CNN.com - Ants tunneling 'like crazy' in shuttle - Jan. 25, 2003 Hypothesis-reality gap



There were also plenty of "reality checks" during the design of the experiment. The mission with the student experiments was postponed 19 times.



The delays gave students in the United States and other countries time to make design adjustments, and to rethink many aspects of their experiments.



The Fowler students picked an experiment with ants, rather than plants, because they wanted to see some activity in space. They have been following the ants' progress on the web at http://www.starsacademy.com/sts107.



The students and their teachers also have learned that sometimes the best thought-out hypothesis does not pan out in reality.