Question

which of these statements best describes the characteristics of data collected during a scientific experiment? data should be strictly factual and not include personal opinions and beliefs. data should include not only numbers but also should include your opinions. data should include a lot of guesses about the things that happened in the lab. data should not include any numbers but should include colors and estimates.

Explanation:

In a scientific experiment, data must be objective and based on observations or measurements, not personal opinions, guesses, or non - factual elements. The first option states that data should be strictly factual and exclude personal opinions and beliefs, which aligns with the scientific method's requirement for objective data. The second option is wrong as opinions have no place in scientific data. The third option is incorrect because guesses are not scientific data. The fourth option is wrong as scientific data often includes numbers (quantitative data) and the statement about excluding numbers is incorrect.

Answer:

A. Data should be strictly factual and not include personal opinions and beliefs.