Sunday, October 11, 2015

No Hypotheses without Questions

 No scientist could follow the scientific method if they didn't know how to ask questions! That's one of the most vital parts! I have a heap of questions of my own that I will hopefully get an answer to one day!


  1. How long does it take to make bio-ethanol?
  2. What is the smallest viable quantity of bio-ethanol that can be produced?
  3. What do I need to make a bio-ethanol still?
  4. How long would it take to make a bio-ethanol still?
  5. Does cellulosic feedstock have any significant difference from corn feedstock?
  6. What precautions are taken in bio-ethanol production?
  7. How do scientists take chemical analyses?
  8. How formal is a lab notebook supposed to be?
  9. Is it better to research independently or in a group?
  10. Why does bio-ethanol turn into moonshine if the process is imperfect?
  11. How small does something need to be grinded to become cellulosic feedstock?
  12. How much is too much information?
  13. How long does an experiment usually last?
  14. Is a lab needed to make a good experiment?
  15. How much of an experiment should be original?
  16. How do you know if your experiment is actually good?
  17. What if the experiment turns up nothing?
  18. Does an experiment need to be repeated to confirm it's validity?
  19. Can an experiment be altered based on newly revealed knowledge?
  20. What kind of safety equipment is recommended for chemicals?
  21. What kind of dangers are associated with chemicals?
  22. How hard is an air analysis?
  23. Can you swap high tech equipment for homemade or lower quality equipment?
  24. Should an experiment with any form of danger associated with it be conducted alone?
  25. How much of a process should be understandable to exceed at it?
  26. When should an experiment be considered to be going nowhere?
  27. How can you tell if your experiment is making zero progress?
  28. Is a material best obtained in it's naturally occurring environment?
  29. How does a soil analysis get completed?
  30. How is concentration of a substance determined?
  31. How often should you check up on your experiment?
  32. Do you include redundant data as filler for a lab notebook or report?
  33. Should you cut corners if you're running low on time?
  34. What is acceptable in terms of cutting corners?
  35. How do you choose your test material to ensure originality?
  36. Is originality the aim if there is very little difference from a past experiment?
  37. Is checking the validity of an experiment a worthy goal?
  38. Is research experience better than lab experience?
  39. When does it become apparent that high tech equipment is needed?
  40. Should an experiment involving naturally occurring materials use lab produced versions on the side?
  41. Is a control group always necessary?
  42. How many different batches of test groups should be used?
  43. How do you preserve a control group without snuffing it out?
  44. How do you isolate a test group without ruining it?
  45. What is considered a valid test group that is sufficiently different than the control group?
  46. Does a sample need to be preserved from each group?
  47. Should there always be another batch at the ready?
  48. What is the chance of a batch being faulty?
  49. What is the effect of a batch being faulty?
  50. Why does a research question have to be so much more than just a question?
 I thought I had a lot of questions, but this is just nuts! I figure that by the end of my research, at least 30 of these 50 questions will be answered. No matter! There is only one truly important question that must be answered, and that is my research question!

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