......Key Science Concepts Menu
The scientifically literate person understands and accurately applies appropriate science concepts, principles, laws, and theories in interacting with society and the environment.
Among the key concepts of science are:
Change is the process of becoming different. It may involve several stages.
Examples:
Seasons change throughout the year.An organism develops from an egg, matures, and eventually dies.
Rocks are eroded.
This happens when two or more things influence or affect each other.
Example:
Some animals living in the same place have to compete for available food and space.
This is a regular sequence which either exists in nature or is imposed through classification.
Example:
The Earth moves about the Sun in a regular manner.
An organism is a living thing or something that was once alive.
Example:
Plants and animals are organisms.
Perception is the interpretation of sensory input by the brain.
Example:
In baseball, an outfielder will run to the spot where a fly ball will likely land.
This is a repetition of a pattern within some larger structure.
Examples:
Some animals appear to have matching halves.Most wallpaper patterns exhibit symmetry.
It is a push or a pull.
Examples:
A magnet can pick up a paper clip.Pedalling a bicycle causes it to move.
B8 quantification P(K-1), D(2-12)
Numbers can be used to convey important information.
Examples:
There are 60 seconds in one minute.There are 206 bones in the human body.
B9 reproducibility of results P(K-2), D(3-12)
Repetition of a procedure should produce the same results if all other conditions are identical. It is a necessary characteristic of scientific experiments.
Example:
When a small ice cube is placed in a bucket of warm water, the ice cube will melt.
B10 cause-effect P(K-2), D(3-12)
It is how one thing affects another.
Example:
Walking outside in the winter without gloves may cause your hands to get cold and sore.
A frightened bird may fly away.
B11 predictability P(K-3), D(4-12)
Patterns can be identified in nature. From those patterns inferences can be made.
Example:
When a seed receives enough moisture in a warm place it will germinate. From this, one might predict that to keep seeds from germinating they should be kept dry.
B12 conservation P(K-4), D(5-12)
An understanding of the finite nature of the world's resources, and an understanding of the necessity to treat those resources with prudence and economy, are underlying principles of conservation. In physics, the term 'conservation' also has a unique meaning, as in the conservation of energy.
Examples:
Insulating a home will save energy.Smaller, more efficient cars can be designed to use less fuel.
B13 energy-matter P(1-2), D(3-12)
It is the interchangeable and dependent relationship between energy and matter.
Example:
When a candle burns, some of the energy stored in the wax is released as heat and light.
Certain events or conditions are repeated.
Examples:
The seasons change during the year.Some birds migrate in the spring and fall.
A pendulum on a clock swings back and forth in a regular manner.
It is a representation of a real structure, event, or class of events intended to facilitate a better understanding of abstract concepts or to allow scaling to a manageable size.
Examples:
A globe is a model of the Earth.Marbles and styrofoam balls can be used to make models which represent atoms.
A set of interrelated parts forms a system.
Example:
The Earth is a planet in the solar system.
A stereo sound system consists of speakers, an amplifier, input devices such as a CD player, and other parts which are all connected together.
B17 field P(1-2), D(3-12) A field is a region of space which is influenced by some agent.
Example:
Two similar magnetic poles repel one another.
If a ball is thrown into the air, it returns to earth because of the pull of gravity.
A population is a group of organisms that share common characteristics.
Example:
A human population is a group of people living together in a particular place.
B19 probability P(3-8), D(9-12)
Probability is the relative degree of certainty that can be assigned to certain events happening in a specified time interval or within a sequence of events.
Example:
The probability of getting some types of cancer increases with prolonged exposure to large doses of radiation.
A theory is a connected and internally consistent group of statements, equations, models, or a combination of these, which serves to explain a relatively large and diverse group of things and events.
Example:
One theory suggests that there are periodic mass extinctions of species.
Accuracy involves a recognition that there is uncertainty in measurement. It also involves the correct use of significant figures.
Example:
A watch with a minute hand is more accurate for measuring time than an hourglass.
B22 fundamental entities P(6), D(7-12)
They are units of structure or function which are useful in explaining certain phenomena.
Examples:
The cell is the basic unit of life.The atom is the basic unit of matter.
B23 invariance P(6), D(7-12) This is a characteristic which stays constant even though other things may change.
Example:
Mass is conserved in a chemical reaction.
Scale involves a change in dimensions. This may affect other characteristics of a system.
Example:
A paper airplane made from a sheet of notebook paper may fly differently than a plane of identical design made from a poster-size sheet of the same paper.
B25 time-space P(6-7), D(8-12)
It is a mathematical framework in which it is convenient to describe objects and events.
Example:
An average human being has an extension in one direction of approximately 1 3/4 metres and in another direction of about 70 years.
Evolution is a series of changes that can be used to explain how something got to be the way it is or what it might become in the future. It is generally regarded as going from simple to complex.
Example:
Organic evolution is thought to progress in small, incremental changes. Similarly, scientific theories undergo change to accommodate new data as they become available.