claim to respect and praise; excellence; worth. 2. something that deserves or justifies a reward or commendation; a commendable quality, act, etc.: The book's only merit is its sincerity. 3. merits, the inherent rights and wrongs of a matter, as a lawsuit, unobscured by procedural details, technicalities, personal feelings, etc.:
A dependent variable? Yes, there can be more than one dependent variable. In our example, for instance, the growth rate of the plants might be one dependent variable and the overall height of the plants might be another dependent variable. Both of these variables depend upon the independent variable.
I don't know what to do with more than two variables. I guess y would still be the dependent variable, but I don't know which of x and z is the independent variable. Mentor: You're right on both counts. x and z are both independent variables. You can change either variable to any value before determining the value of y. Student: Okay, I think I've got it. The variable that's alone is the dependent variable, all other variables are independent.