SCI 100 Module Three Activity Template: Finalizing Your Scientific Research Question
Instructions
Select one research question from those you wrote in the previous module. Use instructor feedback and what you have learned thus far in the course to revise your research question. Then, write your finalized research question below.
Main idea of news story:
Man’s genes play a critical role in having more sons than daughters and vice versa. This Article argues that a man with many brothers has a higher probability of having sons than a man with many sisters, as he is more likely to have daughters.
Possible research questions:
Does having a boy or girl run in the family?
Will men with more brothers than sisters have more sons or daughters?
Does sex-ratio for families follow the father’s or mother’s side?
Finalized research question:
Does family history determine the gender of the child?
Finalize your scientific research question related to the main idea of your chosen news story.
Does family history determine the gender of the child?
Explain how your beliefs, assumptions, and values may have impacted your research question.
I had an assumption that it would be easier to conduct a family tree survey to determine whether the father’s family determines the genes of a child. Still, I think it may not be practical given the nature of family tree surveys. It is now clear that the gender of a child can be determined through conducting interviews in a random sample of the population while asking questions on the history of gender in their family. I assume that interviews are easier than surveys.