How to write an effective conclusion

How to write an effective
conclusion
Also known as putting it all together

What is a conclusion?
• A conclusion is a summary of the experiment.

• It is putting the hypothesis together with the
data and coming up with a conclusion or
ending thought.

• It is a written answer to the original question.

So where to start…

• Every conclusion begins with a topic sentence.

• In a conclusion, the topic sentence is the
restatement of the problem/question.

Can your group state a hypothesis for
the research question below?
• How does the distance a nervous impulse
have to travel affect the reaction time (time
between stimulus and response)?

e.g.
• As [independent variable] increases, the
[dependent variable]
[increases/decreases/remains constant].

Can you write a conclusion for the data
below?
Ruler Experiment.
Class average reaction time:

Hand chain Experiment.
Reaction time per participant:

Approximate distance impulse travels:

Keep your group’s conclusion close to
hand
• We will now go through step by step of the
format and information that should have been
included….

Our conclusion outline
1. Restate the Problem

This experiment was investigating
the relationship between the
distance a nervous impulse travels
and the reaction time.

1. Restate the problem
2. Restate your hypothesis
(It was predicted that…)

It was predicted that [your hypothesis].
I think this because…

So was your hypothesis right, wrong or
indifferent?
3. Accept or reject your hypothesis
Does the data support the hypothesis?
If it does-we accept the hypothesis
If it doesn’t-we reject the hypothesis

My processed data supports my
hypothesis

Now provide evidence
4. Provide actual data in sentence form that
backs up your previous statement.
• What type of relationship was there, if any?
– How did the independent variable effect
the dependent variable?
• Were there any trends?
• changes; (increases, decreases in data)
• patterns (repeated data that is similar)

As the number of participants increased
from 2 to 4 the reaction time also increased
by 5 seconds.

There was one anomaly when a chain of 5
participants had a reaction time of 1 second,
I know this as an anomaly because it did not
fit the pattern of results.

Next
5. Justify your data with scientific theory
As the temperature increases the molecules have
greater kinetic energy. This increases the number
of collisions thereby increasing the rate of reaction.

As the temperature continues increasing the rate of
reaction decreases after the optimum temperature.

This is because the enzyme, which is a protein
molecule denatures. The specific 3D structure of
the active site is irreversibly changed so it can no
longer form an enzyme-substrate complex.


(It was predicted that…)

Yeah! We’re almost there….

6. Concluding sentence
• This sentence should
– Begin with a transition word
• To sum up
• In conclusion
• Therefore, it can be said that

– Rephrase the original question or problem
– Explain the importance of carrying out the
experiment

In conclusion, the time taken
between stimulus and response
increases as the distance the impulse
travels increases.

Therefore, it is possible to calculate
the speed at which a nervous impulse
travels.

6 points to scientific success!
6. Concluding sentence that justifies the
experiment

Conclusion
This experiment was investigating the affect of different temperatures on enzyme
activity.

It was predicted that as the temperature increased from 0 C, the rate of enzyme
reaction will increased up until the optimum temperature for this enzyme.
This is the temperature at which the enzyme will be working with maximum
efficiency. After this point the rate of reaction will begin to decrease as the enzyme
denatures.

My processed data supports my hypothesis. As the temperature increased from 0°C
to 25°C, the rate of reaction also increased until at 25°C where the rate of reaction
reached it’s maximum of 1.5 units.
After this temperature the rate of reaction dropped to 0.5 units at 45°C. As the
temperature was increased to 65°C the rate of reaction fell to 0 units and stayed at
0 units at 85°C as well.

As the temperature increases the molecules have greater kinetic energy. This
increases the number of collisions thereby increasing the rate of reaction. As the
temperature continues increasing the rate of reaction decreases after the
optimum temperature. This is because the enzyme, which is a protein molecule
denatures. The specific 3D structure of the active site is irreversibly changed so it
can no longer form an enzyme-substrate complex.

In conclusion, it can be stated that different temperatures do have an affect on
enzyme activity. Therefore, it is possible to deduce the optimum conditions for an
enzyme to ensure maximum efficiency of this particular enzyme.

How to write an effective conclusion

More Related Content

What's hot (8)

More from skyujones (9)

Recently uploaded (20)

How to write an effective conclusion