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Published 2008 Revised 2019

Understanding Hypotheses

'What happens if ... ?' to ' This will happen if'

The experimentation of children continually moves on to the exploration of new ideas and the refinement of their world view of previously understood situations. This description of the playtime patterns of young children very nicely models the concept of 'making and testing hypotheses'. It follows this pattern:

Make some observations. Collect some data based on the observations.
Draw a conclusion (called a 'hypothesis') which will explain the pattern of the observations.
Test out your hypothesis by making some more targeted observations.

So, we have

A hypothesis is a statement or idea which gives an explanation to a series of observations.

Sometimes, following observation, a hypothesis will clearly need to be refined or rejected. This happens if a single contradictory observation occurs. For example, suppose that a child is trying to understand the concept of a dog. He reads about several dogs in children's books and sees that they are always friendly and fun. He makes the natural hypothesis in his mind that dogs are friendly and fun . He then meets his first real dog: his neighbour's puppy who is great fun to play with. This reinforces his hypothesis. His cousin's dog is also very friendly and great fun. He meets some of his friends' dogs on various walks to playgroup. They are also friendly and fun. He is now confident that his hypothesis is sound. Suddenly, one day, he sees a dog, tries to stroke it and is bitten. This experience contradicts his hypothesis. He will need to amend the hypothesis. We see that

Gathering more evidence/data can strengthen a hypothesis if it is in agreement with the hypothesis.
If the data contradicts the hypothesis then the hypothesis must be rejected or amended to take into account the contradictory situation.

A contradictory observation can cause us to know for certain that a hypothesis is incorrect.
Accumulation of supporting experimental evidence will strengthen a hypothesis but will never let us know for certain that the hypothesis is true.

In short, it is possible to show that a hypothesis is false, but impossible to prove that it is true!

Whilst we can never prove a scientific hypothesis to be true, there will be a certain stage at which we decide that there is sufficient supporting experimental data for us to accept the hypothesis. The point at which we make the choice to accept a hypothesis depends on many factors. In practice, the key issues are

What are the implications of mistakenly accepting a hypothesis which is false?
What are the cost / time implications of gathering more data?
What are the implications of not accepting in a timely fashion a true hypothesis?

For example, suppose that a drug company is testing a new cancer drug. They hypothesise that the drug is safe with no side effects. If they are mistaken in this belief and release the drug then the results could have a disastrous effect on public health. However, running extended clinical trials might be very costly and time consuming. Furthermore, a delay in accepting the hypothesis and releasing the drug might also have a negative effect on the health of many people.

In short, whilst we can never achieve absolute certainty with the testing of hypotheses, in order to make progress in science or industry decisions need to be made. There is a fine balance to be made between action and inaction.

Hypotheses and mathematics So where does mathematics enter into this picture? In many ways, both obvious and subtle:

A good hypothesis needs to be clear, precisely stated and testable in some way. Creation of these clear hypotheses requires clear general mathematical thinking.
The data from experiments must be carefully analysed in relation to the original hypothesis. This requires the data to be structured, operated upon, prepared and displayed in appropriate ways. The levels of this process can range from simple to exceedingly complex.

Very often, the situation under analysis will appear to be complicated and unclear. Part of the mathematics of the task will be to impose a clear structure on the problem. The clarity of thought required will actively be developed through more abstract mathematical study. Those without sufficient general mathematical skill will be unable to perform an appropriate logical analysis.

Using deductive reasoning in hypothesis testing

There is often confusion between the ideas surrounding proof, which is mathematics, and making and testing an experimental hypothesis, which is science. The difference is rather simple:

Mathematics is based on deductive reasoning : a proof is a logical deduction from a set of clear inputs.
Science is based on inductive reasoning : hypotheses are strengthened or rejected based on an accumulation of experimental evidence.

Of course, to be good at science, you need to be good at deductive reasoning, although experts at deductive reasoning need not be mathematicians. Detectives, such as Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot, are such experts: they collect evidence from a crime scene and then draw logical conclusions from the evidence to support the hypothesis that, for example, Person M. committed the crime. They use this evidence to create sufficiently compelling deductions to support their hypotheses beyond reasonable doubt . The key word here is 'reasonable'. There is always the possibility of creating an exceedingly outlandish scenario to explain away any hypothesis of a detective or prosecution lawyer, but judges and juries in courts eventually make the decision that the probability of such eventualities are 'small' and the chance of the hypothesis being correct 'high'.

