcome of our experiments? Did all subjects go at approximately the same pace? What other variables did/should we control for?

Please write a brief lab report in the following format (note the scoring rubric on the syllabus:

Introduction:

What are the objectives of your study?

What hypothesis (or hypotheses) do you propose and are testing?

What predictions did you make that allowed you to test the hypothesis?

Methods:

Exactly how did you test your hypothesis (or hypotheses)?

Be specific enough so that someone can read your report and repeat your experiments?

Note independent and dependent variables, treatment and control groups, and variables for which you are controlling.

Results:

Report and summarize your data. Briefly note high, low and mean values and report raw data in table or graph format.

DO NOT MAKE CONCLUSIONS IN THIS SECTION OF THE PAPER! Conclusions are for the “Discussion” section.

Discussion:

Restate your hypotheses and predictions that allow for validation of your hypotheses. Discuss whether or not the tests you performed supported or refuted them. What modifications would you make to your original hypotheses following these tests? To what conclusions can you come based on your results? Were there any variables that could have influenced the outcome of the tests that were not controlled for or considered beforehand?

This lab report is to be turned in one week from the day of this lab exercise and should be typed and double spaced. Graphs and tables should be computer generated (Excel is relatively easy to use and generates high quality figures) and labeled separately and sequentially.