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Why Did Visitors at Magic Mountain Get Sick?

Why Did Visitors at Magic Mountain Get Sick? Last week, 36 people at Magic Mountain were rushed to the hospital due to stomach cramps, fever, and uncontrollable vomiting. You are a forensic pathologist who must figure out what made them sick. Thinking Like a Scientist: Observation

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Why Did Visitors at Magic Mountain Get Sick?

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  1. Why Did Visitors at Magic Mountain Get Sick? Last week, 36 people at Magic Mountain were rushed to the hospital due to stomach cramps, fever, and uncontrollable vomiting. You are a forensic pathologist who must figure out what made them sick.

  2. Thinking Like a Scientist: Observation Scientific thinking begins with observation, the process of gathering information. List some observations about the pictures above that might help us in our investigation.

  3. Thinking Like a Scientist: Collecting Data Data is the information that is gathered during observation. What type of questions could we ask that would help us gather more data? • Did the sick people ride any roller coasters? • How many roller coasters did they ride? • Did the sick people drink alcohol that day? • How much alcohol did they drink? • What kind of food did the sick people eat? • How much food did they eat?

  4. Thinking Like a Scientist: Data • Did the sick people ride any roller coasters? Most of them rode Full Throttle • How many roller coasters did they ride? 4-6 roller coasters each • Did the sick people drink alcohol that day? Most of them drank Coronas • How much alcohol did they drink? 0-6 beers • What kind of food did the sick people eat? They all ate BBQ ribs at the Yosemite Sam Grill • How much food did they eat? They all ate 16-20 oz of pork ribs

  5. Thinking Like a Scientist: Data • Did the sick people ride any roller coasters? Most of them rode Full Throttle • How many roller coasters did they ride? 4-6 roller coasters each • Did the sick people drink alcohol that day? Most of them drank Coronas • How much alcohol did they drink? 0-6 beers • What kind of food did the sick people eat? They all ate BBQ ribs at the Yosemite Sam Grill • How much food did they eat? They all ate 16-20 oz of pork ribs Quantitative data can be counted or measured

  6. Thinking Like a Scientist: Data • Did the sick people ride any roller coasters? Most of them rode Full Throttle • How many roller coasters did they ride? 4-6 roller coasters each • Did the sick people drink alcohol that day? Most of them drank Coronas • How much alcohol did they drink? 0-6 beers • What kind of food did the sick people eat? They all ate BBQ ribs at the Yosemite Sam Grill • How much food did they eat? They all ate 16-20 oz of pork ribs Qualitative data cannot be counted or measured

  7. Thinking Like a Scientist: Inference • Did the sick people ride any roller coasters? Most of them rode Full Throttle • How many roller coasters did they ride? 4-6 roller coasters each • Did the sick people drink alcohol that day? Most of them drank Coronas • How much alcohol did they drink? 0-6 beers • What kind of food did the sick people eat? They all ate BBQ ribs at the Yosemite Sam Grill • How much food did they eat? They all ate 16-20 oz of pork ribs Based on the data, we can make an inference (logical guess) that the cause of the sickness was food poisoning.

  8. Thinking Like a Scientist: Hypothesis We now have a hypothesis (proposed explanation): the cause of the sickness was food poisoning due to tainted pork ribs. We based our hypothesis on inference.

  9. How could we test this hypothesis? Analysis of meat shows traces of the parasitic worm Trichinella. It is common, and is normally killed by cooking.

  10. Our hypothesis is supported! Can we now consider it a theory?

  11. Hypothesis vs. Theory A hypothesis does not become a theory until it has been tested many, many times under different conditions. Our hypothesis is supported, but it is not yet a theory. The meat company also supplies pork to Universal Studios and Disneyland. Did anyone there get sick? Does their meat test positive for trichinella?

  12. Revising the Hypothesis New data might emerge that requires us to revise our hypothesis. We learn that 20 other people at Magic Mountain that day ate chorizo made from the same pork. They didn’t get sick! Maybe it was the barbecue sauce?

  13. Summary • Observations lead data • Data leads to inference • Inference leads to hypothesis • Hypothesis may be supported, but it is not yet a theory • A theory is well-supported – it has been tested many times

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