If a set of data is normally distributed with mean 0 and standard deviation 0.5 then there is a 97.7% certainty that a measurement will not exceed 1.0.
If the mean of a sample of data is 12, how confident can we be that the true mean of the population lies between 11 and 13?

It is at this point that making and testing hypotheses becomes a true branch of mathematics. This mathematics is difficult, but fascinating and highly relevant in the information-rich world of today.

To read more about the technical side of hypothesis testing, take a look at What is a Hypothesis Test?

You might also enjoy reading the articles on statistics on the Understanding Uncertainty website

This resource is part of the collection Statistics - Maths of Real Life

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Every time you read about doing an experiment or starting a science fair project, it always says you need a hypothesis. How do you write a hypothesis? What is it? How do you come up with a good hypothesis?

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What is a hypothesis?

No. A hypothesis is sometimes described as an educated guess. That's not the same thing as a guess and not really a good description of a hypothesis either. Let's try working through an example.

If you put an ice cube on a plate and place it on the table, what will happen? A very young child might guess that it will still be there in a couple of hours. Most people would agree with the hypothesis that:

An ice cube will melt in less than 30 minutes.

You could put sit and watch the ice cube melt and think you've proved a hypothesis. But you will have missed some important steps.

For a good science fair project you need to do quite a bit of research before any experimenting. Start by finding some information about how and why water melts. You could read a book, do a bit of Google searching, or even ask an expert. For our example, you could learn about how temperature and air pressure can change the state of water. Don't forget that elevation above sea level changes air pressure too.

Now, using all your research, try to restate that hypothesis.

An ice cube will melt in less than 30 minutes in a room at sea level with a temperature of 20C or 68F.

But wait a minute. What is the ice made from? What if the ice cube was made from salt water, or you sprinkled salt on a regular ice cube? Time for some more research. Would adding salt make a difference? Turns out it does. Would other chemicals change the melting time?

Using this new information, let's try that hypothesis again.

An ice cube made with tap water will melt in less than 30 minutes in a room at sea level with a temperature of 20C or 68F.

Does that seem like an educated guess? No, it sounds like you are stating the obvious.

At this point, it is obvious only because of your research. You haven't actually done the experiment. Now it's time to run the experiment to support the hypothesis.

A hypothesis isn't an educated guess. It is a tentative explanation for an observation, phenomenon, or scientific problem that can be tested by further investigation.

Once you do the experiment and find out if it supports the hypothesis, it becomes part of scientific theory.

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Methodology

How to Write a Strong Hypothesis | Steps & Examples

How to Write a Strong Hypothesis | Steps & Examples

Published on May 6, 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on November 20, 2023.

A hypothesis is a statement that can be tested by scientific research. If you want to test a relationship between two or more variables, you need to write hypotheses before you start your experiment or data collection .

Example: Hypothesis

Daily apple consumption leads to fewer doctor’s visits.

What is a hypothesis, developing a hypothesis (with example), hypothesis examples, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about writing hypotheses.

A hypothesis states your predictions about what your research will find. It is a tentative answer to your research question that has not yet been tested. For some research projects, you might have to write several hypotheses that address different aspects of your research question.

A hypothesis is not just a guess – it should be based on existing theories and knowledge. It also has to be testable, which means you can support or refute it through scientific research methods (such as experiments, observations and statistical analysis of data).

Variables in hypotheses

Hypotheses propose a relationship between two or more types of variables .

An independent variable is something the researcher changes or controls.
A dependent variable is something the researcher observes and measures.

If there are any control variables , extraneous variables , or confounding variables , be sure to jot those down as you go to minimize the chances that research bias will affect your results.

In this example, the independent variable is exposure to the sun – the assumed cause . The dependent variable is the level of happiness – the assumed effect .

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Step 1. Ask a question

Writing a hypothesis begins with a research question that you want to answer. The question should be focused, specific, and researchable within the constraints of your project.

Step 2. Do some preliminary research

Your initial answer to the question should be based on what is already known about the topic. Look for theories and previous studies to help you form educated assumptions about what your research will find.

At this stage, you might construct a conceptual framework to ensure that you’re embarking on a relevant topic . This can also help you identify which variables you will study and what you think the relationships are between them. Sometimes, you’ll have to operationalize more complex constructs.

Step 3. Formulate your hypothesis

Now you should have some idea of what you expect to find. Write your initial answer to the question in a clear, concise sentence.

4. Refine your hypothesis

You need to make sure your hypothesis is specific and testable. There are various ways of phrasing a hypothesis, but all the terms you use should have clear definitions, and the hypothesis should contain:

The relevant variables
The specific group being studied
The predicted outcome of the experiment or analysis

5. Phrase your hypothesis in three ways

To identify the variables, you can write a simple prediction in if…then form. The first part of the sentence states the independent variable and the second part states the dependent variable.

