Scientific Principles and Philosophy Flashcards
What are the characteristic of defenders of old theories (denialists)?
Often older
No longer feel relevant
Definition
a system of medicine detailing the makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers, positing that an excess or deficiency of any of four distinct bodily fluids in a person—known as humors or humours—directly influences their temperament and health
Define four humours
Definition
the quality of seeming reasonable or probable
Define Plausibility
Roughly what time span was the Renaissance era?
1000AD to 1800AD
Definition
a Franciscan friar who was an influential philosopher. Occam is most widely known today for a principle named after him: “Occam’s Razor”
Define William of Occam
Which two people drove the concept of evolution?
Darwin
Wallace
Who ordered the translation of complete works of Aristotle into Latin?
Thomas Aquinas
What sort of mathematics is Euclid known for?
- Geometry - Deductive treatment - Logic - Proofs - Rationalism
Which areas has Chinese innovations had a huge impact on?
Astronomy Navigation Communication
Definition
The two twentieth-century biologists who discovered the double helix of DNA
Watson and Crick
What are the hallmarks of pseudoscience?
- claims to be science
- looks like science
- uses lots of ‘scientific’ terminology
- often ignores new data, but may cite old data
- relies on old data (often very old data) and/or testimonials
- rarely modifies itself
- usually very selective
- often relies on “experts” and authorities
- does not lend itself to independent testing
- often very subjective and as such could be “beliefs” rather than science.
Define Descartes
French philosopher and mathematician. He provided a mechanistic basis for the philosophical theory of dualism and is regarded as the founder of modern philosophy. He also founded analytical geometry and contributed greatly to the science of optics
What does FiLCHeRS stand for?
Falsifiable
Logical
Comprehensive
Honest
Replicable
Sufficient
Define
Naive realism
the human tendency to believe that we see the world around us objectively, and that people who disagree with us must be uninformed, irrational, or biased
What is the correspondance theory of truth?
states that the truth or falsity of a statement is determined only by how it relates to the world and whether it accurately describes (i.e., corresponds with) that world
Define
Tycho Brahe
Danish astronomer whose observations of the planets provided the basis for Kepler’s laws of planetary motion
Definition
a fundamental change in approach or underlying assumptions.
Paradigm shift
Definition
the scientist who proposed the Continental Drift Theory in the early twentieth century. Simply put, his hypothesis proposed that the continents had once been joined, and over time had drifted apart
Alfred Wegener
Define Avicenna
a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant physicians, astronomers, thinkers and writers of the Islamic Golden Age
Define
Pangenesis
a disproven hypothetical mechanism of heredity in which the cells throw off particles that collect in the reproductive products or in buds so that the egg or bud contains particles from all parts of the parent
What are magnetic anomalies? Why were the important in the continental drift theory?
a local variation in the Earth’s magnetic field resulting from variations in the chemistry or magnetism of the rocks. They have a mirrored pattern as they move away from mid-ocean ridges and were important for the concept of seafloor spreading being developed
Define Replicable
part of the acronym FiLCHeRS - refers to any evidence in support of a given claim should not be able to be explained as ‘coincidental’, must be able to be repeated
The ancient Chinese placed emphasis on data collection rather than theory. Which central component of scientific thinking does this contribute to?
Empiricism
When was the word “scientist” first used? Why was the word created?
- Scientists used to be called ‘men of science’. As females began contributing to scientific discoveries this become inappropriate so the word ‘scientist’ was made
Define
Ernest Rutherford
British physicist (born in New Zealand) who discovered the atomic nucleus and proposed a nuclear model of the atom
What are some of the observations made by ancient Chinese cultures that fed into ‘modern science’?
- Earth revolved around the Sun (Mo Tzu) - Ideas similar to Newton’s 1st law (Mo Tzu) - Earliest record of Haley’s comet 613BC
Define astrology
a pseudoscience relating to the study of the movements and relative positions of celestial bodies interpreted as having an influence on human affairs and the natural world
Define placebo effect
a beneficial effect produced by a placebo drug or treatment, which cannot be attributed to the properties of the placebo itself, and must therefore be due to the patient’s belief in that treatment
How should you go about designing a test for a pseudoscience claim?
- Ask a specific question,
- Consider blind/double blind experiments and the use of controls,
- Collect quantitative data – which variables are meaningful and what will you measure?
- How many replicates/subjects will you use?
- How will you recruit them?
- How long will the experiment/test run?
- Can your hypothesis be falsified?
