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The Measures of Science Science Process Skills

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The Measures of Science
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Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 5 to 7
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	9.65

Vocabulary

challenging words:

scaling, sundial, metric, customary, numerical, planetary, volume, estimate, measurement, various, judgments, based, imagine, extremely, clocks, grams

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The Measures of Science By Trista L. Pollard

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¹     Imagine a world where we did not know the boiling point of water. What if we could not record growth of plants and animals? How would you know the weekend had begun if you could not keep count of days, weeks, and months? Measurement has been an important part of our lives for centuries, and it is the reason that scientists can compare objects and events quantitatively. Scientists rely on measuring to describe comparisons numerically by using standard tools, models, scaling, sampling, and estimating.
 
²     Before standard tools like rulers, clocks, and scales, people used everyday objects to help find measurements or quantities of other objects. For example, an adult foot was used to measure length. Large stones may have been used in simple balances to help measure the weight of objects. The sundial, the earliest form of the clock, used the shadows from the sun to help keep track of time. Today scientists use various tools like rulers, graduated cylinders, and scales to measure in English units (i.e., inches, feet, etc.) and metric units (i.e. centimeters, millimeters, etc.). Graduated cylinders are used to measure the volume of quantities of liquids in milliliters or fluid ounces. Scales can be used to measure the weight of objects in grams and milligrams or ounces and pounds. Scientists also use thermometers and barometers to measure temperature and air pressure.
 
³     Scientists build models and use scaling to represent objects that are far too large to show at their true size. Models are smaller objects that are built to represent the detail of larger objects. Scientists use smaller measurements that are in proportion or scaled to the measurements of the larger object the model represents. Scaling is also done to represent extremely large distances between objects, such as the planets in our solar system. Another example of scaling would be when architects build models of buildings. These models may have a scale where every inch on the model is scaled to a certain amount of feet in height for the real buildings. When scientists build models, they are providing a visual image that helps others to understand scientific concepts (such as planetary motion) and objects (such as high speed trains).

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Science Process Skills

Science Process Skills

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Science

Science

Careers in Science         Caring for Earth         Clouds         Dinosaurs         Earth's Land         Earth         Earthquakes         Electricity         Energy         Erosion         Food Pyramid         Food Webs and Food Chain         Forces and Motion         Fossils         Health and Nutrition         How Things Work         Landforms         Life Science         Light         Magnets         Matter

Moon         Natural Disasters         Photosynthesis         Plant and Animal Cells         Plants         Rocks and Minerals         Science Process Skills         Scientific Notation         Seasons         Simple Machines         Soil         Solar System         Sound         Space and Stars         Sun         Tsunami         Volcanoes         Water Cycle         Water         Weather

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