Questions?

1. Questions? About the syllabus, your homework, or this course in general?

2. Next Week bring your computers – you will be working in pairs, so the more computers, the better.

3. Future regrets • At the end of every semester, some students ask: “is there anything I can do to raise my grade” • The answer is always: Go back in time and be more committed, go to office hours, earn higher scores • You are at that time now. Grab it before it goes by

4. knowledge is NOT understanding

5. How? Why? Lab 2: Problem solving • or why Chymistry outlasted Magick* • *in most places

6. Monty Python

7. Goals for today • Observe yourself in action: you are already a practitioner of scientific approaches • Observe yourself in action: want to get better at anything? Practice & analyze • Observe others in action: another grand way to improve

8. Asking questions • It’s how we verify important things about the world • Good experimentation: baby monkey • Poor experimentation: kitten

9. Definitions • “Science is the human endeavor to achieve a better understanding of the world by observation, comparison, experiment, analysis, synthesis, and conceptualization” • “Science is a body of facts (‘knowledge’) and the concepts that permit explaining these facts.” • Both from Ernst Mayr, What makes biology unique p. 140 (Kindle version)

10. Albert Einstein Sez... “The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking”

11. You already do this • You stumble out of your room at 4 a.m. and turn on a lamp • Nothing happens • Now what? Curse the darkness? • Notes to self: What elements are you employing? What’s your process?* *Your notes today will be your material for a graded exercise at day’s end Take a blank sheet of paper out to start

12. Gonna Science you up • “The light’s not turning on!” = observation • ‘Possible explanations’ = hypothesis/models • “If I ______, it should _____” = prediction • Execution of prediction = test • “Gotta catch ‘em all”: goal is to whittle away possibilities until only one is left standing • If only looking at one, challenge it to fail

13. Scientific Method • IF (insert mechanism here) “is true” • THEN (a predicted outcome based on the mechanism) “must also be true”

14. See for Yourselves

15. Semmelweis

16. Semmelweis • “Childbed Fever”

17. Semmelweis • “Childbed Fever” • Between 10% and 30%“Division I” ward patients died in Childbirth

18. Semmelweis • “Childbed Fever” • Between 10% and 30%“Division I” ward patients died in Childbirth • About 5% of Division II patients died

19. Semmelweis • “Childbed Fever” • Between 10% and 30%“Division I” ward patients died in Childbirth • About 5% of Division II patients died • Div I – med students and physicians

20. Semmelweis • “Childbed Fever” • Between 10% and 30%“Division I” ward patients died in Childbirth • About 5% of Division II patients died • Div I – med students and physicians • Div II - mid wives

21. It’s not limited to “scientists”

22. http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htmhttp://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

23. 275 Feet Tall http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

24. 275 Feet Tall • ~ 6100 TONS http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

25. From where does a tree gain/derive its mass? http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

26. Develop a hypothesis and a test for it http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

27. Develop a hypothesis and a test for it “IF this is true, then…” http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/photos1/l/bl_seqp_sherm6.htm

28. http://www.inn-california.com/valleys/images/ca0863.jpg

29. Ways of knowing • Empirical--you saw it, touched it, etc. • Reasoned argument from documented/identified assumptions & previous knowledge • Repeatedly established by others that you ‘trust’ • ‘Intuition’ arises from experience & mental participation • Never: assertions by authority regardless of the nature (or volume) of that authority. No, really--never!

30. Stuff you can figure out:Thinking with your nose

31. Give each paper towel a test--with your nose • What do you notice? (observe) • What does the fact of smelling tell you… • about what your body does? (model) • about involvement of molecules? (model) • What does smelling different things tell you? (model)

32. C10H14O • The formula for both smells. • How can you make sense of this information and the observations of your nose? • How can you model this information?

33. This is the structural drawing for both smells. What can you conclude? • See ‘Duo_Comparator’ in Bio181L_Go

34. Smell for yourself • See ‘Duo_Comparator’ in Bio181L_Go What do you conclude?

35. A ‘big part’ of science is observation… SPOTTING A PATTERN

36. PatternMaster • A quest for the rules that order a system

37. Making Order • In PatternMaster, you conjecture from a ‘standing start’, then test resulting hypotheses • Now - you’ll investigate building of knowledge, = creation of simplifying view from initially disparate information

38. Take a look Bio181L_Go => PatternMaster for Fun Enter a random # Select ‘Demo’

39. Rule Quest • Given 1-step clockwise*, it could be... • Perimeter to top inner color • Top inner color to lower left color • Lower right color to lower left color *NEIGHBOR definitions are clockwise, counterclockwise

40. Make observations • Walk around the room. Look at everybody else’s screen • Get a ‘feel’ for what’s standard. This is practice for solving medium & hard puzzles: Figuring out the ‘background’ so you can detect the ‘foreground’--the hints that something is noteworthy • Return to your prep notes for end-of-class assignment: • observe/record your process, approaches, successes

41. Pattern Master Write Up • Description clearly explains underlying rule (50 points) • supplemented with examples • sufficient to guide someone who doesn’t know the game

42. Pattern Master Write Up • Description clearly explains underlying rule (50 points) • supplemented with examples • sufficient to guide someone who doesn’t know the game • Proposed solution wrong or not understandable… points taken OFF & max possible score 45 no matter what

43. Pattern Master Write Up • Description clearly explains underlying rule (50 points) • supplemented with examples • sufficient to guide someone who doesn’t know the game • Proposed solution wrong or not understandable… points taken OFF & max possible score 45 no matter what • More points? Harder puzzle! 45, 50, 55

44. Ordering the world • What’s with these liquids?

45. Two sets of liquids • “Actors” [A & B] and “Indicators” (numbered) • These are yours to investigate. How much can you figure out? • What experiments will you perform to gain insight? • As you make observations, can you model the world? • Suggestion: finding an organized way to record your data is probably a Good Idea ;)

46. What’s a rubric? • It’s a treasure map--to POINTS.

47. Learning from yourself

48. Five tips from you to you • Strategies, approaches, insights you observed, employed, discovered today • For each • state the rule, approach, etc. • explain the context in which it arose • state a circumstance where it could apply in your future • This is 25% of next week’s quiz grade, handed in today

49. Quantum Mine • Modeling information

50. Rules of the Mine or... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Box_(game)