What is Science?What is Science?• The study and theoretical explanation The study and theoretical explanation of natural phenomenaof natural phenomena•Any systematic activity requiring study Any systematic activity requiring study and methodand method•Knowledge, especially knowledge Knowledge, especially knowledge gained through experiencegained through experience•Science is a way of knowing, a Science is a way of knowing, a process for gaining knowledge and process for gaining knowledge and understanding of the natural world.understanding of the natural world. •KEY WORDS:KEY WORDS:

–Systematic, Way of Knowing, Repeatable

What is Knowledge?What is Knowledge?

• Is there a difference between knowledge and wisdom?

• Is there a difference between knowledge and fact?

• Does knowledge change?

• Do we ever have all knowledge?

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method• Claude Ville –

– The scientific method is just “organized common sense”

• Let’s look at some ways you can use “common sense”

• Experiment of Some Kind• Environmental Genome Project• Godsend Institute

• Situations you’d use common sense:• You get sick and require medical attention. A neighbor suggests you see

her friend who cures disease spiritually.• Your boss at work assigns you to clean some black gunk off the floors, but

doesn’t tell you how.• Your pet fish doesn’t look too hot lately. It stays in the bottom corner of the

tank and rarely eats.

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method

1. Question (or problem)- What is the main topic of your exploration?

2. Research - In this step, you find out what everybody else knows

about your topic already.- You need to look at credible sources to find this

information. - Try to find out something about your topic that

nobody knows the answer to, or at least something that you do not know the answer to.

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method

3. Hypothesis- A possible explanation of events or a possible answer to your question. - Your hypothesis should not be a random guess, it needs to be based on your research.- There are two types of hypotheses:

- Null Hypothesis (H0), which states that there will be no difference between the control group and the

experiment group. In other words, nothing will happen. (more professional)

- Alternate Hypothesis (HA), which is your predictionof what will happen in the experiment. (common)

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method4. Experiment

- This is the step where you try and find the answer to your question.- You need to briefly list your materials and methods.- You need to write out the steps you will take to perform your experiment.- All experiments must be divided up into two groups: experiment and control.

- In the experiment group, you add different variables (one at a time) to see how they alter the experiment (called independent variables). Besides the different variables in each test,

EVERYTHING ELSE MUST BE THE SAME!- In the control group, you perform the same experiment, but you add no variables. The result here is what you compare everything else to.

- You must record your results. These results must be measurable. The things you measure are called dependent variables. Generally, you only measure one dependent variable per experiment.

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method

5. Record and Analyze Data

- Make sure to keep good records of your results.

- Put your data into a table, graph, chart, etc. so you can compare your results easily.

- If you get serious, you need to analyze your data using a statistical test.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr

East

West

North

1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr

East 20.4 27.4 90 20.4

West 30.6 38.6 34.6 31.6

North 45.9 46.9 45 43.9

The Scientific MethodThe Scientific Method

6. Conclusion- Must refer back to your hypothesis.

- If you used an alternate hypothesis, you either say that your hypothesis was right, or it was wrong. - If you used a null hypothesis, you need to say that you either proved your hypothesis wrong, or you

failed to prove your hypothesis wrong (it was right). 7. Retest / Application

- In this section, mention any questions that you came up with because of your experiment, anything you did wrong, etc. - Also, mention why anyone should care about your results (you MUST care) and how they could apply them to their lives.

Science vs. PseudoscienceScience vs. Pseudoscience• Science

– Uses the scientific method correctly– Can be proven false– Examples?

• Pseudoscience– Set of ideas based on theories put forth as scientific, when they

are not scientific.– Does not follow scientific method correctly– The entire theory cannot be proven false– Uses statistics wrongly

• “There’s lies, damn lies and statistics.” – Mark Twain– Examples?

• Non-Science– Does not try to be science– Cannot be proven false– Examples?

DHMO

Astronomy vs. AstrologyAstronomy vs. Astrology• Astronomy is the study of everything about

a mile above the surface of the Earth. – Astronomers use telescopes, spectroscopy,

radio waves, etc. to collect and analyze data.

• Astrology is the study of the movement of the planets in relation to each other and how their energies interact in order to make predictions about the future.– Astrology.com

Horoscopes vs. S.E.T.I.Horoscopes vs. S.E.T.I.• Astrology helps predict horoscopes

– (horoscope)

• How well does this follow the scientific method?

• S.E.T.I. (Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence)– www.seti.org

• How well do they follow the scientific method?

What are these?What are these?• Phrenology – “the study of the structure of

the skull to determine a person’s character and mental capacity. Mental faculties are located on the surface of the brain and can be detected by visible inspection of the skull.”– Brain is where character, emotions,

perception, intellect, etc. are located– Different parts of the brain are responsible for

different mental functions

What are these?What are these?

• Sociology – “the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior.”– Collect data by observing and polling people,

analyzing populations, etc.

