The Effect of Cobalt 60 Radiation on the Wisconsin Fast Plant Development

Author(s)

Christina Smith

School Name

Heathwood Hall Episcopal School

Grade Level

10th Grade

Presentation Topic

Botany

Presentation Type

Non-Mentored

Abstract

The purpose of this experiment was to compare the effectiveness of varying levels of Cobalt 60 radiation exposure with respect to the height, leaf and flower number of Wisconsin Fast Plants. Seeds with varying levels of Cobalt 60 radiation exposure were planted, with 25 plants per trial. The growth of the plants was measured throughout the experiment by recording the height of the plants and the number of leaves and flowers per plant. The data was then recorded comparing the individual plant's measurements by day and per trial in order to get rid of any outliers. The results showed that through the procedure used, the more exposure a seed has had to Cobalt 60 radiation, which is the independent variable, the less likely the seed will germinate and continue to grow healthily, or at all, which is the dependent variable. The seeds with the highest radiation exposure levels had low germination rates, and those that did germinate had major stunts in their growth. This relationship indicates that the researcher's hypothesis "if the Wisconsin Fast plant seed is subject to increasing levels of cobalt 60 radiation, then the plant's development will be increasingly negatively impacted as the exposure increases," was supported by the data. The null hypothesis, "a Wisconsin Fast Plant seed that is subject to cobalt 60 radiation will not have an effect on the plant's development," was not supported by the data.

Location

Furman Hall 106

Start Date

3-28-2020 10:15 AM

Presentation Format

Oral and Written

Group Project

No

COinS
 
Mar 28th, 10:15 AM

The Effect of Cobalt 60 Radiation on the Wisconsin Fast Plant Development

Furman Hall 106

The purpose of this experiment was to compare the effectiveness of varying levels of Cobalt 60 radiation exposure with respect to the height, leaf and flower number of Wisconsin Fast Plants. Seeds with varying levels of Cobalt 60 radiation exposure were planted, with 25 plants per trial. The growth of the plants was measured throughout the experiment by recording the height of the plants and the number of leaves and flowers per plant. The data was then recorded comparing the individual plant's measurements by day and per trial in order to get rid of any outliers. The results showed that through the procedure used, the more exposure a seed has had to Cobalt 60 radiation, which is the independent variable, the less likely the seed will germinate and continue to grow healthily, or at all, which is the dependent variable. The seeds with the highest radiation exposure levels had low germination rates, and those that did germinate had major stunts in their growth. This relationship indicates that the researcher's hypothesis "if the Wisconsin Fast plant seed is subject to increasing levels of cobalt 60 radiation, then the plant's development will be increasingly negatively impacted as the exposure increases," was supported by the data. The null hypothesis, "a Wisconsin Fast Plant seed that is subject to cobalt 60 radiation will not have an effect on the plant's development," was not supported by the data.