Deck 13: Science and Hypothesis

Question 1

Which, of the choices below, is the least important reason for scientists to pursue their fields?

A)They want to satisfy their curiosity.
B)They want to find practical solutions to human problems.
C)They want to increase the total amount of information available to humanity.
D)They want to unify knowledge and make it simpler.

Answer 1

They want to increase the total amount of information available to humanity.

Question 2

The five criteria for evaluating scientific hypotheses do not tell us that:

A)the facts in question must be deducible from the proposed hypotheses.
B)certain procedures must be followed in order to generate truly scientific hypotheses.
C)there must be the possibility of making observations that confirm or discon- firm the proposed hypothesis.
D)any system of explanatory hypotheses must be self-consistent.

Answer 2

certain procedures must be followed in order to generate truly scientific hypotheses.

Question 3

Sir Isaac Newton's celestial mechanics based on his theories of gravitation and motion replaced the astronomical theories of Kepler and Galileo because it:

A)explained everything that the previous theories did and some additional phenomena.
B)was set on a firmer scientific basis than the older theories.
C)got rid of a system of confusing epicycles.
D)had been proved to be true with a series of brilliant crucial experiments.

Answer 3

explained everything that the previous theories did and some additional phenomena.

Question 4

Scientific investigation cannot begin until:

A)a considerable amount of background research has been done on a given ques- tion to determine which hypothesis is the most promising.
B)all the scientists engaged on a project can agree upon what method to use to find answers to a question.
C)the problem to be solved is clearly identified.
D)scientists meet and decide to cooperate in research activity.

Question 5

Which sentence describes a preliminary hypothesis?

A)It is the sort of thing that misleads researchers who are searching for objective answers.
B)It should not be formulated until all available information has been evaluated.
C)It is that scientific explanation which subsequent research will ultimately confirm or disconfirm.
D)It is a framework which guides researchers in the collection of data.

Question 6

In formulating a final hypothesis which eventually becomes an accepted scientific explanation,

A)researchers must take care not to reach beyond the facts.
B)scientists must account for all of the new information which their investigation uncovers but they need not worry about explaining facts accounted for by previous theories.
C)an "imaginative leap" is often necessary which reaches beyond the facts.
D)the sky is the limit-scientists should realize that a creative hypothesis is like a great work of art, and has no conceptual limits.

Question 7

When a hypothesis is labeled ad hoc, one of several senses may be intended.Which of the statements below does not describe one of these senses?

A)The hypothesis was devised in order to take some specific data into account.
B)The hypothesis was devised in order to cover up an inconsistency in the theoretical structure caused by the appearance of some new data.
C)The hypothesis was created in a sort of theoretical vacuum: it explains the phenomenon that needs explaining but nothing else.
D)The hypothesis was created in order to provide an adequate explanation of some data, but does not succeed in doing so.

Question 8

An objective scientist, when comparing two classification schemes, would:

A)realize that one cannot reasonably be preferred over the other since all classification springs from whatever practical interests inspired it.
B)prefer the simpler scheme.
C)prefer the scheme which allows more facts to be predicted and more theories to be generated out of it.
D)prefer the scheme which reflects reality most accurately.

Question 9

Which one of the following statements does not help explain why every classification we make is also a bit of a hypothesis?

A)The best classifications tell us something essential about the thing they namesomething that is so much a part of that thing that if it were changed the thing really wouldn't be what it is.
B)There is not enough time in the world to describe any event or object in infinite detail; thus choices must be made about what to include and exclude in the description.These choices are made on the basis of hypotheses concerning what is important.
C)Scientists can't classify organisms without making guesses about how those organisms are causally related to each other; when they do that they are proposing biological hypotheses.
D)Classifications are always made in order to make comprehending a mass of information easier and "easier" is, of course, defined in accordance with whatever interests the classifier has.

Question 10

Why do scientists accept scientific theories?

A)because they come on good authority
B)because they have overwhelming evidence in their favor
C)because they are based on longstanding tradition
D)because they trigger deeply felt intuitions

Question 11

Scientists are not primarily interested in cataloging facts.

Question 12

Scientific explanations, because they are based on empirical evidence, inspire greater
loyalty than unscientific explanations.

Question 13

There is no difference between dogmatic explanation and scientific explanation.

Question 14

There are no rules that can tell anyone how to generate good hypotheses, and no
rules to which acceptable hypotheses must conform.

Question 15

Problems in science are sometimes solved by scientists who are motivated by the
desire to show the connections between the earlier discoveries of two of their
teachers.

Question 16

Matching:

-The only real test of truth in science for a hypothesis is whether it is supported by ________.

A)evidence
B)scientists
C)politicians

Question 17

Matching:

-Science is ________-that is, it holds that sensory experience is the basis for every scientific statement.

A)a priori
B)empirical
C)biased

Question 18

Matching:

-Sometimes a hypothesis is chosen over a rival hypothesis, even though they both explain the world equally well, just because it is ________.

A)simpler
B)more elegant
C)more popular

Question 19

Matching:

-After a preliminary hypothesis has been confirmed, a second, more complete ________ hypothesis is formulated

A)simple
B)causal
C)explanatory

Question 20

Matching:

-A(n) ________ hypothesis is helpful in sorting relevant from irrelevant facts when an investigator is collecting facts.

A)explanatory
B)preliminary
C)Final