Hobbies And Interests
Making a Hypothesis
A good experiment can be supplemented with research and existing fact in order to make a calculated guess as to what your scientific outcomes will be after gathering data. Every good hypothesis begins with a question that you would like to answer, such as: What do pigeons prefer to eat? Be sure to research common foods eaten by both rural and urban pigeon populations before selecting which foods you would like to test. Select a variety of feeding options, and be sure you do not choose anything that is harmful or poisonous to pigeons -- this is why research is important! Once you have selected your foods, make an educated guess as to which food your pigeons will prefer.
Collecting and Designing Materials
To get the most accurate data possible, you will need to decide on what type of measuring device you will use to measure food levels both before and after the feeding period. As the foods may have different volumes (for example, corn vs. seed) you may want to consider comparing portion measurement differences (before and after) by percent change in the volumes of each portion. You will also want to decide what type of feeding container you want to use, such as an empty egg carton, or perhaps a feeder of your own design. A wider variety of food sources, such as 6-8 different foods, may yield more interesting and nuanced data and discovery.
Gathering Data
It is important to determine your desired length of observation or study -- sometimes you may want the data to be collected over a longer period of time, in which case before and after measurements are very important. By putting out more than one sample tray and elongating your period of observation, you may be able to validate any observable and reoccurring feeding patterns. Because pigeons are so adaptable, it may be interesting to compare feeding preferences of rural pigeons to that of urban pigeons, and deduce what difference there may be between these preferences and why. Gathering data over multiple days may help eliminate any unreliable or chance outcomes, as well as minimize external variables in your research. For these reasons, it is important to remain consistent, and to gather as much data as possible for analysis later on. By measuring food levels of each sample before and after feeding periods, you may begin to see patterns in which food is preferred by local pigeon populations.
Displaying Results
Once data is gathered, it may be helpful to organize it in a number of ways, such as through various bar or line graphs or other helpful charts. Organizing your data in this way may help you to notice trends or patterns in your pigeons' feeding preferences, and can help you decide if your hypothesis was well-founded and can be supported by your data. In science, one must always display the results they found, and resist temptation to alter data in order to reflect the desired outcomes. If your data conflicts with your hypothesis, you may use this data to explore other interesting possibilities. By displaying your written hypothesis, graphs, data procedure, materials used and outcomes of your experiment, you can share this project with your audience and hopefully teach them something about pigeon populations.