Question

Dominic and Eva are using the same type of stopwatches to measure the time it takes for a chemical reaction to occur. They each use the same stopwatch to measure the time. These are their results:

Dominic: 78 seconds
Eva: 81 seconds

Why are their results unreliable and can lead to a pseudoscientific claim?

They did not repeat their tests multiple times.
They used the same type of stopwatch.
They did not change the reactants in their chemical reactions.
Only one person should have collected the data.

Answer 1

It's A. During a scientific experiment it is required to repeat your test multiple times.

Answer 2

The results of Dominic and Eva's experiment is unreliable and can lead to a pseudoscientific claim primarily because they did not repeat their tests multiple times. Although, they used the same type of stopwatch in recording the time it takes for the chemical reaction to occur, they have different reactions times. Thus, it would have been better if they conducted several trials then obtained the average of their results.