Fishies!

Introduction
 The lab we conducted was observing how temperature affected the respiration of goldfish. The purpose of this experiment was to study how the body adjusts its functions depending on temperature, and to see how different animals such as a goldfish breathe. Before the lab, we hypothesized that as the temperature increased, the goldfish would take more breaths. In addition, as the temperature decreased, we expected the goldfish to take less breaths. We thought so because heat and chill affects the rate at which body functions occur, such as breathing. To tackle this problem, our methodology was to place the beaker containing the goldfish in water baths of various temperatures, such as adding ice to the bath to make it cold. This way, we could accurately observe the goldfish's breathing rate without killing it. Ultimately, some key findings were that the goldfish's breathing rate did indeed slow down when placed in the cold bath, while it rapidly went up when placed in the warm water bath.

Materials and Procedure

Materials:
(1) goldfish in a beaker with non-chlorinated water
(1) bluetooth temperature probe
(1) bowl
(1) iPad timer
(1) tank of warm water
(1) chest of ice cubes
(4) beakers used to scoop ice cubes/warm water

Procedure

1. First, we retrieved the goldfish from Mr. Wong's table.
2. We put the temperature probe in and made sure that it was room temperature.
3. Then, we used the iPad timer and two group members counting in sync to record the number of breaths at room temperature (23 degrees Celsius) the goldfish took in 5 minutes.
4. We then scooped several cupfuls of warm water from the warm water tank and poured it into an empty bowl, which we then placed the goldfish in.
5. After ensuring that the temperature was above 25 degrees, we then counted the number of breaths the goldfish took in this temperature range.
6. We then changed the temperature of the bath by scooping up ice cubes and dumping them in until the temperature dropped to 14 degrees. 
7. Again, setting the timer for 5 minutes, we recorded the number of breaths the fish took.

Ice water bath

Data

For this experiment, the room temperature was 23 degrees C (rather than the 15-20 degrees suggested by the manual). In addition, we raised the temperature of the bath to 29 degrees C. Finally, the last temperature used was 12 degrees C. Unfortunately, we did not get to observe the fish at 5-9 degrees C because we ran out of time.

Table 1: Summary of Data

Graph 1: Total breaths taken in 1 minute intervals

Table 2: data relative to other groups

The data shows a relatively linear rate of respiration, as the goldfish's number of breaths taken per minute was relatively the same for each interval of 1 minute. As can be seen from the data, the goldfish had sudden uptick of respiration rate when put in the warm water bath. In fact, the total number of breaths it took in this 5 minute period almost totaled 1000, a large increase from the 644 observed when it was at room temperature. However, when it was placed in the ice bath, the opposite thing occurred: its respiration rate slowed down dramatically. In fact, while the average number of breaths per minute the goldfish took at room temperature was over 100, the average amount of breaths it took in 5 minutes at 12 degrees C was a mere 88.6.

Analysis and Conclusions

From the data, we can safely conclude that the hotter it is, the higher the rate of respiration will be for the goldfish. However, this can also be applied to other animals, such as humans. For example, people who have fever generally have higher respiration rates and heart rates, because of the increase in body temperature. Indeed, our original hypothesis was confirmed by this experiment. One thought as to why this may happen is that as it becomes colder, the goldfish's cellular metabolism dramatically slows down, because of a "numbing" effect that happens, as goldfish are cold-blooded. Therefore, as the metabolism slows to conserve energy, less oxygen is actively needed, and its rate of breathing slows down.  In contrast, as it becomes warmer, the goldfish's metabolic rate increases at a rapid pace. Therefore, its heart needs to pump faster, and in the process, more oxygen is needed in the blood. As a result, the respiratory rate of the goldfish speeds up to help it get this extra oxygen.

1. Describe how the fish's respiration rate is affected by the temperature. Be detailed.
As the temperature increased, the fish's respiration rate increased, from an average of 128.8 breaths per minute at room temperature to 194.6 breaths per minute. In contrast, as the temperature decreased, the fish's average rate of respiration decreased, from 128.8 breaths per minute at room temperature to 88.6 breaths per minute.

2. What other factors (besides temperature) may have affected the breathing rate?
Some other factors may have been that we moved the container (perhaps sending the goldfish into a temporary panic) and the amount of oxygen available in the water.

3. How did your fish compare to the average. Which reading is probably more accurate?
The data we recorded for our fish was slightly higher than the average in each of the three cases (room temperature, cold water, hot water). The reading that is probably more accurate is the average.

4. Why do scientists often take lots of data and look at the AVERAGE? Why do you think you did
 that in this experiment.
Scientists usually take lots of data and look at the average to get the most accurate reading. I think that we did that in this experiment to compare data with other groups and to put a range on our data.

5. Design an experiment that will test how a fish's respiration rate is affected by light. Explain your
 design below.

For this experiment, I would have the control be a fish that is exposed to normal light indoors. I would then change the light levels available to the fish by covering the container with a cloth, to darken it, and move the fish outside or shine a bright lamp on it to increase light levels.

6. Was your prediction at the beginning of the lab correct or incorrect?
It was correct, as the respiration rate did increase as temperature rose.

7. Propose an explanation for your experimental results. Why do you think fish react this way as
 their environmental temperature changes?
Because fish are cold-blooded, their temperature depends on the environment surrounding them. As the environment around them becomes warmer, their metabolism speeds up, and requires more oxygen, which in turn leads to a quicker pace of breathing.