Pilot experiment

A pilot experiment is like a practice test that scientists do before they start studying something for real. Imagine you have a puzzle you want to solve, but you want to make sure you have all the pieces and you know the best way to put them together. That's what a pilot experiment is for scientists.

They want to check if their idea is a good one and if they are using the right tools to solve the puzzle. So, they set up a small study, like a mini-version of the real thing. This helps them to check if their ideas work and if they need to make some changes before they move on to the big study.

For example, if they want to study how plants grow under different conditions, they might grow a small amount of plants first to see if their methods work, before growing a lot and spending a lot of money on the full study. This way they can fix any problems they find before it's too late.

Pilot experiments are important because they help scientists to save time and money, and to make sure they get the best results possible when they do the big study.