Saturday, January 16, 2010

What is a control group, independent variable and a dependent variable?

I know that a variable is something that can be changed but I dont understand. If you could answer my question and also give a brief example that would be great. Thanks!What is a control group, independent variable and a dependent variable?
This is usually an easy one to understand-


The more you water plants, the more they grow.


In this example, the independent variable would be water on the plants, because that is what you know you are going to be changing. The dependent variable will be plant growth, because it depends on how much water you give the plants. The control would be plants that aren't being watered, because control is what you compare the results to. If you just watered the plants, you wouldn't know if it has an affect unless you have something to compare it to, such as plants that have no water.

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