Science & Scientists

Science & Scientists This text is from the National Institute of Environment Health Sciences site.

Science is a way of organizing what we already know and learning more by experiments.

Scientists use the scientific method to learn about the world.

There are a lot of different branches of science. Here are a few of the more common sciences:

· biology is the study of living things · zoology is the study of animals botany is the study of plants · chemistry is the study of the elements (like carbon) and their compounds (like carbon dioxide) · biochemistry - if you combine biology and chemistry, you get biochemistry - the chemistry of living things · geology is the study of rocks and the earth · astronomy is the study of stars, planets, moons, and everything in space · meteorology is the study of the weather · physics is the study of energy - light, sound, heat, electricity, and motion · anthropology is the study of humans ReadWorks.org This article from the National Institute of Environment Health Sciences has no known copyright restrictions. Science & Scientists

The different kinds of scientists are named for what they study. Biologists study biology. Zoologists study animals. So there are botanists, chemists, geologists, astronomers, and many more!

Science is all about getting answers to questions -

· Why? · When? · Where? · What? · Who?

Scientists are curious - they want to know the answers. Then they want to share what they learn.

What kind of scientist do you think you might like to be? Think about what interests you - is it volcanos? Then maybe you'd like to be a vulcanologist, a special kind of geologist. Is it grasshoppers and wasps? Then entomology is for you - that's the study of insects. There's more than a whole world of science, since you might even study things far beyond our earth, and be an astronomer.

ReadWorks.org This article from the National Institute of Environment Health Sciences has no known copyright restrictions. Science & Scientists - Comprehension Questions

Name: ______Date: ______1. Which branch of science studies the chemistry of living things?

A. zoology B. anthropology C. biochemistry D. physics

2. What does the text list?

A. the steps of the scientific method B. famous scientists C. different scientific discoveries D. different branches of science

3. Scientists are curious. What information from the text best supports this statement?

A. Sciencists want to know answers to different questions. B. Different kinds of scientists are named for what they study. C. There are a lot of different branches of science. D. Chemistry is the study of the elements (like carbon) and their compounds (like carbon dioxide).

4. Based on the text, what is very important in every branch of science?

A. studying animals B. gathering information C. studying people D. having fun

5. What is the main idea of the text?

A. Scientists of different branches of science work on getting answers to different questions about the world. B. The different kinds of scientists are named for what they study. C. Astronomy is the study of stars, planets, moons, and everything in space. D. The scientific method helps scientists learn information about the world around us.