• Metoposcopy – “the interpretation of facial wrinkles, especially those on the forehead, to determine the character of a person.”

What are these?What are these?• Advertisement

– VW Polo

• Art – any creative work or its principles. Any branch of creative work, as painting or sculpture.

• Religion – a specific system of belief, worship, etc. often involving a code of ethics

• Mathematics – deals with quantities, forms, etc. and their relationships , by the use of numbers and symbols.

PsychologyPsychology• The study of the causes, conditions, and

immediate consequences so far as these can be ascertained, of states of consciousness…such as sensations, desires, emotions, cognitions, reasonings, decisions, volitions, and the like.

• The data collected:– Thoughts and feelings (transitory states of

consciousness)– Knowledge, gained by way of thoughts and feelings

• Is this a science or a pseudoscience?

PsychologyPsychology• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder• Treatments

– Purpose: Stop obsessions– Research: Pavlov’s Dogs, watch obsessions– Hypothesis: If punish when obsess, the person won’t

obsess– Experiment: Shock every time person obsesses– Data: Frequency of obsessions– Conclusion: Right or wrong?– Retest: Many trials needed

• Is this science?

PsychologyPsychology• Schizophrenia• We cannot “measure” this disease• One treatment

– Purpose: Reduce schizophrenia– Research: Electroconvulsive Therapy & watch patient– Hypothesis: Shocks will reduce schizophrenia– Experiment: Send 150 J of electricity through the brain, causing

the brain to have a convulsion (imagine a 110 lb. weight falling on your head from 1 foot)

– Data: Maybe works a little, but what do you measure?– Conclusion: ??????– Retest: a lot of shocks

• Is this science?• Sometimes, things don’t fit in one category.

Fact vs. InferenceFact vs. Inference• Fact: a thing that has already happened

or is thought to be true• Infer: to derive or conclude by

reasoning from something known or assumed

• Examples:• There is a tree in the picture• The tree is tall• There are three wolves• The wolves are hungry • The wolves are picky eaters• The wolves are holding a paper• The wolves are going to help natural

selection move along quicker

Metric SystemMetric System• Le Systemé International (official name)

– Abbreviated as “SI system”– Also called the metric system in US (unofficial

name)

• Official system of measurement in every country in the world but one.

King Louis XVIKing Louis XVI• French King wanted more taxes so he could

fight a war with England• Each person was taxed by how much land they

owned• Louis wanted better maps that would show the

people, he believed, had more land than stated on current maps

• He got the astronomers (best at geometry at the time) to develop a new and better method of drawing maps– They used geometry to define how long a unit they

would call a “meter” to be the basis of their system

The MeterThe Meter

Equator

North Pole

North Star (Polaris)

• The astronomers made a triangle using the North Pole, the equator and Polaris

• 1 meter equaled 1/10,000, 000 of the distance from the North Pole to the equator of an arc that went through Paris• This wasn’t the best measurement for a standard because of plate tectonics, which change the landscape of the Earth after time.

The MeterThe Meter• Today’s definition of a meter

– The distance that light travels in a very small amount of time in a vacuum (in 1 / 299,792,458 sec)

• This is a good definition because the speed of light never changes (c = 3 x 108 m/s)

• Now that there was a basic unit (meter), the French scientists created a set of prefixes that multiplied or divided the meter by fractions of 10 to make smaller and greater units of measurement

PrefixesPrefixesPrefix Abbreviation How it EquatesTera……………………………………..T………………1 Tm = 1,000,000,000,000 mGiga…………………………………….G………………1 Gm = 1,000,000,000 mMega …………………………………..M………………1 Mm =1,000,000 m

Kilo……………………………..k.……….... 1 km = 1,000 mHecto ………………………….h.………….1 hm = 100 mDeka………………………….da….…….…1 dam = 10 mBasic Unit (Meter, Liter, Gram)..m, L, g…... 1 m = 1 mdeci………………………..….d……….…. .1 dm = 0.1 mcenti……………………..……c……..……..1 cm = 0.01 mmilli……………………………m…….……..1 mm = 0.001 mmicro…………………….…...............µ………....………1 µm = 0.000001 m

nano ………………….………………n ………………….1nm = 0.000000001 mpico……………………………………p…….…………….1pm = 0.000000000001 m

Back to King LouisBack to King Louis

• The new maps constructed by the astronomers showed that people owned less land than he thought– He lost money and then lost the war

The LiterThe Liter• Once they had a basic unit for distance,

they used it to create units for volume and mass

• The unit for volume is the liter– Written as a cursive letter “l”– Typed as a capital letter “L”

• 1 milliliter = 1 cm3

1 m

1m

1 m

1 cm 1 cm

1 cm

Other UnitsOther Units

• 1 gram equals the mass of one cm3 (1 mL) of pure water at 0° C (273 Kelvin)

• The unit for temperature is Kelvin (no degrees)– Kelvin = °C + 273

• Other basic units– Energy : Joule (J)– Time: second (s)– Force: Newton (N)