Sunday, July 6, 2014

A student is observing the motion of an ant. Which pair of tools is he most likely using?

There are a variety of tools which a student may find useful to observe the motion of an ant. The selection of tools depends on what type of information the student wishes to gather. 


For example, if the student is merely interested in the total distance traveled by the ant, a ruler is sufficient. However, if the student is interested in the ant's speed (rate of travel) a stopwatch will also be required. If the student is interested in the direction of the ant's motion, a compass will be needed. If the student is interested in a record of the ant's movement, a video capture device may be helpful, or a paper on which to track the ant's path with a pencil.


If the student is interested in ant movements other than walking (antenna wiggling, mouth usage or feeding, grooming (self-cleaning) behaviors, interaction with other ants or insects, etc.) then a magnifying glass will be a useful tool.

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