2.1 - What is science?

Question 1

Science

Answer 1

The study of how nature works and to use that knowledge to make predictions about what is likely to happen in nature.

Question 2

Data

Answer 2

Information needed to answer questions

Question 3

Experiments

Answer 3

Procedures carried out under controlled conditions to gather information and test ideas

Question 4

Model

Answer 4

An approximate representation or simulation of a system being studied

Question 5

Scientific Theory

Answer 5

A well-tested and widely accepted scientific hypothesis or a group of related hypotheses

Question 6

Scientific Process

Answer 6

-Identify a problem
-Find out what is known about the problem
-Ask a question to be investigated
-Collect data to answer the question
-Propose a hypothesis to explain the data
-Make testable predictions
-Test the precisions with further experiments, models, or observations
-Accept or reject the hypothesis

Question 7

Inductive Reasoning

Answer 7

involves using specific observations and measurements to arrive at a general conclusion or hypothesis.

Question 8

Deductive Reasoning

Answer 8

involves using logic to arrive at a specific conclusion based on a generalization or premise.

Question 9

Scientific Law/Law of Nature

Answer 9

a well-tested and widely accepted description of what we find happening over and over again in the same way in nature.

Question 10

Paradigm Shift

Answer 10

occurs when the majority of scientists in a field or related fields accept a new paradigm, or framework for theories and laws in a particular field.

Question 11

Tentative Science/Frontier Science

Answer 11

preliminary results that capture news headlines that are controversial because they have not been widely tested and accepted by peer review.

Question 12

Reliable Science

Answer 12

data, hypotheses, theories, and laws that are widely accepted by scientists who are considered experts in the field under study.

Question 13

Unreliable Science

Answer 13

Scientific hypotheses and results that are presented as reliable without having undergone the rigors of peer review, or that have been discarded as a result of peer review.

Question 14

Limitations in Environmental Science

Answer 14

-Scientists cannot be 100% sure on anything. Instead, scientists try to establish something that has a very high probability (90-99%).
-Scientists are human and cannot be expected to be totally free of bias
-Statistical tools may not be as accurate or precise
-Environmental phenomena involve a huge number of variables, making it difficult to create experiments.
-The scientific process is limited to understanding the natural world and cannot be used for moral or ethical questions.