The Science of Breakable Things: "Step 3: Investigative Research"–"Step 4: Hypothesis"

by Tae Keller
A seventh-grader's interest in science helps her come to terms with her mother's depression.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5

This list covers "Step 3: Investigative Research"–"Step 4: Hypothesis."
25 words 62 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. centaur
    a mythical being that is half man and half horse
    Instead, I asked, “Is my owner human?” Because in case I forgot to mention, some of the pants wearers were vampires or aliens. Also one centaur, although why the centaur needed pants was unclear.
  2. snippet
    a small piece of anything
    I played all those snippets over again in my head after things got really bad, looking for some kind of explanation. And then it clicked. Mrs. Menzer fired Mom.
  3. brim
    be completely full
    In the summer, when Mom stopped working, caring, Dad went into a frenzy over the flowers, brimming with energy I’d never seen in him, watering and weeding and watering some more.
  4. contaminate
    make impure
    The town was contaminated with toxic amounts of metal and chemicals in the soil, but all the people were safe.
  5. saturate
    infuse or fill completely
    Toxic amounts of cobalt and aluminum saturated the earth, poisoning the plants.
  6. expanse
    a wide and open space or area, as of land, sea, or sky
    Until two years later, seemingly out of nowhere, an orchid sprouted, a shock of blue in this vast expanse of empty dirt.
  7. hybrid
    the offspring of genetically dissimilar parents or stock
    I read on, past Mom’s chapter on anthocyanin pigments and active ion transport, past her talk of hybrids and fungus and moss.
  8. nurture
    help develop; help grow
    And while Mom and Mrs. Menzer studied the Cobalt Blue Orchid in their lab, Mom and I kept our own orchid in the greenhouse. We nurtured it and cared for it and loved it.
  9. frond
    compound leaf of a fern or palm or cycad
    Last year, I dressed as the Hawaiian hāpu‘u pulu fern, and Mom and I spent hours making huge spiraling fronds that came up off my shoulders.
  10. meiosis
    cell division that produces reproductive cells
    We’re studying cell division right now, so for Halloween he dressed up as meiosis. This pretty much meant he was wearing a giant Velcro vest with little chromosomes attached.
  11. chromosome
    a threadlike strand of DNA that carries genes
    We’re studying cell division right now, so for Halloween he dressed up as meiosis. This pretty much meant he was wearing a giant Velcro vest with little chromosomes attached.
  12. inexplicable
    incapable of being explained or accounted for
    He was also inexplicably wearing ladybug antennae.
  13. hypothesize
    believe especially on uncertain or tentative grounds
    “Um,” I said. “I hypothesize that it’s...micro...phase?” I don’t think he was trying to test me, but it was pretty clear I hadn’t been paying attention.
  14. plumb
    examine thoroughly and in great depth
    “Well, you know I’d love for you to do the egg drop,” he said, “but whatever it is, you need to pick something by Friday. If you’re having any trouble, I suggest starting back at the scientific process. Use your Wonderings journal to plumb the depths of thinking, to observe and question the world.”
  15. factoid
    a brief and usually trivial piece of news or information
    “He had a boring job before he switched to teaching, so he’s just excited to be here,” he said.
    I nodded as if I’d already known that factoid.
  16. self-conscious
    excessively aware of your appearance or behavior
    “Is it weird?” He didn’t sound defensive or self-conscious. He sounded like he was asking a scientific question and wanted to investigate.
  17. bleary
    tired to the point of exhaustion
    “Mom,” I said, curling up next to her on the bed.
    She rolled around and smiled at me, her eyes bleary with sleep.
  18. pester
    annoy persistently
    Apparently, when Dad was a kid, he went through a phase where he ate only chicken nuggets. This information comes in handy when he pesters me to finish my vegetables.
  19. casual
    marked by a lack of concern
    But I just said, “Thanksgiving’s still, like, a month away.” I tried to sound casual, like I didn’t care, like I was only stating a fact, but my voice wobbled and I could feel my eyes stinging.
  20. placebo
    an innocuous or inert medication
    Twig gladly abandoned her original question—something with food coloring and placebo effects.
  21. velocity
    distance traveled per unit time in one direction
    “You can both take different approaches to the project,” he had explained. “For example, one of you could study velocity—”
    “I call velocity!”
  22. teeter
    move unsteadily, with a rocking motion
    “Hey, Natalie,” Twig said as we pedaled down the long road that led to her house. “Check out my velocity.” And then she pumped her fist in the air and her bike teetered for a moment before she leaned forward and pedaled faster, leaving me behind.
  23. posh
    elegant and fashionable
    “Natalie!” Twig’s mother floated into the kitchen as I sat down across from Twig. I’m not kidding, the woman seems to float everywhere, as if she’s too posh to walk like all of us peasants.
  24. peasant
    a crude ill-bred person lacking culture or refinement
    “Natalie!” Twig’s mother floated into the kitchen as I sat down across from Twig. I’m not kidding, the woman seems to float everywhere, as if she’s too posh to walk like all of us peasants.
  25. expectant
    marked by eager anticipation
    “Nice to see you, too,” I said, and when Twig’s mom raised an expectant eyebrow, I added, “Clarissa.”
Created on Wed Sep 29 19:17:33 EDT 2021 (updated Thu Oct 14 11:03:02 EDT 2021)

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