A group of high school students are conducting a scientific investigation in their biology class to study the effect of different types of fertilizer on the growth of tomato plants. Which of the following statements about their investigation is correct?(1 point)

Question

Responses

The type of fertilizer is the dependent variable and the independent variable is the type of tomato plant.
The type of fertilizer is the dependent variable and the independent variable is the type of tomato plant.

The growth of the tomato plants is the dependent variable and the type of fertilizer is the independent variable.
The growth of the tomato plants is the dependent variable and the type of fertilizer is the independent variable.

The type of fertilizer is the dependent variable and the independent variable is the growth of the tomato plants.
The type of fertilizer is the dependent variable and the independent variable is the growth of the tomato plants.

The type of tomato plant is the dependent variable and the independent variable is the type of fertilizer

Answer 1

The correct statement about the students' investigation is:

The growth of the tomato plants is the dependent variable and the type of fertilizer is the independent variable.

In this context, the independent variable is what the researchers manipulate (in this case, the type of fertilizer), while the dependent variable is what they measure (the growth of the tomato plants).