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Intro to Natural Science Mid Term Study
Guide
Steps in the scientific method - Answer -1. Make an observation and describe it
- Form a question
- Make a prediction and create a hypothesis
- Plan and conduct experiment to test hypothesis
- Gather data and analyze results
- Draw Conclusions What is scientific explanation - Answer -how or why something is the case. They are often identified with causes. What are two basic ways theories differ from hypotheses? - Answer -One difference is that a hypothesis can be anything from a vague hunch to a finely detailed, though speculative, account of how or why something has come to be the case where a theory may be a well-developed, well-confirmed body of explanatory material. Another difference is that a hypothesis will typically offer an explanation for a limited range of phenomena, single event, or fact, ahwere theories tend to be more general structures capable of explaining a much wider variety of phenomena. How does the claim that to sorts of events are correlated differ from the claim they are related to cause and effect? - Answer -A correlation is nothing more than a comparison between a pair of characteristics within a population. Correlation is seldom an all-or-nothing matter. A perfect correlation between two characteristics would require a one-to-one correspondence between changes in the two. The fact that two things are correlated does not indicate that the two are causally linked.
What is the difference between a proximate and remote cause? - Answer -A proximate cause is an event which is closest to or immediately responsible for causing some observed result where a remote cause is when something happens later due to a proximate cause Cause and effect - Answer -Effects can be the result of a combination of causes, both cause and effect can be about groups rather than individuals, and effects may result from several distinct causes Causal mechanism - Answer -nothing more than a series of proximate causes that intervene between a remote cause and its effect. underlying processes - Answer -do not attempt to "fill in the gap" between cause and effect by positing intervening causes. They redescribe phenomena at a basic level. Laws - Answer -There are 2 types of laws. The first is called a convention which is created and often enforced to regulate human behavior. The second is scientific laws, which are generalized descriptions of regularities that have been found to occur in some area of nature. function - Answer -when we explain our behavior by reference to what we hope to achieve and they often make reference to the purpose(s) of that which is being explained. What is occams razor and how does it apply to competing explanations - Answer -Occam's Razor is given competing explanations, any of which would, if true, explain a given puzzle, we should initially opt for the explanation that contains the least number of puzzling notions. What does theory laden mean? - Answer -loaded with theory and refers to observations of perceptions. what is the relationship between predicted outcome and the claim being tested in a scientific experiment - Answer -In order to guess on the predicted outcome of an experiment you first need a claim, or hypothesis, as to what you want to experiment. Once that is set you can predict the outcome and see if you were right in the end. what are the two ways an experimental outcome can be compromised and how do they differ - Answer - The way to minimize the possibility of a false confirmation is to set up experimental conditions that
what is matching and what role does it play in causal studies - Answer -correspond or cause to correspond in some essential respect. It can be used to control for extraneous causal factors in prospective studies. what is a randomized study and the advantages/disadvantages - Answer -In randomized studies people are chosen by chance to be involved with the experiment. The biggest advantage is that they are capable of providing unequivalent evidence for a causal link. The disadvantages are they tend to be expensive and they can take a long time to carry out. what is a retrospective study and the advantages/disadvantages - Answer -begin with two groups, the familiar experimental and control groups, but the two are composed of subjects who do and do not have the effect in question. The study then involves looking into the subjects backgrounds in an attempt to uncover different levels of the potential causal factor in the two groups. Advantages are they are used better for uncovering potential causal links, they are inexpensive, can be done quickly, and they involve little more than careful what is a prospective study and the advantages/disadvantages - Answer -begin with subjects who have already been exposed to the causal agent under investigation, then the experimental subjects are compared to control subjects who have not been exposed to the suspected cause. Advantages are that they require much less manipulation, easier to carry out, use large groups, and are less expensive. The disadvantage is the greater size increases the chances that samples will be representative with respect to other causal factors. what rule of thumb can be used to determine whether difference in study outcomes is statistically significant - Answer -The 3 rules of thumb are: If there is no overlap in the intervals for the two, the difference is statistically significant. If there is some overlap in the intervals, the difference is probably statistically significant. The greater the overlap the smaller the chances the difference is significant. If there is a good deal of overlap, the difference is probably not statistically significant false anomalies - Answer -when you create a sense of mystery that is heightened by subtle fabrication. An example would be how people who have died then been revived during medical emergencies have reported to have remarkable experiences.