In academic research, hypotheses are more commonly phrased in terms of correlations or effects, where you directly state the predicted relationship between variables.

If you are comparing two groups, the hypothesis can state what difference you expect to find between them.

6. Write a null hypothesis

If your research involves statistical hypothesis testing , you will also have to write a null hypothesis . The null hypothesis is the default position that there is no association between the variables. The null hypothesis is written as H 0 , while the alternative hypothesis is H 1 or H a .

H 0 : The number of lectures attended by first-year students has no effect on their final exam scores.
H 1 : The number of lectures attended by first-year students has a positive effect on their final exam scores.

Research question	Hypothesis	Null hypothesis
What are the health benefits of eating an apple a day?	Increasing apple consumption in over-60s will result in decreasing frequency of doctor’s visits.	Increasing apple consumption in over-60s will have no effect on frequency of doctor’s visits.
Which airlines have the most delays?	Low-cost airlines are more likely to have delays than premium airlines.	Low-cost and premium airlines are equally likely to have delays.
Can flexible work arrangements improve job satisfaction?	Employees who have flexible working hours will report greater job satisfaction than employees who work fixed hours.	There is no relationship between working hour flexibility and job satisfaction.
How effective is high school sex education at reducing teen pregnancies?	Teenagers who received sex education lessons throughout high school will have lower rates of unplanned pregnancy teenagers who did not receive any sex education.	High school sex education has no effect on teen pregnancy rates.
What effect does daily use of social media have on the attention span of under-16s?	There is a negative between time spent on social media and attention span in under-16s.	There is no relationship between social media use and attention span in under-16s.

If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Sampling methods
Simple random sampling
Stratified sampling
Cluster sampling
Likert scales
Reproducibility

Statistics

Null hypothesis
Statistical power
Probability distribution
Effect size
Poisson distribution

Research bias

Optimism bias
Cognitive bias
Implicit bias
Hawthorne effect
Anchoring bias
Explicit bias

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A hypothesis is not just a guess — it should be based on existing theories and knowledge. It also has to be testable, which means you can support or refute it through scientific research methods (such as experiments, observations and statistical analysis of data).

Null and alternative hypotheses are used in statistical hypothesis testing . The null hypothesis of a test always predicts no effect or no relationship between variables, while the alternative hypothesis states your research prediction of an effect or relationship.

Hypothesis testing is a formal procedure for investigating our ideas about the world using statistics. It is used by scientists to test specific predictions, called hypotheses , by calculating how likely it is that a pattern or relationship between variables could have arisen by chance.

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What is a scientific hypothesis?

It's the initial building block in the scientific method.

A girl looks at plants in a test tube for a science experiment. What's her scientific hypothesis?

Hypothesis basics

What makes a hypothesis testable.

Types of hypotheses
Hypothesis versus theory

Additional resources

Bibliography.

A scientific hypothesis is a tentative, testable explanation for a phenomenon in the natural world. It's the initial building block in the scientific method . Many describe it as an "educated guess" based on prior knowledge and observation. While this is true, a hypothesis is more informed than a guess. While an "educated guess" suggests a random prediction based on a person's expertise, developing a hypothesis requires active observation and background research.

The basic idea of a hypothesis is that there is no predetermined outcome. For a solution to be termed a scientific hypothesis, it has to be an idea that can be supported or refuted through carefully crafted experimentation or observation. This concept, called falsifiability and testability, was advanced in the mid-20th century by Austrian-British philosopher Karl Popper in his famous book "The Logic of Scientific Discovery" (Routledge, 1959).

A key function of a hypothesis is to derive predictions about the results of future experiments and then perform those experiments to see whether they support the predictions.

A hypothesis is usually written in the form of an if-then statement, which gives a possibility (if) and explains what may happen because of the possibility (then). The statement could also include "may," according to California State University, Bakersfield .

Here are some examples of hypothesis statements:

If garlic repels fleas, then a dog that is given garlic every day will not get fleas.
If sugar causes cavities, then people who eat a lot of candy may be more prone to cavities.
If ultraviolet light can damage the eyes, then maybe this light can cause blindness.

A useful hypothesis should be testable and falsifiable. That means that it should be possible to prove it wrong. A theory that can't be proved wrong is nonscientific, according to Karl Popper's 1963 book " Conjectures and Refutations ."

