Science as a Way of knowing

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Science as a Way of knowing Developing and
Testing Hypotheses
ISB 202, Section 005
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What is Science?
Scientific method(s) other
ways of knowing
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So, how do we come to know stuff, anyway ?
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Four basic ways that we may come to decide that
something is true.
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Four basic ways that we may come to decide that
something is true

• 1) We have relevant personal experience on the
  topic

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Four basic ways that we may come to decide that
something is true

• 2) We trust the source of the information

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Four basic ways that we may come to decide that
something is true

• 3) We have a sense of intuition or inspiration
  about it

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Four basic ways that we may come to decide that
something is true
4) We reach a tentative conclusion of an
explanation, and seek ways to make skeptical
tests of that hypothesis
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Four Basic Ways of Knowing

• We have relevant personal experience on the
  topic
• We trust the source of the information
• 3) We have a sense of intuition or
  inspiration about it
• 4) We undertake skeptical investigation of
  hypotheses

Method of EXPERIENCE AUTHORITY INTUITION
SCIENCE
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
"Smart people can come up with very good
explanations for mistaken points of view."
People have argued issues of all kinds for
centuries, but arguments cannot determine whether
a statement is correct.
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
Method of EXPERIENCE
Optical illusions!
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
The Moon Illusion
Method of EXPERIENCE
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
Method of EXPERIENCE AUTHORITY
Aristotle Sun rotates around the earth
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
Galileo and Heliocentrism, 1633
Salem Witch Trials, 1692
Method of EXPERIENCE AUTHORITY INTUITION

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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
Scientific findings are refuted, or refined,
continuously. This is how science progresses.
Method of EXPERIENCE AUTHORITY INTUITION
SCIENCE
Newtonian Physics vs. Relativity
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Each of these ways of knowing is potentially
flawed.
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• Be skeptical, devise tests of hypotheses
  continually seek out exceptions to rules, and
  so on .

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Advantages to the Scientific Method

• A major attempt to be
• Unprejudiced (unbiased - but this is not always
  the case b/c scientists are people)
• Repeatable
• Falsifiable

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Developing Testing Hypotheses
Science is a way of knowing that tries to get
closer and closer to the truth by chipping away
at whats false.
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Developing and Testing Hypotheses
Types of Questions

• Proximate
• how, where, when, who, what questions
• largely answerable
• Ultimate
• why questions
• largely unanswerable

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
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Developing and Testing Hypotheses
Types of Questions

• Proximate
• How do mountains form?
• What causes lung cancer?
• How do clouds form?
• Where does rainwater end up?

Ultimate Why are we here? Is Michigans UP
beautiful? What is considered cruel? Was the
course of evolution directed by a supernatural
being?
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Developing and Testing Hypotheses
Types of Questions

• Proximate
• often can be tested by the scientific method
• Ultimate
• usually not able to be tested by the scientific
  method

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
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Two Views of How Science is Done

• General public
• Collecting facts
• Unbiased, dispassionate

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What is a hypothesis?

• idea or proposition that can be tested by
  observations or experiments about the natural
  world
• hypotheses are subject to scientific evaluation
  and must be falsifiable.
• A hypothesis can never be proven. It can be
  CONFIRMED (supported) or it can be FALSIFIED
  (rejected).

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Ho wing length does not differ among dragonfly
populations
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HA wing length in dragonfly population A is
greater than that of populations B and C
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Scientific Theories and Laws

• Scientific data
• Natural laws
• Experiments
• Scientific hypotheses
• Scientific models
• Scientific theories

Fig. 2-2
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What is a scientific theory?

• A scientific theory is a coherent explanation for
  a large number of facts and observations about
  the natural world.
• ? Internally consistent and compatible with the
  evidence (patterns in data!)
• ? Firmly grounded in and based upon evidence
• Tested against a wide range of phenomena
• Demonstrably effective in problem-solving

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What is a scientific or natural law?
A Scientific or Natural Law is a description of a
natural phenomenon or principle that invariably
holds true under specific conditions and will
occur under certain circumstances.