questionable arguments by elimination - Answer -establishing one alternative, A, by eliminating the possibility of the other. For example, a study might say someone has mental telepath because he or she is able to guess the playing vcard an experimenter is thinking about more frequently than chance would suggest. illicit causal inference - Answer -when people draw conclusions on theories where the information is sketchy. An example is that you had an electrician come and fix your furnace and a few days later your clock stops working so you think the electrician did something do it. unsupported analogies and similarities - Answer -when an explanation works in one case is given as evidence for the correctness of a similar explanation in another case untestable explanations and predictions - Answer -when you have a claim or hypothesis that is unfalsifiable. For example, someone cashed a check yesterday and it bounced today, because they didn't realize they had less money in their account than they thought ad hoc rescue - Answer -when you save the claim in the face of mounting evidence that is wrong. An example is that a psychic agrees to be apart of a test but fails because he said the shyness effect was in place, which is when his ability works when we want it to exploiting uncertainty - Answer -when scientists publish their results that they made sure were correct and cover anything that says otherwise. An example is the controversy over the Shroud. 6 ways pseudoscience differs from genuine science - Answer -science cannot be distinguished from pseudoscience simple on the basis of results each produces, distinctions can't be drawn along lines of scientific discipline, it has nothing to do with the distinction between "hard" and "soft"science, genuine science is self-correcting unlike pseudoscience, genuine science gradually produces a maturing body of explanatory or theoretical findings where pseudoscience produces very little theory, genuine science is open to revision whereas pseudoscience rarely change claims, and genuine science embraces skepticism while pseudoscience tend to view skepticism as a sign of narrow-mindedness. Scientific method - Answer -defined as a set of systematic procedures for organized observation and theory building Experimenter bias - Answer -experimenter treats subjects differently due to being in different groups
Method - Answer -Way of finding out about some truth Interrelated - Answer -Multiple things building off one another Inquiry - Answer -Logic behind science and the way of thinking to discover its phenomena Induction - Answer -Goes from effect to cause. Looking at the facts and coming to a conclusion Independent Variable - Answer -The condition/variable that the experiment alters Scientific Statement - Answer -Scientists always start with a premise, which is a scientific statement, in accordance with Descartes' deductive reasoning paradigm. These statements are attempts to explain scientific happenings. Scientific Argument - Answer -It is a set of premises asserted in a certain way to establish the truth of a position (conclusion). it is a form of persuasion. Scientific Method: - Answer -A traditional view of science is that it uses a set of steps in uncovering the truth about a subject. The series of steps is called the scientific method. Relativism - Answer -Relativism is the branch of philosophy that contends that all knowledge is true only insofar as it is compared with something else. Realism - Answer -third emerging philosophy of science is realism. Scientific realism is defined as a view that the world described by science and the scientific method is the real world, but dependent on society and opinion. Dichotomy - Answer -a division into two especially mutually exclusive or contradictory groups or entities.
Empirical method - Answer -the approach of using a collection of data to bade a theory or derive a conclusion. Experiment - Answer -an operation or procedure carried out under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect or law, form a hypothesis, or illustrate a law. Generality - Answer -finding principles or natural laws that are universally applicable. Paradigm (Weltanschaung) - Answer -Looking at all the elements in a situation, coming up with a view of the problem and solutions from data observed - what the German's call a world view and what Americans see as a way or model for looking at things. Science - Answer -A way of thinking; thinking about the world; process by which we understand the universe; or arriving at some truth. Body of knowledge about the natural world - Answer -Known facts and principle. Reasoning - Answer -Rationalism, openness to investigation and inexactness, and an ability to recognize patterns and solve problems. Repeatability - Answer -Characteristic of science; experiments should always be able to be retested under the same conditions as the original study. Testable - Answer -Characteristic of science; something that be determined through experimentation. Spontaneous Generation - Answer -Life can emerge from non-living substances Biology - Answer -Study of life. Interrelated - Answer -Reciprocally or mutually related; fuller understanding of phenomena
