What Is a Hypothesis?
Noun
- A supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.
- A proposition made as a basis for reasoning, without any assumption of its truth.
Examples
a) "If I open the faucet [faucet opening size is the independent variable], then it will increase the flow of water [flow of water is the dependent variable].
b) "Raising the temperature of a cup of water [temperature is the independent variable] will increase the amount of sugar that dissolves [the amount of sugar is the dependent variable]."
c) "If a plant receives fertilizer [having fertilizer is the independent variable], then it will grow to be bigger than a plant that does not receive fertilizer [plant size is the dependent variable]."
d) "If I put fenders on a bicycle [having fenders is the independent variable], then they will keep the rider dry when riding through puddles [the dependent variable is how much water splashes on the rider]."
b) "Raising the temperature of a cup of water [temperature is the independent variable] will increase the amount of sugar that dissolves [the amount of sugar is the dependent variable]."
c) "If a plant receives fertilizer [having fertilizer is the independent variable], then it will grow to be bigger than a plant that does not receive fertilizer [plant size is the dependent variable]."
d) "If I put fenders on a bicycle [having fenders is the independent variable], then they will keep the rider dry when riding through puddles [the dependent variable is how much water splashes on the rider]."
Guide
- hypothesis is an educated guess about how things work.
- Most of the time a hypothesis is written like this: "If _____[I do this] _____, then _____[this]_____ will happen." (Fill in the blanks with the appropriate information from your own investigation.)
- Your hypothesis should be something that you can actually test, what's called a testable hypothesis. In other words, you need to be able to measure both "what you do" and "what will happen."