Define Haley’s comet
a short-period comet visible from Earth every 74–79 years. Halley’s returns to the inner Solar System have been observed and recorded by astronomers since at least 240 BC.
Define
Marie Tharp
an American geologist and oceanographic cartographer who, in partnership with Bruce Heezen, created the first scientific map of the Atlantic Ocean floor
Define
Rosalind Franklin
an English chemist and X-ray crystallographer who made contributions to the understanding of the molecular structures of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), RNA (ribonucleic acid), viruses, coal, and graphite
Define Water Divining
attempts to locate ground water, buried metals or ores, gemstones, oil, gravesites, and many other objects and materials without the use of scientific apparatus
Definition
part of the acronym FiLCHeRS - refers to any argument offered as evidence in support of a given claim being valid and sound
Define Logical
Why does pseudoscience arise?
- to increase the credibility of a claim. Overall, we accept that science has greatly improved our health and delivered us technological advances such as those in communication. This gives claims based on science greater weight than opinions.
- because pseudoscience is easier and cheaper (much) than doing real science
- frequently, but not always, it is used for financial gain - that is, to promote a product or service
- to support something people want to believe.
Definition
Greek philosopher and mathematician who theorized that numbers constitute the essence of all natural things. He developed the Pythagorean theorem and was one of the first to apply mathematical order to observations of the stars
Define Pythagoras
Define
Copernicus
Polish astronomer who produced a workable model of the solar system with the sun in the center
Define pseudoscience
a collection of beliefs or practices mistakenly regarded as being based on scientific method
Who developed rules for deductive reasoining?
Aristotle
Who was a significant figure who opposed the idea of evolution?
Richard Owen (founded the Natural History Museum)
Who discovered pi?
Archimedes
Definition
an English philosopher and Franciscan friar who placed considerable emphasis on the study of nature through empiricism
Define Roger Bacon
Definition
Greek philosopher. A pupil of Plato, the tutor of Alexander the Great, and the author of works on logic, metaphysics, ethics, natural sciences, politics, and poetics, he profoundly influenced Western intellectual and scientific thought
Define Aristotle
Why did the idea of continental drift regain currency in the 1960s?
Mapping of the ocean floor by Marie Tharp and the discovery of ‘mountains’ in the ocean
After the flowering of philosophy, geometry and detailed observations of the Greek period, there was a lull until the European Renaissance. What was this era known as?
Middle Ages
Definition
an eminent English naturalist, explorer and botanist, noted for his promotion of natural sciences
Joseph Banks
Who showed that the Earth is spherical?
Aristotle
In regards to pseudoscience, what are you obligations as a scientist?
You must:
- Separate what you want to be true from what is true
- Report what the data tells you, not what your boss or anyone else tells you
Definition
alternative medicine supported by pseudoscience involving a detoxifying and nutritional programme designed to stimulate the immune system
Define Gerson therapy
Define Aristotle
Greek philosopher. A pupil of Plato, the tutor of Alexander the Great, and the author of works on logic, metaphysics, ethics, natural sciences, politics, and poetics, he profoundly influenced Western intellectual and scientific thought
Define Giovanni Schuaparelli
Italian astronomer and senator whose reports of groups of straight lines on Mars touched off much controversy on the possible existence of life on that planet
Why was Wegener’s hypothesis of continental drift rejected?
- Skepticism
- Not enough data
- No mechanism
- Huge forces required, “impossible”
- No ‘need’ for it
Prior to the theory of continental drift, what was the belief about continents?
Continents had fixed positions
Definition
English mathematician and physicist; remembered for developing the calculus and for his law of gravitation and his three laws of motion
Define Newton
Define Renaissance
the period of European history marking the waning of the Middle Ages and the rise of the modern world: usually considered as beginning in Italy in the 14th century
Definition
a beneficial effect produced by a placebo drug or treatment, which cannot be attributed to the properties of the placebo itself, and must therefore be due to the patient’s belief in that treatment
Define placebo effect
Who was considered more of a scientist: Leonardo da Vinci or Galileo? Why?
Galileo; he emphasised the importance of collecting data through observation and experimentation. da Vinci did not
Define
Paradigm shift
a fundamental change in approach or underlying assumptions.
Definition
a collection of beliefs or practices mistakenly regarded as being based on scientific method
Define pseudoscience
What are the four famous great Chinese inventions?
Paper Printing Magnetic Compass Gunpowder
Define falsifiable
part of the acronym FiLCHeRS - refers to is being possible to produce quantitative evidence that would prove a claim false