An example of an untestable statement is, "Dogs are better than cats." That's because the definition of "better" is vague and subjective. However, an untestable statement can be reworded to make it testable. For example, the previous statement could be changed to this: "Owning a dog is associated with higher levels of physical fitness than owning a cat." With this statement, the researcher can take measures of physical fitness from dog and cat owners and compare the two.

Types of scientific hypotheses

Elementary-age students study alternative energy using homemade windmills during public school science class.

In an experiment, researchers generally state their hypotheses in two ways. The null hypothesis predicts that there will be no relationship between the variables tested, or no difference between the experimental groups. The alternative hypothesis predicts the opposite: that there will be a difference between the experimental groups. This is usually the hypothesis scientists are most interested in, according to the University of Miami .

For example, a null hypothesis might state, "There will be no difference in the rate of muscle growth between people who take a protein supplement and people who don't." The alternative hypothesis would state, "There will be a difference in the rate of muscle growth between people who take a protein supplement and people who don't."

If the results of the experiment show a relationship between the variables, then the null hypothesis has been rejected in favor of the alternative hypothesis, according to the book " Research Methods in Psychology " (BCcampus, 2015).

There are other ways to describe an alternative hypothesis. The alternative hypothesis above does not specify a direction of the effect, only that there will be a difference between the two groups. That type of prediction is called a two-tailed hypothesis. If a hypothesis specifies a certain direction — for example, that people who take a protein supplement will gain more muscle than people who don't — it is called a one-tailed hypothesis, according to William M. K. Trochim , a professor of Policy Analysis and Management at Cornell University.

Sometimes, errors take place during an experiment. These errors can happen in one of two ways. A type I error is when the null hypothesis is rejected when it is true. This is also known as a false positive. A type II error occurs when the null hypothesis is not rejected when it is false. This is also known as a false negative, according to the University of California, Berkeley .

A hypothesis can be rejected or modified, but it can never be proved correct 100% of the time. For example, a scientist can form a hypothesis stating that if a certain type of tomato has a gene for red pigment, that type of tomato will be red. During research, the scientist then finds that each tomato of this type is red. Though the findings confirm the hypothesis, there may be a tomato of that type somewhere in the world that isn't red. Thus, the hypothesis is true, but it may not be true 100% of the time.

Scientific theory vs. scientific hypothesis

The best hypotheses are simple. They deal with a relatively narrow set of phenomena. But theories are broader; they generally combine multiple hypotheses into a general explanation for a wide range of phenomena, according to the University of California, Berkeley . For example, a hypothesis might state, "If animals adapt to suit their environments, then birds that live on islands with lots of seeds to eat will have differently shaped beaks than birds that live on islands with lots of insects to eat." After testing many hypotheses like these, Charles Darwin formulated an overarching theory: the theory of evolution by natural selection.

"Theories are the ways that we make sense of what we observe in the natural world," Tanner said. "Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts."

Read more about writing a hypothesis, from the American Medical Writers Association.
Find out why a hypothesis isn't always necessary in science, from The American Biology Teacher.
Learn about null and alternative hypotheses, from Prof. Essa on YouTube .

Encyclopedia Britannica. Scientific Hypothesis. Jan. 13, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/scientific-hypothesis

Karl Popper, "The Logic of Scientific Discovery," Routledge, 1959.

California State University, Bakersfield, "Formatting a testable hypothesis." https://www.csub.edu/~ddodenhoff/Bio100/Bio100sp04/formattingahypothesis.htm

Karl Popper, "Conjectures and Refutations," Routledge, 1963.

Price, P., Jhangiani, R., & Chiang, I., "Research Methods of Psychology — 2nd Canadian Edition," BCcampus, 2015.‌

University of Miami, "The Scientific Method" http://www.bio.miami.edu/dana/161/evolution/161app1_scimethod.pdf

William M.K. Trochim, "Research Methods Knowledge Base," https://conjointly.com/kb/hypotheses-explained/

University of California, Berkeley, "Multiple Hypothesis Testing and False Discovery Rate" https://www.stat.berkeley.edu/~hhuang/STAT141/Lecture-FDR.pdf

University of California, Berkeley, "Science at multiple levels" https://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/0_0_0/howscienceworks_19

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Hypothesis facts for kids

A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for some event or problem.

Cardinal Bellarmine gave a well known example of the older sense of the word in his warning to Galileo in the early 17th century: that he must not treat the motion of the Earth as a reality, but merely as a hypothesis.

