Out of the above listed variables, one of them would be the variable that we are using to test the vitamin C tablet. That would be the amount of piece that a Vitamin C tablet is dissolved with. This makes this variable the independent variable. Why? Well I guess you could say because it’s independent! Special, and more focused on. It is the key variable that we are using to differentiate the testing of all four vitamin C tablets.  However! We can’t just ignore the other variables. 

 

Because the rest of the variables aren’t going to be changed, like the number of pieces that a Vitamin C tablet will dissolve with, we refer to them as the controlled variables. The controlled variables are just as the title says and are controlled to stay exactly the same for all parts of the experiment and so forth. This involves; 

 

• Starting mass of Vitamin C tablet

• Brand of Vitamin C tablet

• Size of the beaker or cup 

• Elevation of the Beaker or cup 

• The amount of water in the Beaker or cup

• The solvent being used 

 

The final variable is the dependent variable. The dependent variable coincidentally is a variable that relies on the independent variable. This means the dependent variable is affected by that of the independent variable. It is also what is being tested and measured. 

 

Because the independent variable is the number of pieces that a Vitamin C tablet is broken into, the factor that we would be measuring from this is the time it takes for the tablets to dissolve and THIS is the dependent variable.

 

So just for a little recap;

 

An independent variable is a variable that is changed in the experiment. An example of this is changing the amount of pieces that each Vitamin C tablet is broken into.

 

A controlled variable is a variable that is kept the same throughout the whole experiment. Examples of these would include the elevation of the Beaker or cup, the amount of water in the beaker or cup and the starting mass of the vitamin C tablet.