Scientific Method (edited).

The scientific method is a part of our daily lives, whether we recognize it or not. Everyday we identify problems, get information, form a plan (hypothesis), carry it out and think about the outcome. Not only do we do this for school related activities, but we do it as consumers and individual humans interacting with one another as well. Planning the steps of solving problems through the scientific method can take anywhere from years to minutes. For example, today I had to go somewhere with six of my friends. Here are the steps of the method and what I did to solve our little transportation problem:

1. Identify the Problem- My friends and I had to go somewhere and we would all have to go in multiple vehicles. One of my friends asked me if I could take all of us in my family's van, but I had the other family car and I was at work. If we took multiple vehicles, it would waste gas, time and cause the potential of having direction problems if we took more than one car.
2. Collect Information/Data- I was at work and I didn't have the right car, I would need the car at around 5:00 and my parents may have been nearby where I worked with the van. I would get off at 3:00 and needed it before then. I called my parents, but they didn't answer at home. So, I called my dad's cell phone and he didn't answer then either. Someone at home almost always answers, so no one picking up the phone at my house must mean they were still out, possibly close by.
3. Form a Hypothesis- My hypothesis was that my parents, if nearby due to eating lunch after church in the area, could come and switch cars with me before 3:00 and before they went home, which is further away from my work. I had a good idea that my parents weren't home because no one picked up when I called. If the hypothesis could be tested successfully, I could get the van, meet my friends and go to our destination all together and my parents would have a car to get home with too. It would save gas, time and the possibility of being separated by traffic causing us to get lost.
4. Collect and Analyze Results- My parents came to switch cars with me and all of my stuff in the old car was switched as well. I arrived at my destination with the van and all piled in and hit the road.We arrived at our final destination on time and saved gas, time and the potential of others getting lost.
5. Conclusion- The results were fantastic. My parents helped me out a lot and I was on time to both of my destinations .I can also conclude that my parents, when they do go out to eat after church, like to go to places near my work because it is surrounded by many restaurants in the area. Furthermore, when my friends and I go places, they like to be all together in one vehicle because it's more fun and economically and environmentally wise to carpool together. We may do the same thing again in the future.
6. Communicate the results- Upon receiving the van, I let one of my friends know that I had the van and would meet up with him soon. When I arrived at my destination with my friends and myself in the van, my dad would soon be there to see me. When he saw, me he knew that I had made it with the van and all of my friends had rode with me. I also told my mom about it and how it worked out well for all of us and how the success of it would probably be taken advantage of (through request, of course!) on other trips in the future.

Without processes like the scientific method, who knows where mankind would be today? It serves us in so many areas. It's not only a way to solve complex, scientific problems, but everyday predicaments like the one I went through as well.