Big Badgers Retain Heat More Efficiently Compared to Small Badgers

Abstract

In our experiment, the problem addressed was the idea that the size of an animal relates to the climate they live in. Our hypothesis stated that larger animals are found in colder climates because the animal dissipates heat slower than a smaller animal with more surface area exposed to the environment and less volume to retain heat. The experiment we set up involved two spheres of two different masses that were placed in a specific temperature of ice water. Their temperatures were measured and recorded every 5 seconds for 10 minutes. The data we recorded was formatted into a trend line graph. We found that the smaller sphere’s temperature decreased at a higher rate, and the larger sphere’s temperature decreased at a slower rate. Overall, our hypothesis was supported by the data we collected from our experiment. We also discussed possible alternative explanations that the data we recorded would support. One that we found interesting suggested that the space within each sphere could also determine the rates the temperature increased or decreased.