The research step in the process of creating a hypothesis refers to
a. looking online for fun science facts
b. doing background research about your question
c. researching about scientists who first studied the topic
d. conducting a controlled experiment to test your hypothesis

doing background research about your question

Explanation:

Prior to the formulation of a research hypothesis, a scientist does extensive background research on the question he is researching. This background search will reveal likely cause and effect relationships which could now be formulated into a hypothesis and tested by experiments. A hypothesis is the result of painstaking research into a problem. A hypothesis can only be formulated after the research question has been properly understood via background research.