science

Why Am I?

Why Am I? is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Why Am I? rather than just read about it. In short: Why Am I?: The Science of Us (also known as Predict My Future: The Science of Us) is a 2016 New Zealand documentary series about the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (also known as 'The Dunedin Study'), a long-running cohort study following 1037 people born in Dunedin, New Zealand during 1972 and 1973. The study revealed the result of the combined effects of hereditary (genes) and environment (…

Key takeaways

Why Am I? belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Why Am I? to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Why Am I? from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Why Am I?: The Science of Us (also known as Predict My Future: The Science of Us) is a 2016 New Zealand documentary series about the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (also known as 'The Dunedin Study'), a long-running cohort study following 1037 people born in Dunedin, New Zealand during 1972 and 1973. The study revealed the result of the combined effects of hereditary (genes) and environment (upbringing) on how people turn out. The series of four sixty minute episodes was made by Razor Films of Auckland, New Zealand, and screened on TV One from 31 May to 21 June 2016, with all four episodes available online on TVNZ On Demand. The series follows the study and information it has provided in almost every field of medical and social development including respiratory and cardiovascular health, addictions, obesity, sexual health, cognitive neuroscience, psychiatry, genetics and criminology and the effects of nature and nurture on health and behaviour.

Episodes

External links Why Am I? at IMDb Why Am I? (TVNZ On Demand) Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit website

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Why Am I?

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Why Am I? claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Why Am I? before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Why Am I? ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Why Am I?

In research: Why Am I? appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Why Am I? in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Why Am I? is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2016 New Zealand television series debuts, 2016 New Zealand television series endings, Cohort studies, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Why Am I? outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Why Am I? in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Why Am I? means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Why Am I? out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Why Am I? in simple terms?

Why does Why Am I? matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Why Am I??

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Why Am I?.