ACT Science / Topic
Research Summaries
Research Summaries passages describe two or more related experiments — the design, the procedure, and the results — and ask about methods, controls, variables, and what changes to the design would do to the outcomes.
What the exam asks
- Identify independent, dependent, and controlled variables in each experiment
- Explain why a step in the procedure was performed (controls, baselines, repetition)
- Compare designs and results across Experiments 1, 2, and 3
- Predict results of a new trial or a modified design from the observed pattern
- Judge which experimental evidence supports or weakens a claim
How to attack this passage type
independent = what they changed; dependent = what they measured; controlled = held constant
note the ONE thing that differs between experiments — questions live there
'why did they X?' answers are almost always about controlling a variable or providing a comparison
slot the new value into the measured trend from the closest experiment
Question bank breakdown
10
55
22 easy · 20 medium · 13 hard
Skills covered
Every question in the bank comes with a per-choice explanation, so you learn why each wrong answer is wrong — not just the key.
Practice this topic
The full set of Research Summaries questions — with a per-choice explanation on every answer — lives in the practice workspace. Start free, no account needed.
Study tip
As you skim each experiment, jot a three-word margin note: what changed, what was measured. Cross-experiment questions become table lookups instead of re-reads.