Today, a hypothesis refers to an idea that needs to be tested . A hypothesis needs more work by the researcher in order to check it. A tested hypothesis that works, may become part of a theory or become a theory itself. The testing should be an attempt to prove the hypothesis is wrong. That is, there should be a way to falsify the hypothesis, at least in principle.

People often call a hypothesis an "educated guess".

Experimenters may test and reject several hypotheses before solving the problem.

A 'working hypothesis' is just a rough kind of hypothesis that is provisionally accepted as a basis for further research. The hope is that a theory will be produced, even if the hypothesis ultimately fails.

Hypotheses are especially important in science. Several philosophers have said that without hypotheses there could be no science. In recent years, philosophers of science have tried to integrate the various approaches to testing hypotheses, and the scientific method in general, to form a more complete system. The point is that hypotheses are suggested ideas which are then tested by experiments or observations .

In statistics , people talk about correlation : correlation is how closely related two events or phenomena are. A proposition (or hypothesis) that two events are related cannot be tested in the same way as a law of nature is tested. An example would be to see if some drug is effective to treat a given medical condition. Even if there is a strong correlation that indicates that this is the case, some samples would still not fit the hypothesis.

There are two hypotheses in statistical tests, called the null hypothesis and the alternative hypothesis. The null hypothesis states that there is no link between the phenomena. The alternative hypothesis states that there is some kind of link. The alternative hypothesis may take several forms. It can be two-sided (for example: there is some effect, in a yet unknown direction) or one-sided (the direction of the supposed relation, positive or negative, is fixed in advance).

Falsifiability
Thought experiment
This page was last modified on 16 October 2023, at 16:53. Suggest an edit .

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Difference Between Making a Hypothesis and Prediction

difference between hypothesis and prediction

DESCRIPTION difference between hypothesis and prediction
SOURCE Firebach / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Hypothesis and prediction are commonly used interchangeably. But are they the same? Learning the difference between hypothesis and prediction comes down to science. Explore hypothesis vs. prediction through examples of each one.

Difference Between a Hypothesis and Prediction

Hypothesis and prediction are both a type of guess. That’s why many people get the two confused. However, the hypothesis is an educated, testable guess in science. A prediction uses observable phenomena to make a future projection. However, prophets can also make predictions based on nothing at all. To get a good understanding of how a hypothesis differs from a prediction, it’s best to look at each term individually.

What Is a Hypothesis?

Scientists make hypotheses before doing experiments. These help guide their research for an unexplained phenomenon. Therefore, a hypothesis is an explanation for why a specific occurrence or problem is happening. Scientists use the scientific method when creating and testing a hypothesis through experimentation.

While hypotheses come in different forms from simple to statistical, it always defines the independent and dependent variables to be tested. It also uses precise language that is testable during experiments. You could call a hypothesis a testable guess.

Hypothesis Examples

Understanding a hypothesis can be hard. Check out some different hypothesis examples to better understand this intelligent estimation type.

Consuming greasy high-fat content foods causes more skin oils and breakouts.
Getting eight hours of sleep makes for more productive employees.
Instituting relaxation sessions within the workday makes for happier employees.
Fewer than 8 hours of sleep causes less productivity.
Employees that are happier in their positions work harder.

All these different hypotheses clarify the variables and are testable.

What Is a Prediction in Science?

Just like a hypothesis, a prediction is a type of guess. However, a prediction is an estimation made from observations. For example, you observe that every time the wind blows, flower petals fall from the tree. Therefore, you could predict that if the wind blows, petals will fall from the tree. Based on your observations of the wind and the tree, this is a good prediction of future behavior. Therefore, by definition, a prediction is making a statement of what will happen in the future.

In science, a prediction is what you expect to happen if your hypothesis is true. So, based on the hypothesis you’ve created, you can predict the outcome of the experiment. For example, if you hypothesize that greasy food leads to skin outbreaks, then you can write a prediction as an if, then statements like “if the person eats greasy food, then the person will have a skin outbreak.” And that’s how prediction works.

Prediction Examples

Need a few more examples of predictions? Explore these unique predictions to clarify the difference between hypothesis and prediction.

If the individual consumes greasy foods, then the person will have more skin oils and breakouts.
If the individual gets eight hours of sleep, then the individual will be more productive.
If the employer institutes a relaxation session in the workday, then the employees will be happier.
If the individual gets fewer than 8 hours of sleep, then the individual will be less productive.
If the employees are happier, then the workplace will be more productive.

Hypothesis vs. Prediction

Now that you’ve seen a hypothesis and prediction in action, it’s time to break the two down in a simple table.


