Every day, scientists in laboratories all across the country use scientific methodology to increase our knowledge of how the world works. One of the most important steps is asking a good scientific question. Good questions are the driving force behind research. They define the purpose of scientific investigations, and provide direction for everyone from the lead scientists to the assistants and technicians on a project.

We ask lots of questions every day, but most of them are not scientific. Typically a good scientific question is too complex to be answered by simple observation or library research. It requires setting up an investigation or even a group of investigations. A scientist will not base their research project on "what color is the sky today?" They would instead focus their research on "what processes contribute to the color that we see when we look at the sky at different times of day or in different weather conditions?"