Experiments in Mrs. Houtz's Biology Class
by Taylor Wilson
Students in Mrs. Houtz’s biology classes started the year by learning more about experimental design. The students participated in a blind taste test of two beverages, both fruit punch flavored. The taste test was conducted to allow students to become a part of an experiment. Mrs. Houtz compiled the data to share with the class so they could see an example of how this was done. The two beverages tested were G2 and SoBe Life Water. Those beverages were selected to allow students to see that healthy beverages actually do taste good. This was related to a bigger theme of making good healthy eating choices to maintain healthy bodies. Data from the CDC on United States obesity rates were shared with students in an attempt to help them understand the magnitude of this topic.
The results of the blind taste test revealed that 62% of the students preferred the flavor of G2 over SoBe Life Water. An astounding 87% of the males preferred the G2 and 54% of the females preferred the flavor of G2.
Students then were placed into groups and asked to design an experiment using proper scientific method that would help the classes to better understand healthy eating choices. Each hour voted on one experiment to conduct during their class period. Here are the experiments by hour: 2nd hour – Baked Chips vs. Regular Chips, 3rd hour – Would students chose to eat a healthy snack if that was all that was available, 6th hour – Choosing between one regular Oreo cookie or 4 mini Oreo cookies (students did not know these choices contained the same amount of calories), 7th -- Sunny Delight vs. Minute Maid orange juice. Students created a poster to display their results.
The data collected showed that students did prefer the regular fried chips over the baked chips during the 2nd hour experiment. During the 3rd hour experiment data showed that students were willing to eat the healthy snack when it was all that was provided. When selecting an Oreo cookie as a snack, more students chose the large cookie over the 4 small cookies. Many stated that the large cookie has more filling so they prefer the large size. During 7th hour it was documented that most students preferred the Sunny Delight.
All results were analyzed with considerations of how the data could help students understand the food preferences and possible changes that could be made to maintain health.