	Explanation of a phenomenon	Event that will occur if phenomenon is true
	Explains why something happens	Forecasts future event
	Statement with variables	If, then statement
	Cholesterol of higher than 400 leads to heart disease	If someone has cholesterol of higher than 400, then they have heart disease.

Using Predictions and Hypothesis in Science

Predictions and hypotheses work in science to help clarify an experiment. Not only are you using the hypothesis to determine the independent and dependent variables to be tested, but you are predicting what will happen if you are right.

Don’t end your learning with prediction vs. hypothesis, keep this scientific win going by looking at how to create a hypothesis .

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KS2 Science Investigation Planning Sheet

Subject: Primary science

Age range: 7-11

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

14 February 2022

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Science investigation planning sheet for LA, MA and HA. Suitable for KS2 science investigations.

Planning sheet allows children to plan their: investigation question, list of equipment, method steps, independent variables, dependent variables, controlled variables and hypothesis.

Can be used for any scientific investigation or experiment.

LA sheet heavily scaffolds children’s hypothesis. MA sheet gives children the freedom to plan their own investigation, with a scaffolded structure. HA sheet questions children’s investigation choices.

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Education Resources Information Center - Understanding Hypotheses, Predictions, Laws, and Theories
Simply Psychology - Research Hypothesis: Definition, Types, & Examples
Cornell University - The Learning Strategies Center - Hypothesis
Washington State University - Developing a Hypothesis
Verywell Mind - Forming a Good Hypothesis for Scientific Research
BCCampus Publishing - Research Methods for the Social Sciences: An Introduction - Hypotheses

hypothesis , something supposed or taken for granted, with the object of following out its consequences (Greek hypothesis , “a putting under,” the Latin equivalent being suppositio ).

Discussion with Kara Rogers of how the scientific model is used to test a hypothesis or represent a theory

In planning a course of action, one may consider various alternatives , working out each in detail. Although the word hypothesis is not typically used in this case, the procedure is virtually the same as that of an investigator of crime considering various suspects. Different methods may be used for deciding what the various alternatives may be, but what is fundamental is the consideration of a supposal as if it were true, without actually accepting it as true. One of the earliest uses of the word in this sense was in geometry . It is described by Plato in the Meno .

The most important modern use of a hypothesis is in relation to scientific investigation . A scientist is not merely concerned to accumulate such facts as can be discovered by observation: linkages must be discovered to connect those facts. An initial puzzle or problem provides the impetus , but clues must be used to ascertain which facts will help yield a solution. The best guide is a tentative hypothesis, which fits within the existing body of doctrine. It is so framed that, with its help, deductions can be made that under certain factual conditions (“initial conditions”) certain other facts would be found if the hypothesis were correct.

The concepts involved in the hypothesis need not themselves refer to observable objects. However, the initial conditions should be able to be observed or to be produced experimentally, and the deduced facts should be able to be observed. William Harvey ’s research on circulation in animals demonstrates how greatly experimental observation can be helped by a fruitful hypothesis. While a hypothesis can be partially confirmed by showing that what is deduced from it with certain initial conditions is actually found under those conditions, it cannot be completely proved in this way. What would have to be shown is that no other hypothesis would serve. Hence, in assessing the soundness of a hypothesis, stress is laid on the range and variety of facts that can be brought under its scope. Again, it is important that it should be capable of being linked systematically with hypotheses which have been found fertile in other fields.

If the predictions derived from the hypothesis are not found to be true, the hypothesis may have to be given up or modified. The fault may lie, however, in some other principle forming part of the body of accepted doctrine which has been utilized in deducing consequences from the hypothesis. It may also lie in the fact that other conditions, hitherto unobserved, are present beside the initial conditions, affecting the result. Thus the hypothesis may be kept, pending further examination of facts or some remodeling of principles. A good illustration of this is to be found in the history of the corpuscular and the undulatory hypotheses about light .

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What is the general election?

Part of Citizenship Understanding the world around me Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6

General election

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that a general election will take place on 4 July.

Because the UK is a parliamentary democracy, we have the right to vote for who runs the country every 5 years.

A general election is when voters decide who their member of parliament * (MP) will be. MPs belong to political parties and the party with the most MPs can form a government to make laws and other decisions to run the country.

Citizenship

What is democracy?

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What is democracy? Learn more about participating in democracy.

Video Transcript Video Transcript

VOICEOVER : Have you heard of democracy? What is it?

CHILD 1 : Democracy is when people have a say on how they want their country run.

CHILD 2 : And it lets us elect someone who’s called a Prime Minister.

