Exam 1 Flashcards
3 core step process for science
- observe
- explain
- test
4 roles of theory in science
- organizes previous facts
- suggests new experiments
- tests new ideas
- predicts the outcome of experiments that have not been tried yet
What is to be the major determining factor as whether an assertion or claim should be considered scientific?
If it can describe the physical world; the super natural is outside to realm of science
Should the source of an assertion have any role in determining if it is scientific or not?
It can be a scientific claim, but it may not be true. ex: darwinism
Causation vs. Correlation
Causation: one event is responsible for another (coffee took long, so I was late)
Correlation: comparison between two characteristics (SAT and college GPA)
What is an anomaly?
an observation that is out of the ordinary and doesn’t fit a current theory
Meaning of “data faithfully leads us to truth” -bacon? Critic of this?
- thought end of data could be reached
- data + known facts= sound interpretation
- since scientists have to interpret data, that ends up making interpretations biased
Aspects of the nature of science
- tentative: always changes
- anecdotal: stories
- durable
- bias
- naturalism: of natural world
- limited
- observable
What is Ockham’s Razor?
when 2 views compete, the simpler one is the better one
Hypothesis vs. theory vs. law
Hypothesis: proposed explanation that is based on observations that is testable
theory: well-developed explanation
law: statement supported by many theories
What are the components of a true experiment?
- 2 test groups
- an experimental group and a control group
- experiment group receives treatment (like drug z) while control gets placebo
- observe and measure results
- only thing that should be different is the treatment (age, gender, etc. same)
- compare data
Falsifiability vs. Verifiability
Falsifiability: ability to prove that something is false
Verifiability: have a successful prediction even if explanation is wrong
What is Bacon’s view of objectivity vs. Popper’s view? How is objectivity maintained?
Bacon: empty mind of preconceived theories and let data lead you to the objective truth.
Popper: Thinks Bacon this is naive dogma(something that can’t be challenged.) Thinks we stumble across a problem, propose some theory, and learn from our mistakes and others.
Objectivity is maintained through collaboration with other scientists (peer-review) who criticize your view
