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What is Science?

What is Science?. BIO 100. The nature of science. Science : A systematic process for learning about the world and testing our understanding of it. The nature of science. Science is essential:. Six Criteria of Science. Consistent Observable Natural Predictable Testable Tentative.

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What is Science?

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  1. What is Science? BIO 100

  2. The nature of science Science: A systematic process for learning about the world and testing our understanding of it

  3. The nature of science Science is essential:

  4. Six Criteria of Science • Consistent • Observable • Natural • Predictable • Testable • Tentative

  5. Pseudoscience Appears scientific, but…. • Uses scientific sounding jargon • Appears to conduct research • Usually more rhetoric than data: questions • Fails to follow scientific methods • Often faults “established scientific community” or claims a conspiracy against revealing “the truth.” What are we hiding?

  6. Pseudoscience Pseudoscience is not necessarily fraud; just bad science. • Extraordinary claims • Claims usually lack substance • Practices bias confirmation • Often pushes particular agenda • Ignores contrary data • Value of data often exaggerated

  7. Magnetic therapy Brain Gym http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/10/03/496120962/brain-game-claims-fail-a-big-scientific-test

  8. Vaccines cause autism Jenny McCarthy Twenty-five percent of parents believe vaccines could cause developmental problems Fact or Fiction?

  9. Andrew Wakefield Vaxxed: http://vaxxedthemovie.com/

  10. Shark Cartilage Cures Cancer

  11. Intelligent Design ID proponent argue that evolution is driven by a higher power "Teach the Controversy"

  12. The Scope and Limitations of Science Are More Than An Academic Issue Summary points of the December 20, 2005 Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District ruling: • ID violates centuries-old ground rules of science by invoking and permitting supernatural causation; • The argument of irreducible complexity, central to ID, employs the same flawed and illogical contrived dualism that doomed creation science in the 1980’s, and; • ID’s negative attacks have been refuted by the scientific community … It has not generated peer- reviewed publication, nor has it been the subject of testing and research… Is this the final word on evolution and alternatives in the classroom? Hardly.

  13. Flying spaghetti monster Nebraska’s US District Courtsays Pastafarianism is not a legitimate religion.

  14. Climate Change Deniers "Ice storm rolls from Texas to Tennessee - I'm in Los Angeles and it's freezing. Global warming is a total, and very expensive, hoax!" "Climate change is to this century what eugenics was to the last century. It's hysteria and a lot of it's junk science. And when it's as discredited as eugenics, you know a lot of people are going to look very foolish and heartless."

  15. actual republican The 5 Stages of Climate Change Grief w/ Bill Nye and Arnold Schwarzenegger - Worldwide Scientific Collaboration - 2500 EXPERTS 450 AUTHORS 130 COUNTRIES 5th assessment 2013

  16. Scientists test ideas Two Primary Approaches to Science Hypothesis-driven or experimental science. Discovery or observational science.

  17. Hypothesis-Driven Studies Ocean acidification Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology 15% reduction in coral density, growth, and branching

  18. Discovery/Observational Studies

  19. Discovery/Observational Studies One current view of hominid evolution. Some Scientific Questions Can’t Be Answered By Experimentation Discovery or observational science is still science; falsifiable hypotheses based on natural phenomenon are proposed to best account for observations.

  20. Science as a Way of Knowing Pure Science- pursuit of knowledge Applied Science- search for practical uses of scientific knowledge Prialt (synthetic drug) Conotoxin Cone snail Pain relief (needs to cross BBB)

  21. Characteristics of Scientific Explanations Science is empirical. It relies on observation and experience. The phenomenon studied must be measurable. Phenomenon that cannot be measured: Is this painting beautiful? Does God exist? It must be consistent with known natural laws and well-established, well-documented existing theories. It must be derived objectively from independently confirmable observations. All scientific knowledge must be regarded as tentative.

  22. Scientific statements must be testable and reproducible (i.e., valid & reliable). Hypothesis: Cigarette smoking causes lung cancer. Hypothesis: Infants who are breast fed are smarter than infants who are given formula. Hypothesis: Shark cartilage inhibits blood vessel formation to tumors. Hypothesis: Exercise makes people happy.

