Identifying Bias

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Name _______________________________________________ Date________________ Class______________

Science Skills Worksheets

RESEARCHING SKILLS

Identifying Bias

Suppose that while researching nutrition, you run across the following:

Vitamin A is an important nutrient. It is used to make rhodopsin,

a pigment in our eyes. Thus, Vitamin A is necessary for healthy

vision. People can develop night blindness if they do not get

enough of it. Carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A.

Carrots should be a part of your daily diet.

At first, this paragraph seems to offer good information. Would you be

more skeptical if you learned that it was written by people who grow

carrots commercially? How would your opinion change? Explain your

answer below.

Bias Is Everywhere

Bias is a subjective way of thinking that tells only one side of a story,

sometimes leading to inaccurate information or a false impression.

When you research, it is crucial that you identify the level of bias in

potential sources. Below are some possible sources of bias.

• The writer is relying on incomplete information.

• The writer is trying to deceive the reader.

• The writer wants to believe what he or she is saying.

• The writer’s past experience is influencing his or her thinking.

• The writer is trying to persuade the reader.

In the passage above, the writer does not mention that ingesting too

much vitamin A can make people sick. The writer fails to tell the reader

that eggs and sweet potatoes are also good sources of vitamin A.

Bias Rating

When reading information, think about what possible bias might be

distorting the facts. You might use a scale such as the following:

1 ⫽ almost totally unbiased; highly objective; accurate

2 ⫽ mostly unbiased; fairly reliable

3 ⫽ somewhat biased; accuracy is questionable

4 ⫽ fairly biased; distorted; probably unreliable

5 ⫽ totally biased; highly subjective; inaccurate

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R

ESEARCHING

S

KILLS

▼

Name _______________________________________________ Date________________ Class______________

Identifying Bias, continued

Bias Begone!

As you read the following paragraphs, determine the kind of bias

being used. Explain your reasoning.

1. Returning wolves to their native habitats is critically important. The

wolf is an original top predator in the natural ecosystems of North

America. If these ecosystems are out of balance, they may collapse.

If that happens, millions of organisms will go extinct. Even humans

are in danger if we do not do something soon. We must make sure

that there are wolves in all of North America’s remaining natural

areas.

2. Scientists use powerful computers to study the Earth’s atmosphere.

These computers help scientists predict changes in world climate.

For instance, scientists use computers to study what might happen

if pollution increases or decreases. Computers can also help scien-

tists make recommendations to businesses, individuals, and other

polluters. Eventually, we will know enough about climate changes

to be able to control them.

Debaters often use bias intentionally

to strengthen their position. Select

one of the topics above, and have a

debate with your classmates. Do

your research, choose your position,

gather your evidence, and have a

vigorous debate!

TRY THIS!

When reading a passage, ask your-

self, “Will the writer benefit if I be-

lieve what is being told to me?” If

the answer is yes, then the passage

is likely to be biased.

TROUBLESHOOTING

Reading Detective

®

B1 Nonction

33. Galileo’sVision

byDavidWhite

 A

1

It was a clear night in 1610 when

Galileo Galilei looked through his telescope

and saw the four closest moons of Jupiter.

2

They were only dots in the sky, but they

were there.

 B

3

It was quite a discovery.

4

In fact, the

moons Galileo saw were the ﬁrst moons

other than our own moon that anyone had

ever seen.

 C

5

Now, Galileo didn’t invent the

telescope.

6

Hans Lippershey of Holland did in

1608.

7

He designed it so people could look at

things far away.

8

But Galileo was the ﬁrst to

use a telescope to look at stars and planets.

 D

9

Using the telescope, Galileo also

discovered that our moon was not the

perfect, mysterious sphere everyone thought

it was.

10

He proved that the moon was ﬁlled

with craters.

11

He also proved that the light

that seemed to be coming from the moon

was actually a reﬂection of light coming from

the sun.

 E

12

Galileo was also the ﬁrst scientist

to prove a theory by testing it and recording

results.

13

Until that time, scientists would

prove their theories by making arguments

without giving evidence.

 F

14

Galileo was the ﬁrst to provide visual

evidence in support of the theory that Earth

revolves around the sun.

15

A man named

Copernicus of Poland had written in 1543

that Earth was not the center of the universe.

16

He had said that the sun was the center of

what we call the solar system and that Earth

circled the sun.

17

Not many people believed

him.

18

Teachings until that time had placed

Earth ﬁrmly at the center of the universe,

with everything else revolving around it.

19

Galileo, night after night, saw the moons

of Jupiter at different points in the sky.

20

It

was clear that they were circling Jupiter,

not Earth.

21

What Galileo saw helped prove

Copernicus’s theory.

 G

22

Astronomy has come a long way

since 1610.

23

We now know that Jupiter has

at least 16 moons.

24

We know that our own

solar system has nine planets.

25

We know

that seven of those planets have moons.

26

We know that the universe contains other

solar systems like ours.

27

We have telescopes

searching the night sky for signs of life.

28

Thousands of people now do what one man

started on a hill in Italy almost 400 years ago.

Directions: Choose or write the best answer to each of the following questions using

the evidence presented in the passage. When required, list speciﬁc sentence numbers or

paragraph letters from the story to support your answer.

Reading Detective

®

B1 Nonction

1. Which of these best explains why

people before Galileo hadn’t seen

moons around Jupiter?

A. They hadn’t looked in the right

place.

B. They hadn’t turned the telescope

toward the night sky.

c. They thought Jupiter didn’t have

moons.

D. They thought Earth was the

center of the universe.

Give the number of the sentence that

best supports your answer. ____

2. Which of these words best describes the

process that Galileo introduced to

scientiﬁc theory?

