Science as a Way of Knowing

Mr. H. ClarkBethpage H.S.

Key Concepts What is Science? Measurements and Uncertainty Observations, Facts, Inferences,

and Hypotheses Misconceptions about Science Environmental Questions and the

Scientific Method Science’s role in Society

What is Science?

Science is a process. The “Scientific Method” Disprovability Assumptions of Science The nature of Scientific Proof

Idea

Not Open to Disproof

Open to Disproof

Not in the realm of Science

Science

InsightSerendipity

Inductive reasoning

Traditional BaconianScientificMethod

CreativeIdea

Form a Hypothesis

Design a testfor the hypothesis

Develop data sampling scheme

and gather the data

Test the hypothesis

Hypothesis consistentwith data

DisproofReject

hypothesis

New data

Measurements and Uncertainty

Faith in numbers Measurements are limited How do scientists reduce

measurement uncertainties Accuracy Precision

Observations, Facts, Inferences, and Hypotheses

Observations Facts Inferences

Observations, Facts, Inferences, and Hypotheses

Hypotheses Independent variable or

manipulated variable Dependent variable or responding

variable Null Hypothesis

Observations, Facts, Inferences, and Hypotheses

Operational definitions Data Explanations Models Theories Scientific Law

Misconceptions about Science

Theory Science versus technology Objectivity in science Pseudoscience Frontier science

Environmental Questions and the Scientific Method

Experimental controls in environmental science

Alternates to direct experimentation

Utilizing a catastrophe as an experiment

Science’s role in Society

Decision making is a political process

Scientific literacy Science in the media