Scioly.org

Ethancheese123 wrote:So i just got this event. Any suggestions?

So basically what you should do is look on soinc.org so you can find the rubric! The rubric is what they grade with and it's really important that you have all of the components on it so you can get a better score. You definitely need to practice a lot for this event so you can get better at cooperating with your partners. I would suggest splitting up the rubric into sections so each person does 1 section. Everyone splits it up differently, for example, my teammates and I put all of the similar parts together and split it that way.
Just make sure you get practice in with different types of experiments and try to perfect your section of the work.

What is Standard of Comparison in Experimental Control? I'm having trouble understanding what it is and this is the first time I've done it this year

Ethan and i are partners in crime (not in crime busters)

n00batscioly wrote:What is Standard of Comparison in Experimental Control? I'm having trouble understanding what it is and this is the first time I've done it this year

The standard of comparison is basically what you're comparing the rest of the data to! It's a very easy section and then basic template is, "The SOC of the experiment is (lowest IV here), as it is the lowest level and easiest to compare to." Hope that helps you.

MissAmargasaurus wrote:

n00batscioly wrote:What is Standard of Comparison in Experimental Control? I'm having trouble understanding what it is and this is the first time I've done it this year

The standard of comparison is basically what you're comparing the rest of the data to! It's a very easy section and then basic template is, "The SOC of the experiment is (lowest IV here), as it is the lowest level and easiest to compare to." Hope that helps you.

The lowest IV level is not always a good idea. When the experiment is qualitative, then it is better to use a comparison-control, where you can compare each level to each other level.

dxu46 wrote:

MissAmargasaurus wrote:

n00batscioly wrote:What is Standard of Comparison in Experimental Control? I'm having trouble understanding what it is and this is the first time I've done it this year

The standard of comparison is basically what you're comparing the rest of the data to! It's a very easy section and then basic template is, "The SOC of the experiment is (lowest IV here), as it is the lowest level and easiest to compare to." Hope that helps you.

The lowest IV level is not always a good idea. When the experiment is qualitative, then it is better to use a comparison-control, where you can compare each level to each other level.

Oh I'd agree with that, there's been issues before I've had due to that. However it does work a majority of the time I feel, and it helps to have a kind of base.

The SOC still is though basically a statement explaining what your control level is (this is part of the reason it's better to try to get 4 IV levels rather than 3 if possible) and then saying why, "easiest to compare to" suffices usually.

What's the consensus on using abbreviations (like IV and SOC)? Not having to write them out would save time but I'm not sure how the graders would see it and I don't want to risk losing points.

MissAmargasaurus wrote:

n00batscioly wrote:What is Standard of Comparison in Experimental Control? I'm having trouble understanding what it is and this is the first time I've done it this year

The standard of comparison is basically what you're comparing the rest of the data to! It's a very easy section and then basic template is, "The SOC of the experiment is (lowest IV here), as it is the lowest level and easiest to compare to." Hope that helps you.

I don't think there's a rule for choosing SOC that will apply every time - but I've been teaching my students this,

-If the IV is some sort of "treatment" then the SOC would be the group without treatment (simple control group). Imagine you're adding rubber bands to tennis balls for traction, and then rolling them to determine speed; the SOC would have zero rubber bands.
-If the IV is measurable and within your control, choose the SOC to be a round number in the middle - that way you can see the effects of both increasing it and decreasing it. For example, you've got string to make pendulums. The SOC length may be 30cm, while the other levels are 10, 20, 40 and 50.
-Don't record any "waste of time" data - for example a ramp with an incline of 0 or 90, or seeing if a sponge can absorb 0mL of water. It may seem like a good idea to be thorough, but there's no benefit to be had from the rubric.

mpnobivucyxtz wrote:What's the consensus on using abbreviations (like IV and SOC)? Not having to write them out would save time but I'm not sure how the graders would see it and I don't want to risk losing points.

Our team has always written them out and we've done pretty well at competitions, so I would assume they were okay. For SOC, I would write it out because I've seen people who do not know what the abbreviation is.

dxu46 wrote: Our team has always written them out and we've done pretty well at competitions, so I would assume they were okay.

I’m a bit confused on what you mean. Does that mean I shouldn’t abbreviate, or should I abbreviate for “obvious” things like DV and IV, but write out SOC?