A. visualization

B. determination

c. argumentation

D. experimentation

Give the number of the sentence that

best supports your answer. ____

3. The author’s purpose in writing this

passage was probably

A. to discuss modern astronomy.

B. to show how to use a telescope.

c. to prove Galileo’s theories about

the universe.

D. to show Galileo’s contributions

to science.

4. Scientists before Galileo proved

theories by making arguments. This

kind of proof can best be described as

A. theoretical.

B. historical.

c. natural.

D. technical.

5. Compare the two scientiﬁc theories

described in paragraph F.

___________________________________

6. Explain one way that Galileo changed

the way people thought about the Moon.

___________________________________

Give the letter of the paragraph that

best supports your answer. ____

7. Which of these statements about the

passage is an opinion?

A. The moon is ﬁlled with craters.

B. Galileo put the telescope to

good use.

c. Galileo discovered four moons

of Jupiter.

D. People didn’t believe

Copernicus’s theory at ﬁrst.

Name:

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Graduated Cylinders

Read each graduated cylinder and write the amount. Be sure to include mL in your answer.

10

20

30

mL

a.

14 mL

10

20

30

40

50

mL

b.

25

50

75

100

mL

c.

100

200

300

400

500

mL

d.

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

mL

e.

20

40

60

80

100

mL

f.

5

10

15

20

25

mL

g.

100

200

300

mL

h.

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Graduated Cylinders

Read each graduated cylinder and write the amount. Be sure to include mL in your answer.

10

20

30

mL

a.

14 mL

10

20

30

40

50

mL

b.

25

50

75

100

mL

c.

100

200

300

400

500

mL

d.

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

mL

e.

20

40

60

80

100

mL

f.

5

10

15

20

25

mL

g.

100

200

300

mL

h.

42 mL 90 mL

43 mL

36 mL 18 mL

250 mL

100 mL

ANSWER KEY

Name: ______________________________

MAGICIAN OF THE SEA1

by Kelly Hashway

What do three hearts, eight arms, and one huge

brain add up to? An octopus, a creature that can do

amazing things.

Octopuses are extremely intelligent. They can learn

new things just like humans. They’ve even learned a few

tricks to get them out of sticky situations. If an octopus is

threatened by a predator, such as a shark or bird, it can

use some pretty incredible skills to get away. Octopuses don’t have teeth or sharp claws to

defend themselves. Instead, they use more clever ways to fool their attackers. Octopuses like

to hide themselves in the sand on the bottom of the ocean floor. How you ask? Well, the

octopus is like a chameleon because it can change the color of its skin to match the sand.

And this color change, or camouflage, happens in less than a minute.

Some octopuses like to stay in more shallow water where there are rocks and coral.

Because octopuses are invertebrates, meaning they don’t have backbones, they can squeeze

themselves into small spaces between the rocks to get out of reach of their predators. Another

way an octopus can hide is by shooting ink. An octopus uses a part of its body called a siphon

to shoot ink into the water. The ink forms a cloud that hides the octopus. By the time the ink

clears and the predator can see again, the octopus has swum away or hidden. It’s very much

like a magician doing a vanishing act.

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If you think that’s a neat trick, then you’ll love what else these creatures have up their

sleeves. If an octopus is being attacked, it can actually make itself look like a venomous sea

snake. It will bury itself in the sand, keeping two arms visible. It will change the color of those

arms to match a sea snake. But what if there’s no time to hide? If an octopus is in trouble, it can

break off one of its arms. The arm will then change colors and squirm around in the water to

distract the predator while the octopus swims away to safety. Don’t worry though. The

octopus’s arm will grow back.

There is one kind of octopus that has venom to use in defense. The blue-ringed octopus is

tiny; it could fit in the palm of your hand. Predators might think this size makes the octopus a

great snack, but they know to stay away. The blue-ringed octopus is very poisonous and can

kill predators much larger than itself, including

humans.

So the next time you see an octopus in the

aquarium or while you’re snorkeling, remember that

inside that oversized head is a very large brain,

making them a clever addition to the sea.

About the Author

Kelly Hashway's latest book, May the Best Dog Win, is now available!

Dash has the perfect life until the Super Sweeper 5000 shows up. Sweeper

runs all over the house sucking up the leftover food scraps, and he even gets

his own room! But Dash won't give up his place as the favorite dog without a

fight.

Hashway, Kelly. May the Best Dog Win. ISBN: 9780984589081

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Name: ______________________________

Magician of the Sea

by Kelly Hashway

1. Complete the graphic organizer.

2. How are an octopus and a chameleon alike?

a. They both like to hide on the ocean floor.

b. They can both change the color of their skin.

c. They are both invertebrates.

d. They both use their arms to kill predators.

3. Explain how shooting ink helps an octopus to escape from predators.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

4. What happens to an octopus if it loses one of its eight arms?

a. It will grow a new one. b. It will die.

c. It is no longer poisonous. d. It can swim faster.

5. What is the author's purpose for writing this article.

a. to explain how octopuses eat, live, and play

b. to show how dangerous octopuses are

c. to describe the physical characteristics of octopuses

d. to explain how octopuses protect themselves

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Name: ______________________________

Magician of the Sea

Vocabulary Activity

The scrambled words below are vocabulary words from the article.

Unscramble each word and write it on the line. Please be sure

each word is spelled correctly.

1. ____________________________ t i i e e g t l l n n

hint: smart; brainy

2. ____________________________ m u a f c l o e g a

hint: ability to blend in

3. ____________________________ r i b n e v e t a e r t

hint: animal without a backbone

4. ____________________________ b e i s v i l

hint: in sight; able to be seen

5. ____________________________ t e s o r d p a r

hint: animals that hunt other animals

6. ____________________________ r o k s e n g n i l

hint: diving under water with a breathing tube

7. ____________________________ n i m a c g i a

hint: person who performs tricks

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