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?

Question

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

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

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 type of tomato plant

Answer 1

The correct statement about their investigation is:

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

In this investigation, the students are manipulating (changing) the type of fertilizer to observe how it affects the growth of the tomato plants. Therefore, the growth of the plants is dependent on the type of fertilizer used, making it the dependent variable, while the type of fertilizer is the independent variable that is being tested.