What does our results show?

The results we collected from our experiment were not what we expected. Our hypothesis was if the water temperature increased than the rate (insert slope of line. Average. Compare) at which the fish consumed oxygen would also increase and if the water temperature decreased than the rate at which the fish consumed oxygen would also decrease. Unfortunately, that is not what our data shows. The data we got did not show whether our hypothesis was right or wrong. The graphs we have to show a decrease in oxygen right in the beginning, then it increases, and towards the end, it starts to decrease again. There are many changes we could have made to get the results we wanted, in order to prove our hypothesis right or wrong.

Error Analysis

Every experiment has some source of error that may have occurred. In our experiment, we had a lot of error which had a significant affect on our data. We used a container which was too big for the small fish we used. This caused the data to be off because the probe didn't pick up the signal because the space was so large with such a little fish. Another error was the chamber may not have been airtight. This is problematic because if oxygen was getting into the chamber, even if it's the slightest bit, then it completely messes up the data and doesn't give us the results we were looking for. Error had a considerable impact on our data. We can’t trust the data we have to answer the question “How do different temperatures affect a fish respiratory system?”

Changes/Ideas for the future

There are many changes we would make if we were to do this experiment again. One thing we could have done better is making a more well thought out plan which thought about the problems we may encounter. Another thing we would do is instead of using a large container (which may not have been completely airtight) for a small fish; we would use a smaller container with less volume to get better results. Lastly, instead of using a very delicate crab which was hard to keep alive, we should have just went straight into using goldfish which are more hardy.

What we learned

Over the course of this project we have had many errors but have learned from them all. In our first experiment we made the mistake of using tropical crabs which were very delicate. We thought this was going to work because of all the background information we had done, but no where we read said that they were very hard to keep alive. What we learned from this was that we should be more thorough and make sure we know what we are getting ourselves into before we do it. We needed to learn to plan ahead more. This does not just apply to school it also is useful in many life circumstances and will be helpful for us to know going into high school and the rest of our lives. Not only did we learn these skills but we also learned how to use our materials. We learned how to use a dissolved oxygen probe and temperature probe. We also learned how to use a computer program called Vernier Graphical Analysis that helped us graph and keep track of our data.