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Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories

Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories. What do these scientific terms mean? People often misinterpret these terms. Lets look at the language used by scientists. Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories.

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Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories

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  1. Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories What do these scientific terms mean? People often misinterpret these terms. Lets look at the language used by scientists.

  2. Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories • In layman’s terms, if something is said to be “just a theory,” it usually means that it is a mere guess, or is unproved. It might even lack credibility.

  3. Scientific Laws, Hypotheses, and Theories • In scientific terms, a theory implies that something has been proven and is generally accepted as being true.

  4. THEORIES ON WHY THE ANCIENTS BUILT STONEHENGE: It was an early attempt to precisely map positions of stars and planets to facilitate better horoscope writing. A few people drank too many cups of espresso one morning, had to work it off. It was a technological innovation from a people way ahead of their time, as explained by the little-known inscription: "Someday we will be able to use this to receive something called 'satellite TV' for free." http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/06-22/stonehenge-thumb.gif

  5. Lets Look At The Definitions Hypothesis: This is an educated guess based upon observation. It is a rational explanation of a single event or phenomenon based upon what is observed, but which has not been proved. Most hypotheses can be supported or refuted by experimentation or continued observation.

  6. Theory • Theory: A theory is more like a scientific law than a hypothesis. A theory is an explanation of a set of related observations or events based upon proven hypotheses and verified multiple times by detached groups of researchers. One scientist cannot create a theory; he can only create a hypothesis.

  7. Shorter Version • To scientists, a theory is a coherent explanation for a large number of facts and observations about the natural world.

  8. Scientific Law • Scientific Law: This is a statement of fact meant to explain, in concise terms, an action or set of actions. It is generally accepted to be true and universal, and can sometimes be expressed in terms of a single mathematical equation. Scientific laws are similar to mathematical postulates. They don’t really need any complex external proofs; they are accepted at face value based upon the fact that they have always been observed to be true.

  9. Examples of Hypotheses http://www.biology.iupui.edu/biocourses/N100/images/sciencecycle.gif

  10. Examples of Theories • Some scientific theories include the theory of evolution, the theory of relativity, and the quantum theory. All of these theories are well documented and proved beyond reasonable doubt. Yet scientists continue to tinker with the component hypotheses of each theory in an attempt to make them more elegant and concise, or to make them more all-encompassing. Theories can be tweaked, but they are seldom, if ever, entirely replaced.

  11. Examples of Theories

  12. Examples of Scientific Laws • Law of gravity • The law of thermodynamics • Hook’s law of elasticity.

  13. More Examples of Scientific Laws • In the late 17th Century, Nicholas Steno established some natural laws relating to geology. • The law of original horizontality - this states that when sediments are deposited in water, they will sink through it and deposit as horizontal layers as the result of gravity (unless acted on by other forces). • The law of stratigraphic succession - this states that in a given sequence of sediments, the oldest will be at the bottom and the youngest at the top. It does not provide ages for those sediments, simply the sequence of their deposition.

  14. LAW VERSE THEORY • The biggest difference between a law and a theory is that a theory is much more complex and dynamic. • A law governs a single action, whereas a theory explains a whole series of related phenomena

  15. LAW VERSE THEORY • In general, both a scientific theory and a scientific law are accepted to be true by the scientific community as a whole. Both are used to make predictions of events. Both are used to advance technology.

  16. Credit • http://wilstar.com/theories.htm • http://sci.waikato.ac.nz/evolution/Theories.shtml

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