CHILD 3 : And the leader decides on important policies.

VOICEOVER : The word democracy means “rule by the people”, meaning each of us has a say in how our country is run. We do this by voting in elections for people in different political parties. Elections take place all over the country and we vote for someone in these parties to represent us in parliament. The party with the most elected members will form the UK government.

Although in this country we have a ‘monarch’, another word for king or queen, The UK Government is led by the Prime Minister and they are in charge!

What do you think members of parliament help to do?

CHILD 2 : They like listen to their town’s ideas and then they represent them in the Houses of Parliament.

CHILD 1 : MPs help us and support our ideas to get them to the government to make them into rules.

CHILD 4 : They ask questions and ask for changes to be made.

VOICEOVER : MPs do lots of different things, from answering questions, to debating and voting on UK laws to protect us. Why do you think it’s important for us to have democracy?

CHILD 3 : It’s important for people to have a say on who their leaders should be.

CHILD 2 : It gives us freedom of speech.

CHILD 4 : It can bring about change in lots of areas that can affect everyday people.

CHILD 5 : t helps things to be fair and so we have equality.

CHILD 2 : It lets us make and change laws that protect us from harm.

CHILD 1 : People can vote.

VOICEOVER : Being able to vote is a key part of democracy. Voting is a way to have your say on things that matter to you, and it means that everyone can be involved in important decision-making.

Can you think of a time you’ve voted?

CHILD 3 : We vote on what our treats should be spent on, what movie to watch.

CHILD 2 : I voted for form captain - we have to choose someone that we think will be sensible.

CHILD 1 : I voted for the student voice in our school so that I can have a school which is happier and nicer.

VOICEOVER : Having democracy means we can all play a part in how our country is run and have a say in the things that affect us.

What things are important to you, either in your local community or the country as a whole? It’s never too early to get involved and have a say!

Bitesize Citizenship- What is democracy?

Newsround- How do you vote in a general election?

Where is the election held?

The general election is held across the UK. This means that the nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all get to vote in the general election.

The entire UK is divided into 650 small areas called constituencies . Each constituency has its own MP to represent it. As well as helping to govern the whole country, MPs represent their constituency.

Some come from cities, others from the country and different things might be important to the people in their local area.

A cartoon map of the UK showing England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and their capital cities: London, Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff. It also shows the Atlantic Ocean, English Sea, Irish Sea and North Sea surrounding the UK.

Living in the UK

Who can vote in the general election?

How do politicians persuade people?

A hand holding a piece of paper with the word manifesto.

Bitesize- Exploring persuasive writing

Bitesize- Debating and presenting information

More from BBC Teach

Teach- The suffragettes

Teach- How to write a persuasive text

Teach- British values: Democracy

More on Understanding the world around me

Find out more by working through a topic

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Hypothesis
What is a Hypothesis
Hypothesis
Hypothesis Testing Lesson for Kids: Examples & Definition
Hypothesis

VIDEO

Concept of Hypothesis
What Is A Hypothesis?
Define hypothesis
proofs exist only in mathematics
Hypothesis Testing
Scientific Method Galileo

