Basic Science: Understanding Numbers (FutureLearn)

It might be the size of the Greenland ice sheet, the number of molecules in a raindrop, or the latest set of mind-boggling numbers about climate change presented in the media.
No longer will you be put off by averages or percentages, and you’ll even learn to love negative numbers. You will understand and manage numbers like a scientist. The course will introduce all the main skills you’ll need to understand and communicate scientific numbers, relate them to the real world, and share your discoveries with other learners.
You may also be interested in joining Basic Science: Understanding Experiments.

What topics will you cover?
The course is divided into 4 weeks:

• Why science needs numbers including writing and presenting very large and very small numbers for science
• Using numbers for science including calculating areas, volumes and density
• Important concepts in numbers for science including rounding, fractions, percentages and negative numbers
• Communicating numbers for science including averages, drawing and interpreting graphs, correlation, causation and coincidence

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...

• Calculate and use a scientific calculator
• Calculate volumes, areas and density
• Apply numbers to understand how simple models help understand scientific problems, such as ice melting and climate change
• Demonstrate and use numbers to test scientific hypotheses
• Apply SI units to length, time, mass temperature used for science
• Interpret numbers written in scientific notation to understand the natural world
• Develop skills to round numbers written in scientific notation
• Calculate and use fractions, percentages and averages for science
• Evaluate positive and negative numbers
• Apply, create and evaluate graphs to understand issues in science