September 23,2010 @ 4:17pm 
(visit #2)  


weather: partly cloudy, very humid
temperature: 84 degrees F
winds: 23 mph winds 
length of day: 12.10 hours


   This was my second visit to my plot of land. The storms from 2 nights ago (September 21) left the field overflowed. I wasn't prepared for walking through a swampy field. I should have worn rain boots, not flip flops. While walking a big 6 legged insect hopped across the water. I didn't get a very close look at it, but it looked about the length of my pinky, and had a fat body. I noticed that this picture looks way less colorful than the one before. There were still a few purple flowers in the field but not near as many as last week. This may also be due storm a few nights ago. The winds were pretty strong, and they easily could have been destroyed. 

EDD (experimental design diagram)

1. State your question. How is the moisture in the soil going to change if you are going away from the water towards the woods and not towards the woods?
2. Make a prediction showing what you think will happen in the experiment. If the water moisture in the soil changes according to the the surroundings around it, then we know that moisture decreases in crowded areas, because there is less sunlight. I also predict that the moisture levels in the fields will be higher than in the woods.

If…(something happens) Then…(what is the outcome) Because…(why you think this)

3. Create a data table.

1. When making a data table, follow the example given and be sure that…
2. It has a brief descriptive title in the form of “(dependent variable) DEPENDS ON (independent variable)”
3. The first column is for the independent variable(distance form pond), the one you are changing.
4. The next column(s) are for trials of the dependent variable(moisture)
5. The last column is for the best value (average) of the dependent variable.
6. The columns of data begin with a label naming the variable and the units in which it is measured. Be sure to include the units of the variables, as shown below.
7. The data are entered as numbers only.
8. The last row should contain the source of the data.
   
   
   
   
   
   1. List 5 controlled variables.
   - tempurature
   -amount of soil sample
   -constant distance (always 10 ft.)
   -soil samples taken at same time
   -as much soil as you can-- no plants ect.
   
   
   2. List the materials needed for the experiment.
   -shovel
   -baggies
   -pen (to label samples)
   -measuring tape
   -small cups for samples
   -scale
   
   
   3. Write out a step-by-step procedure for carrying out the experiment.
   *Someone should be able to repeat your experiment from your procedure. Most good procedures will have a series of pictures that SHOW how to do the experiment.
   1. Go to your plot of land
   2. find a starting point right on the water and take a sample.
   3. Label the sample
   4. back up 10 feet and take a sample exactly 10 ft away.
   5. Label the sample
   6. repeat steps 4 and 5 until you have reached 40 ft away from water
   7. take all of your samples and put them into small cups
   8. measure the cups and record your data
   9. put the cups into the incubator (right name?) and leave there for a week
   10. remeasure the cups and divide your first data with the second data.
   11. Record your percents
   12. DO G-J of the EDD

"Map B"

September 13,2010 @ 4:13pm 
(visit #1)  


weather: very sunny, no clouds
temperature: 73 degrees F 
winds: 10.4 mph winds 
length of day: 12.36 hours


   This was the first visit that I made to my plot of land. It was a gorgeous day, and perfect for being outside. There were lots of mosquitos in the woods and I got many bites :/ There were frogs hopping in long grass making it rustle. I saw a horsefly and many other insects. The only downside of my location is how close it is to the highway and other main roads. I can constantly hear cars.