COSEE California Communicating Ocean Sciences Session 2: The Nature of Science
Jan 20, 2016
COSEE California
Communicating Ocean Sciences
Session 2: The Nature of Science
COSEE California
Science not as a noun…but a a process, a set of activities, a way of proceeding and thinking.
--Tinker & Thornton, 1992
COSEE California
Session 2 objectives
Appreciate that: Scientists use a wide range of inquiry
methods Science is based on observations and
hypotheses within a testable framework of ideas
Science is collaborative Scientific “truth” evolves over time Non-scientific ideas are sometimes presented
as scientific to the general public
COSEE California
Quick write
What’s the most important thing you personally took away from the reading?
Why do you think we chose to assign this reading, both in the overall course and specifically now for this session on the nature of science?
COSEE California
What is science?
COSEE California
Thought Swap
What is science?
COSEE California
Thought Swap
What is not science?
COSEE California
Thought Swap
When is something not a science but appears scientific?
COSEE California
Thought Swap
What are some of the pitfalls people sometimes fall into when attempting to do science?
COSEE California
Categorizing Statements
• Scientific• Not Scientific• Not scientific, but
seems scientific
COSEE California
So, what is science?
Science is a set of methods designed to describe and interpret observed or inferred phenomena, past or present, and aimed at building a testable body of knowledge open to rejection or confirmation.
--Michael Shermer
Director of Skeptics Society
COSEE California
So, what is science?
Science is a limitless voyage of joyous exploration
--Walt Whitman
COSEE California
So, what is science?
Science is a limited way of knowing, looking at just the natural world and natural causes. There are a lot of ways human beings understand the universe --through literature, theology, aesthetics, art or music.
--Dr. Eugenie Scott
Executive Director National
Center for Science Education
COSEE California
Science is…• Evidence and testability• Consistency• Cause and Effect
relationship• Objectivity• Peer review
COSEE California
Science is not…
• A belief system• The absolute truth• One scientist’s
opinion
COSEE California
Terms Used in Describing the Nature of Science*
Fact: In science, an observation that has been repeatedly confirmed and for all practical purposes is accepted as "true." Truth in science, however, is never final, and what is accepted as a fact today may be modified or even discarded tomorrow.
*Adapted from Teaching About Evolution and the Nature of Science by the National Academy of Sciences (Washington, D.C.:
National Academy Press, 1998).
COSEE California
Terms Used in Describing the Nature of Science*
Hypothesis: A tentative statement about the natural world leading to deductions that can be tested. If the deductions are verified, the hypothesis is provisionally corroborated. If the deductions are incorrect, the original hypothesis is proved false and must be abandoned or modified. Hypotheses can be used to build more complex inferences and explanations.
COSEE California
Terms Used in Describing the Nature of Science*
Law: A descriptive generalization about how some aspect of the natural world behaves under stated circumstances.
COSEE California
Terms Used in Describing the Nature of Science*
Theory: In science, a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world that can incorporate facts, laws, inferences, and tested hypotheses.
COSEE California
The contention that evolution should be taught as a "theory, not as a fact" confuses the common use of these words with the scientific use. In science, theories do not turn into facts through the accumulation of evidence. Rather, theories are the end points of science. They are understandings that develop from extensive observation, experimentation, and creative reflection. They incorporate a large body of scientific facts, laws, tested hypotheses, and logical inferences. In this sense, evolution is one of the strongest and most useful scientific theories we have.
COSEE California
Ice Cubes Open-ended Investigation
COSEE California
Ice Cubes Directed Investigation
COSEE California
Ice Cubes Scientific Discussion
COSEE California
Why people believe weird things
Problems in scientific thinking
Problems in pseudoscientific thinking
Psychological problems in thinking
Flying Spaghetti Monster
COSEE California
Homework
Response questions