You were told to put the timer where the person could not see it (step 1).

Suggest
why this was important. (1 mark)

Being aware of the timer would reduce the reliability of the data as the person
is consciously controlling their blinking rate

A student carried out the same investigation as yours. They decided to repeat the
experiment five times with each person. Would this give a more accurate mean?
Explain your answer. (2 marks)

Yes, more repeats will give a more accurate mean as the effect of anomalies
and random errors will be reduced and the reliability of the results will
improve.

Light intensity could affect your results. Suggest how. (1 mark)

Sudden increase in light intensity may cause an increase in blinking rate as

pupils constrict quickly leading to a rapid series of blinks to protect the eyes.

Scientists investigating blink rate sometimes use cameras linked to a computer. This
allows them to collect data and record it on the computer. Suggest two benefits of
using this equipment instead of using the method you used in your investigation. (2
marks)

Cameras can record every single blink while a person could miss a blink when
they blink in unison with the subject, therefore computers eliminate human
error. Any error the person makes when counting would be multiplied to find
the rate of blinking.

The blink rate reflex involves synapses. Figure 1 is a diagram of a synapse.

A) Synaptic vesicle containing acetylcholine
B) Acetylcholine molecule
C) Synaptic cleft
In investigations involving people, scientists keep factors about the people the same.
A student suggested that it was important that people taking part in investigations
into blink rate should be non-smokers. Suggest one reason why this might be an
important variable to control in these investigations. (1 mark)

Nicotine is a neurotransmitter in cigarettes and can have an effect on the

central nervous system, which will change the blinking rate.

State your null hypothesis

There is no correlation between the _______ and the ________

Give your choice of statistical test

Spearman rank

Give the reason for your choice of statistical test

Looking for associations between different measurements from the same

sample

Calculate the test statistic

Interpret the test statistic in relation to your null hypothesis. Use the words probability
and chance in your answer.

Calculated value (of rs) is greater than critical value for ___ pairs so reject null
hypothesis
The probability that the correlation in results occurred by chance is less than
0.05

The calculated value (of rs) is less than critical value for ___ pairs so accept
null hypothesis
The probability that the correlation in results occurred by chance is greater
than 0.05