Question

Jake and Aisha conducted an experiment together to test the effects of fertilizer runoff on the amount of dissolved oxygen in a lake. They each created a graph from the results.



mc021-1.jpg mc021-2.jpg
Graph 1: Jake’s Graph
Graph 2: Aisha’s Graph


Jake concluded that the runoff had little effect on the dissolved oxygen levels, and Aisha concluded that the runoff had a major effect on dissolved oxygen levels. What is the most likely reason that Jake and Aisha formed different conclusions?
Each person used different references for comparison.
Jake recorded the wrong measurements on two days.
Aisha converted the units before creating her graph.
The students used different ranges for their y axes.

Answer 1

The students used different ranges for their y axes.

If one graph's y-axis spans a large range the changes look small, while a narrow y-axis makes the same changes look large, so identical data can lead to opposite impressions.