COMMENTS

Writing a hypothesis and prediction
A hypothesis is an idea about how something works that can be tested using experiments. A prediction says what will happen in an experiment if the hypothesis is correct. Presenter 1: We are going ...
Planning an investigation (CCEA) Hypothesis
Hypothesis A hypothesis or prediction is made with limited evidence at the beginning of a scientific investigation. Biological knowledge should be used to justify the prediction.
Hypothesis Lesson for Kids: Definition & Examples
Problem 1. a) There is a positive relationship between the length of a pendulum and the period of the pendulum. This is a prediction that can be tested by various experiments. Problem 2. c) Diets ...
How To Write A Hypothesis
Step Three - Outline your hypothesis - Frame it as a cause and effect, like "if X is done, then Y will happen.". Make a prediction as to what will happen. You will also need to consider the ethics of what you are doing carefully. Step Four - Do the legwork - Conduct your research, go out into the field and investigate.
Understanding Hypotheses
A hypothesis is a statement or idea which gives an explanation to a series of observations. Sometimes, following observation, a hypothesis will clearly need to be refined or rejected. This happens if a single contradictory observation occurs. For example, suppose that a child is trying to understand the concept of a dog.
science fair project
An ice cube will melt in less than 30 minutes. You could put sit and watch the ice cube melt and think you've proved a hypothesis. But you will have missed some important steps. For a good science fair project you need to do quite a bit of research before any experimenting. Start by finding some information about how and why water melts.
How to Write a Hypothesis: Lesson for Kids
Follow this easy formula to write a strong hypothesis: If (I do this), then (this will happen). We call this an if - then statement. Here are some examples of an if - then statement: If I use ...
How do scientists write predictions and conclusions?
Before the start of the experiment or test, scientists usually make a prediction. This is a scientific guess about what you think will happen and what the result of the experiment will be when you ...
Writing a Hypothesis for Your Science Fair Project
A hypothesis is a tentative, testable answer to a scientific question. Once a scientist has a scientific question she is interested in, the scientist reads up to find out what is already known on the topic. Then she uses that information to form a tentative answer to her scientific question. Sometimes people refer to the tentative answer as "an ...
How to Write a Strong Hypothesis
Developing a hypothesis (with example) Step 1. Ask a question. Writing a hypothesis begins with a research question that you want to answer. The question should be focused, specific, and researchable within the constraints of your project. Example: Research question.
hypothesis
The meaning of hypothesis. Definition of hypothesis. Best online English dictionaries for children, with kid-friendly definitions, integrated thesaurus for kids, images, and animations. ... This chapter explains scientists' new hypothesis about the birth of stars. similar words: theory: related words: guess: derivation: hypothesist (n.) Word ...
What is a scientific hypothesis?
Bibliography. A scientific hypothesis is a tentative, testable explanation for a phenomenon in the natural world. It's the initial building block in the scientific method. Many describe it as an ...
Hypothesis Definition (Illustrated Mathematics Dictionary)
Hypothesis. A statement that could be true, which might then be tested. Example: Sam has a hypothesis that "large dogs are better at catching tennis balls than small dogs". We can test that hypothesis by having hundreds of different sized dogs try to catch tennis balls. Sometimes the hypothesis won't be tested, it is simply a good explanation ...
Hypothesis Facts for Kids
A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for some event or problem. Cardinal Bellarmine gave a well known example of the older sense of the word in his warning to Galileo in the early 17th century: that he must not treat the motion of the Earth as a reality, but merely as a hypothesis. Today, a hypothesis refers to an idea that needs to be tested.
Parts of a Science Experiment
Once they understand and remember these, it'll be much easier to teach them the next steps. Here are the five main steps of the Scientific Method: Observation - Observe something happening in the world. Question - Ask a question based on the observation. Hypothesis - Formulate a theory of why this observed event happens.
Science Investigation Write Up Example- KS2 (teacher made)
Use this Science Investigation Write up Example for KS2 with your science class to help guide them as they write up a scientific report. The ideal accompaniment to science investigation and experiments, this sheet will teach your students what a good lab report will include. This worksheet outlines sections such as the introduction, conclusion, method and materials which your child should be ...
Difference Between Making a Hypothesis and Prediction
The difference between hypothesis and prediction is explained through explanations & examples. Use our simple table for hypothesis vs prediction reference. ... Therefore, by definition, a prediction is making a statement of what will happen in the future. In science, a prediction is what you expect to happen if your hypothesis is true. So ...
KS2 Science Investigation Planning Sheet
Science investigation planning sheet for LA, MA and HA. Suitable for KS2 science investigations. Planning sheet allows children to plan their: investigation question, list of equipment, method steps, independent variables, dependent variables, controlled variables and hypothesis. Can be used for any scientific investigation or experiment.
Conclude and evaluate
Step-by-step guide to using information to support conclusions. Image caption, Step 1 - Data interpretation. A good conclusion describes the relationship between variables, interpreted from a ...
Hypothesis
hypothesis, something supposed or taken for granted, with the object of following out its consequences (Greek hypothesis, "a putting under," the Latin equivalent being suppositio ). Discussion with Kara Rogers of how the scientific model is used to test a hypothesis or represent a theory. Kara Rogers, senior biomedical sciences editor of ...
The Daily Show Fan Page
The source for The Daily Show fans, with episodes hosted by Jon Stewart, Ronny Chieng, Jordan Klepper, Dulcé Sloan and more, plus interviews, highlights and The Weekly Show podcast.
Variables
During experiments, factors that can change are called variables. A variable is anything that can change and be measured. Two important types of variables are: Independent variables - the ...
KS2
KS2. Key Stage 2 is a phase of primary education for pupils aged 7 to 11 in England and Wales. Part of Learn & revise. All KS2 subjects. These subjects may contain both Guides for students and ...
General Election
Politicians need to persuade people. This means trying to get people to agree to their point of view. Before the election, the political parties have to tell us why it would be a good idea to vote ...