The Scientific Method

Geographical Skills

In this course, Dr Tom Pering (University of Sheffield) takes us through the geographical skills required to perform experiments in geography. In the first module, we look to understand the core aspects of performing an experiment, including the scientific method, the statistical pyramid of success and some important statistical questions we need to ask. In the second module we look at how to understand geographical data, such as the W's of understanding data, measuring populations, dependent and independent variables and finishing with accuracy vs precision. In the third module we turn out attention to statistics in relation to using null hypotheses, P values and the significance of both small and big numbers. In our fourth module, we focus on how we describe our data, including the use of histograms and box plots, different types of data distributions and finishing off with interquartile ranges. In the fifth and final module we take everything we learn to answer research questions, including questions of difference, association and relationships.

The Scientific Method

In this module, we start by introducing the scientific method, using climate change as an example, discussing hypothesis formation, data collection, experimentation, statistical analysis, and contextualizing results. We focus on: (i) the statistical pyramid of success, emphasizing the importance of presenting data, conducting descriptive statistics, running statistical tests, and contextualizing findings; (ii) four types of statistical questions: difference, association, relationship, and patterns; (iii) the importance of understanding datasets, methods, statistics, and their real-world implications.