Water Quality vs. Fish Population

ab 1

Exercise 1: After completion, please save with your name and then attach to the proper dropbox.

Dissolved oxygen is oxygen that is trapped in a fluid, such as water. Since virtually every living organism requires oxygen to survive, it is a necessary component of water systems such as streams, lakes and rivers in order to support aquatic life. The dissolved oxygen is measure in units of ppm—or parts per million. Examine the data in Table 2 showing the amount of dissolved oxygen present and the number of fish observed in the body of water the sample was taken from; finally, answer the questions below.

Table 2: Water quality vs. fish population

Dissolved Oxygen (ppm) |0 |2 |4 |6 |8 |10 |12 |14 |16 |18 | |Number of Fish Observed |0 |1 |3 |10 |12 |13 |15 |10 |12 |13 | |

1. Based on the information in Table 2, what patterns do you observe?

The more dissolved oxygen in the water, the more fish is observed in that area of water.

2. Develop a hypothesis relating to the amount of dissolved oxygen measured in the water sample and the number of fish observed in the body of water.

If there is more dissolved oxygen in the water, there will be more fish present in the area the water sample is taking from.

3. What would your experimental approach be to test this hypothesis?

I would test the dissolved oxygen in different areas of the water, and keep track of the fish in those areas and then compare the results.

4. What are the independent and dependent variables?

Independent Variable – Dissolved Oxygen

Dependent Variable - Fish

5. What would be your control?

I was unable to determine any control.

6. What type of graph would be appropriate for this data set? Why?

A line graph could be used because it provides the required results and supports the hypothesis.

7. Graph the data from the table...