Quantitative Skills for AP Biology Flashcards
Terms : Hide Images [1]
| 5477700049 | hypothesis | A plausible and testable explanation for observed phenomena. |  | 0 |
| 5477700050 | independent variable | The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied. |  | 1 |
| 5477700051 | dependent variable | The variable that responds to manipulations of the independent variable. The data. |  | 2 |
| 5477700052 | confounding variable | Any extraneous variable that affects the variables being studied so that the results do not reflect an actual relationship between the variables under investigation. |  | 3 |
| 5477700053 | quantitative data | Data based on quantities (numerical data). |  | 4 |
| 5477700054 | qualitative data | Data based on qualities (non-numerical data). |  | 5 |
| 5477700057 | control group | The empirical group that does not receive the independent variable. Serves as a basis for comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment. |  | 6 |
| 5477700058 | experimental group | The empirical group that is exposed to the independent variable. |  | 7 |
| 5477700060 | pseudoscience | A body of ideas clothed in the jargon and outward appearance of science but was not created with the standards required of the scientific method. |  | 8 |
| 5477700062 | statistics | The study of the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation and presentation of data. |  | 9 |
| 5477700063 | population (N) | A complete set of items (people, animals, etc.) that have at least one thing in common and are the subject of the statistical analysis. |  | 10 |
| 5477700064 | sample (n) | A subset of individuals selected from the population. |  | 11 |
| 5477700068 | normal distribution | A unimodal, symmetrical, bell-shaped distribution of data. |  | 12 |
| 5477700074 | standard deviation | A measurement measures the amount of variation or dispersion from the mean. |  | 13 |
| 5477700075 | standard error | A statistic used to make an inference about how well the sample mean matches up to the true population mean. |  | 14 |
| 5477700082 | mean | A measure of central tendency determined by adding all scores together and dividing by the number of scores. Often referred to as the statistical average. |  | 15 |
| 5477700083 | sampling | The selection of a subset of individuals from within a statistical population to estimate characteristics of the whole population. |  | 16 |
| 5477700085 | error bars | A graphical representation of the variability of data and are used on graphs to indicate the error, or uncertainty in a reported measurement. |  | 17 |
| 5477700086 | median | A measure of central tendency, represented by the score that separates the upper half of the scores in a distribution from the lower half. |  | 18 |
| 5477700087 | mode | Measure of central tendency that refers to the most frequently occurring scores. |  | 19 |
| 5477700088 | Chi-square test | A statistical hypothesis test that measures the difference between observed frequencies and expected frequencies. |  | 20 |
| 5477700089 | null hypothesis | Hypothesis that predicts NO relationship between variables. |  | 21 |
| 5477700090 | alternative hypothesis | Hypothesis that predicts a relationship DOES EXIST between variables. |  | 22 |
| 5477700091 | degrees freedom | The number of ways by which a dynamic system can move without violating any constraint imposed on it. (n-1) |  | 23 |
| 5477700092 | critical value | A cutoff value corresponding to a given significance level. |  | 24 |
| 5477700093 | p-value | A predetermined choice of test certainty. The smaller the p-value, the more confidence can be claimed. |  | 25 |
| 5477700094 | mathematical modelling | A description of a system using mathematical concepts and language. |  | 26 |
| 5477700097 | Occam's razor | A principle that states that among competing hypotheses, the one with the fewest assumptions should be selected. |  | 27 |