C122 words · Advanced

Doing Science vocabulary — C1

Science vocabulary such as calibrate, reagent and centrifuge, plus hypothesis, correlation and standard deviation. Words for describing rigorous scientific method.

22 questions

Words in this set

calibrate
/ˈkæləˌbreɪt/
To adjust an instrument carefully so that its readings are exactly right.
Example: We calibrate the scales every morning before any testing.
sterile
/ˈstɛrəl/
Completely free of germs, because everything has been cleaned or heated to kill them.
Example: Surgeons work in a sterile room with filtered air.
contaminate
/kənˈtæməˌneɪt/
To make something dirty or unsafe by letting a harmful substance get into it.
Example: One dirty pipette can contaminate the whole sample.
sterilize
/ˈstɛrəˌlaɪz/
To make equipment completely clean and free from bacteria or germs, often using heat.
Example: Nurses sterilize the equipment before every use.
reagent
/riˈeɪdʒənt/
A chemical substance used in a lab test because of the reaction it causes with other substances.
Example: Adding the reagent made the solution turn bright blue.
titration
A lab method used to find the exact amount of a substance in a liquid by slowly adding another liquid to it.
Example: Titration showed exactly how much acid was in the sample.
centrifuge
/ˈsɛntrəˌfjudʒ/
A machine that spins samples at high speed to separate substances of different densities.
Example: The blood sample was spun in a centrifuge to separate its parts.
dissect
/daɪˈsɛkt/
To cut open a plant, animal, or organ carefully in order to study it.
Example: Students learned to dissect a frog in biology class.
extract
/ˈɛkˌstrækt/
To carefully remove or take out a substance from something else, often using a chemical process.
Example: Scientists extract the oil from the plant's seeds.
precise
/prɪˈsaɪs/
Exact and accurate, with no errors, especially in a measurement.
Example: The scale gives a precise reading, down to a tenth of a gram.
ratio
/ˈreɪʃiˌoʊ/
A way of showing how two amounts compare, such as three of one for every two of the other.
Example: The ratio of staff to students has improved this term.
precision
/priˈsɪʒən/
The quality of being exact, giving very nearly the same result every single time.
Example: These sensors measure temperature with remarkable precision.
skew
/skju/
To affect results in a way that makes them give a false picture.
Example: A few unusual answers can skew the whole survey.
variance
/ˈvɛriəns/
A measure of how spread out a set of numbers is from the average.
Example: The high variance in the results suggests the test was unreliable.
coefficient
/ˌkoʊəˈfɪʃənt/
A number used to measure a particular property or relationship in a calculation or formula.
Example: The coefficient in the equation shows how strongly the two factors are linked.
quantify
/ˈkwɑntɪˌfaɪ/
To measure or express something as an exact amount or number.
Example: It's hard to quantify exactly how happy people feel.
benchmark
/ˈbɛntʃˌmɑrk/
A standard or point of reference used to compare and judge the quality of something.
Example: The new results were compared against last year's benchmark.
outlier
/ˈaʊtlaɪər/
A value in a set of data that is very different from all the others.
Example: One extremely high score was clearly an outlier.
standard deviation
A measure of how much the values in a set of data vary from the average.
Example: A low standard deviation means the results were very consistent.
sample size
The number of people or items included in a survey, test, or study.
Example: A bigger sample size makes a survey result more reliable.
hypothesis
/haɪˈpɑθəsəs/
An idea suggested as a possible explanation, which you then test to see if it is true.
Example: Their hypothesis was that the plants grow faster with more light.
correlation
/ˌkɔrəˈleɪʃən/
A link between two things that tend to rise and fall together, though one may not cause the other.
Example: There's a strong correlation between sleep and exam results.