Introduction Flashcards
Lecture 1
What is Geography?
Geographia (greek) - to describe or write about the Earth
What is Physical Geography?
Processes of spatial patterns in the natural environment - atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, biosphere.
what is geomorphology?
(Geo-morfe-logos) the study of landforms and their landscapes
what does empiricism mean and what english philosopher mentioned it?
John Locke (1632-1704)
‘we know nothing until we’ve experienced it’
‘we are born knowing nothing’
What does episemology mean?
study of scientific knowledge
what does ontology mean?
study of religious knowledge
in the philosophy of science, whats DEDUCTION?
THEORY –> HYPOTHESIS –> OBSERVATION –> CONFORMATION (from theory to test and conformation)
In the philosophy of science, whats INDUCTION?
OBSERVATION –> PATTERN –> TENTATIVE HYPOTHESIS –> THEORY (scientific knowledge derives from induction - a form of reasoning deriving generalisations from observations)
whats the ‘hypothetico-deductive model’?
- hypothesis - generalisation in need of supporting evidence.
- use deductions to predict some outcomes
- test hypothesis of observing outcomes
- must be possible to falsify the hypothesis
who rejected inductivism?
Karl Popper (1902-1994)
why did karl popper reject inductivism?
- one can NEVER verify a scientific theory - (the sun may not rise tomorrow)
- one CAN falsify something once and for all (not all swans are white)
- theories can only not yet be disproved
- the more observations you can make, the more probable your theory is true.
what is scientific knowledge the sum of?
the sum total of everything that has not yet been proven wrong.
who was Thomas Kuhn
1922-1996
american physicist - introduced the term ‘paradigm shift’ - new discoveries drastically shifts the frameworks of thought
