Repeatable and Replicable (Approaching)_02

In a typical baseball game, a player may bat four times. In Science class, your teacher may tell you to do the experiment four times. Baseball games are limited by the number of innings they have. In a Science classroom, the time to collect data is limited by the length of the class period. In your class, you may only have 50 minutes to conduct your experiment. In contrast, scientists may spend weeks, months, or even years on a single experiment. They may repeat the experiment hundreds of times.

The rules of Major League Baseball are clear. In fact, it is a rule that every player must use a wooden bat. The pitcher must stand a certain distance from the batter. The baseballs are all the same size, shape, and made of the same materials. If you look at the number of homeruns as a measure of player aptitude, it would seem like a fair test. Would it still be a fair test if every stadium had a different distance to the outfield fence? Perhaps the stadium was at a different altitude, resulting in less air drag. In baseball, we can easily say, “Well, of course, there are differences.”

In Science, differences may not be as obvious. Think about what it would be like if you knew nothing about stadiums. Are they all the same? What affect does the area’s air pressure and humidity have on the game? These factors may affect fly balls or pitching speeds. By not knowing about these factors, judging a players skill level would seem easy. Unfortunately, it would not be a good measure of his skills. Imagine if a player played every game where a strong wind was blowing toward the outfield. Meanwhile, another player at another location did not have this same benefit. Would it be more difficult to choose this player as the best based upon homeruns? It may have been the player’s abilities, or it may have been his luck with the weather.