  23. The scientific method A technique for testing ideas • Observations • Question • Formulate Hypothesis • Conduct Experiment • Analyze Results • Conclusions • Discussion

  24. Observation: The oceans are becoming more acidic. Question: Hypothesis: Test hypothesis: Analyze Results: Draw Conclusion: New hypothesis:

  25. Scientific Method • Observations • Suggest questions to investigate • Question • Why does something happen • Hypothesis • An educated guess • A testable explanation for an observation

  26. Scientific Method • Conduct Experiment • Process of testing a hypothesis or prediction by gathering data under controlled conditions • Control vs Experimental Group Control group: a group that has not been exposed to some factor (variable) Experimental group: a group that has been exposed to the factor (variable) Independent variable (IV): the variable you manipulate that you believe will affect the DV Dependent variable (DV): the outcome variable, i.e., variable you measure

  27. Scientific Method • Collect, organize, analyze data • Determine whether data is reliable • Determine whether data supports or does not support the hypothesis or prediction • May use statistics • Compare data from other studies • Determine relationships • Determine experimental error

  28. Scientific Method • Theories • Unifying explanations for a broad range of observations • Based on testing a collection of related hypotheses • The solid foundation of science • Can be revised given new evidence

  29. Scientific Method • Drawing Conclusions • To understand something not previously understood • To produce a model • Construct a representation of an object, a system, or a process to help show relationships given the data • A model is an explanation supported by data • Use the model to generate new hypotheses or predictions

  30. When scientists publish they never say "results prove...“ but rather "results suggest..."    or    "results provide support for..."

  31. Experimental Design Confounding factors: factors that were not accounted for in the design that may affect the IV Biased sampling: A sampling technique that does not give you a representative sample. Method for Reducing Bias: • Randomization in sample selection Randomization: Ensures that each subject in a population or each site used for sampling has an equal opportunity of being selected. Replication:This is necessary to estimate the degree of chance variation among samples.

  32. Experimental Design Sample Size: The larger the sample size, the better. A larger sample size tends to give you a closer estimate of the true population mean. Normal Curve Population size (n)

  33. Let’s design an experiment • Observation • Question • Form Hypothesis • Test Hypothesis • Results • Discussion

  34. Observation The Hawaiian population has high rates of hypertension. Question How can hypertension be reduced in the Hawaiian population? Develop your Hypothesis

  35. Population: 250 Native Hawaiians with BP 140/90 mmHg All were given three-hour sessions of hypertension education that included information on diet, exercise and the use of medications EXP GP: one-hour group hula classes twice a week for three months RESULTS https://www.hawaii.edu/news/article.php?aId=10180

  36. Results • EXP GROUP: • They lowered their blood pressure far below what those who were not assigned to the hula. • They significantly reducing their 10-year risk of getting heart disease and they were able to sustain improvements in their blood pressure after one-year -- which was six months after the study’s hula classes ended. • The participants reduced their systolic (top number) blood pressure by an average of 17 points.

  37. In the previous experiment: • Which is the independent variable and which is the dependant variable? • Any sampling biases? • Any confounding factors? • Is sample size sufficient?

  38. What is difference between hypothesis, theory & law? Hypothesis - “an educated guess”; a tentative explanation of phenomena. Theory - a widely accepted explanation of natural phenomena; has stood up to thorough & continual testing. Law - a statement of what always occurs under certain conditions.

  39. Theories Cell Theory Evolution

  40. Laws Physics, Chemistry, Math- Lots!!!! Biology: Mendelian Inheritance

  41. Hawaiian Science Knowledge Hawaii state motto: Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono or "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness”

  42. The Kāhuna • The kāhuna were doctors, architects, scientists,educators, and agriculturists of their time. • Their kuleana (responsibility) was conserving the resources and advancing their knowledge.

  43. Ahupua’a

  44. Hawaiian Science Fish Ponds & Fishing Practices Loko I’a O He’eia Conservation Science

  45. The Blind Men and the Elephant

  46. The Blind Men and the Elephant (Saxe; 1816-1887) I. It was six men of Indostan To learn much inclined, Who went to see the elephant (Though all of them were blind), That each by observation Might satisfy their mind. II. The First approached the elephant, And happened to fall Against his broad sturdy side, At once began to bawl: “Bless me!—but the Elephant is very like a wall!”

  47. III. The Second, feeling of the tusk , Cried, “Ho!—what have we here So very round and smooth and sharp? To me ‘t is mighty clear This wonder of an Elephant Is very like a spear!” IV. The Third approached the animal, And happening to take The squirming trunk within his hands, Thus boldly up and spake: “I see,” quoth he, “the Elephant Is very like a snake!”

  48. V. The Fourth reached out his eager hand, And felt about the knee. “What most this wondrous beast is like Is might plain’” quoth he; “‘T is clear enough the Elephant Is very like a tree!” VI. The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear, Said, “E’en the blindest man Can tell what this resembles most; Deny the fact who can, This marvel of an Elephant Is very like a fan!”

  49. VII. The Sixth no sooner had begun About the beast to grope, Than seizing on the swinging tail That fell within his scope, “I see,” quoth he, “the Elephant Is very like a rope!” VIII. And so these men of Indostan Disputed loud and long, Each with his own opinion Exceeding stiff and strong, Though each was partly in the right, And all were in the wrong!

  50. Moral. So, oft in these theological wars The disputants, I ween, Rail on in utter ignorance Of what each other mean, And prate about an elephant Not one of them has seen!

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