Suppose the student's data show that the tomato plants that received the least sunlight produced the heaviest tomatoes. However, the plants that received the most sunlight produced tomatoes with the largest volume. What would be the best thing for the student to do next? Reject his hypothesis completely and assume that sunlight has no effect on tomato size. Revise his hypothesis to clarify what he means by the size of the tomatoes. Discard the data that contradict his hypothesis.

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Physics

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17 July, 21:39

Suppose the student's data show that the tomato plants that received the least sunlight produced the heaviest tomatoes. However, the plants that received the most sunlight produced tomatoes with the largest volume. What would be the best thing for the student to do next? Reject his hypothesis completely and assume that sunlight has no effect on tomato size. Revise his hypothesis to clarify what he means by the size of the tomatoes. Discard the data that contradict his hypothesis.

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Tommy Farrell · Answer 1

The student should follow the second choice, to revise his hypothesis and clarify what he means by tomato size. It is important in every study to define what is being measured (the dependent variable), and it is ideal to define this in terms of a quantitative measure so the numbers can be easily compared. In this case, the student must clarify whether his definition of "size" refers to mass or volume.