Question

Alice did an experiment to find the relationship between the angle at which a ray of light strikes a mirror and the angle at which the mirror reflects the light. She placed a ray box in front of a mirror. She changed the angle at which the light from the ray box struck the mirror and noted the corresponding angle at which the mirror reflected the light.

Which of the following is the dependent variable in this experiment?

A. The mirror used to reflect the light
B. The ray box used as the source of light
C. The angle at which the light from the ray box strikes the mirror
D. The angle at which the mirror reflects the light from the ray box

Answer 1

The dependent variable is the one that depends on controlled or independent variables.

D is the answer because the angle of light reflection depends on other controlled variables.

Answer 2

Answer: D. The angle at which the mirror reflects the light from the ray box.

Explanation:

In a particular experimental setup, an independent variable is the variable which can be manipulated manually the affect of this is observed on the dependent variable. A dependent variable cannot be changed manually instead it changes due to affect of changes on the independent variable. Generally, the dependent variable is the outcome of the experiment.

According to the given situation, the angle at which light stricks the ray box and then finally stricks the mirror is the independent variable. Now the light reflected by the mirror after this process at a particular angle is the dependent variable, that is the outcome of the experiment.