Introduction This scientific report explores the issue of palm oil, and whether the inclusion of palm oil impacts taste, in relation to peanut butter cookies. This was evaluated through two batches of peanut butter cookies, one using peanut butter with palm oil and one using peanut butter without palm oil, being taste tested by three volunteers. The results of this experiment will show what difference, if any, the palm oil made to the testers’ evaluations of these cookies. Related Scientific Concepts The primary scientific concept related to this research project is stability and change. There are multiple other scientific concepts that were in play during this project, including classification and ordering and systems, but these relate …show more content…
The three taste testers sat in chairs in a row, facing away from the preparation counter, with their hands out in front of them. Each was given one cookie, which they ate, eyes remaining closed. As they ate, their comments were noted, and their final rating for each cookie recorded on a chart. This was repeated six times, with lemonade being used as a pallet cleanser between tastings. For the first four cookies, each tester received the same type of cookie as the other two testers. For the last two rounds, one tester received a different cookie to the other two. At no point did the testers know which cookie they were eating, or if the other tasters were eating the same cookie. This was done in an effort to avoid groupthink, and allow for more individuality in …show more content…
The testing group was restricted by how many cookies could reasonably be produced, as well as who was willing to volunteer for the testing, and thus was rather small. A bigger testing group would have meant more ratings of the cookies, and therefore more reliable results. The cookies were also not quite identical, as the balls that went on to the baking sheet were formed by hand. If this experiment were to be repeated, a scoop should be used to form the balls, to ensure consistency of size and to reduce the likelihood that the different types of cookies could be differentiated simply by size or