Module One

1.2 From the reading "Cargo Cult Science," give two examples of practices scientists should follow in order to have scientific integrity, to make it more likely that their work will make a positive contribution to the overall body of human knowledge (instead of being refuted or disproven a short time later).

1) Publish/acknowledge both the negative and the positive results 2) Put in the effort to disprove your theory 3) Repeat/double-check experiments

1.6 From the reading "Philosophy and the Scientific Method," explain what is the distinguishing difference between scientific and non-scientific ideas.

A scientific idea is falsifiable (testable) while a non-scientific idea is irrefutable (impossible to deny)

1.34 From the video "Cycles in the Sky," if the Earth's axis were not tipped, if it were perfectly straight up-and-down, perpendicular to the plane of our orbit, describe what we would observe about the Sun's path in the sky each day.

If the Earth was not tilted, the Sun would take the same path along the sky; If you were on the Equator, the Sun would rise, be perfectly overhead, and then set.

1.31* From the video "Patterns and Scientific Thinking," the narrator says that science is sometimes "reductionist." Define what this means in simple terms.

In science, when we try to explain a process, we try to find the simplest underlining rule; With a single principle, one can explain many different phenomena; Taking a complex phenomenon and reducing it to its simplest form

1.29 From the video "Patterns and Scientific Thinking," looking at sequence C, you may see three cards in a row with the number 9 and decide the rule is that all of the cards must have the same number. Looking further at the sequence, however, you would find that this rule is wrong. What is this process equivalent to in the scientific method?

Rule: When you place successive cards, you must either match the color or the number of the card (like uno) This is equivalent to the experimental process of the scientific method; Through trial and error, a scientist can test if his hypothesis is correct.

1.1* From the reading "Cargo Cult Science," how would you explain to the "cargo cult" people of the South Seas why the planes don't land? Answer in a simple, direct way: what are they doing wrong, or why is what they are doing not working? Hint: think about why the planes REALLY landed and what has changed.

Since the war is over, there are no more planes landing in the South Seas.

1.36 From the video "Cycles in the Sky," in the video, the narrator explains that Polaris won't always be our north star. Explain why this is true.

The Earth's axis is moving; Our planet spins on its axis once per day, but it wobbles, making a slow circle that takes 26,000 years to complete (called Precession); Every year, the pole points a little further away from the North Star, Polaris; Eventually, the pole will point to a different star.

1.33 From the video "Cycles in the Sky," describe the zodiac.

The Sun passes through the same constellations every year as it follows the ecliptic; These constellations are called the zodiac.

1.8 From the reading "Philosophy and the Scientific Method," a hypothetical letter write to a newspaper writes to complain about sex education classes. What is the primary logical error made by the letter writer? How would scientists approach this subject differently (summarize in a couple of sentences)?

The author claims that sex education is the cause of rising venereal disease and pregnancy among teens; This is wrong because correlation does not prove causation; A scientist would conduct a controlled study to control as many variables as possible; So for both groups of teenagers, all the possible variables are the same except one: only one group will have had sex education in school.

1.7* From the reading "Philosophy and the Scientific Method," explain one of the benefits of irrefutable ideas and also explain the major weakness of a system of knowledge based upon irrefutable ideas.

The benefit of irrefutable ideas is that they provide an 'eternal truth' and psychological stability for many people; The drawback is that there is no way to resolve conflict when theories disagree

1.3 From the reading "Cargo Cult Science," explain the difference between science and advertising (or advocacy).

The difference is in the amount of information provided. Scientists will provide all of the information to help others judge the value of something, while advertisers will provide only the details that leads to judgement in favor of one thing or another.

1.32 From the video "Cycles in the Sky," describe the ecliptic.

The ecliptic is a "line in the sky" that the Sun follows over a year as it moves throughout the stars; The path it takes is reflective of Earth's path around the Sun.

1.27 From the video "Patterns and Scientific Thinking," for sequence B in the examples discussed, explain what the pattern is and what is the lesson to be learned from this example.

The pattern is an alternating red and black sequence with disregard to the numbers on the cards. In science/nature, it isn't obvious what the most important information is when we first see it.

1.9 From the reading "Philosophy and the Scientific Method," describe how the author uses a barrel of apples analogy to explain the difference between "conceivably" true, "probably" true and "almost definitely" true. And explain why no scientific theory is "absolutely" true (why can you never say with absolute certainty that all of the apples in the barrel are rotten, even though everyone you have examined so far is rotten).

The top apple out of 100 is rotten, does that mean they all are? Small amounts of evidence need not always be weak. Someone can theorize that the rest of the apples are likely rotten (conceivably true). Five apples from the top out of 100 are rotten, but it is still possible the apples on the bottom are not. In general, the more positive cases in favor of a hypothesis, the stronger the hypothesis. A stronger case could be made by choosing a representative sample (on from the top, bottom, middle, and sides). A small representative sample is much stronger logically than is a large unrepresentative one. Even is 99 of the apples are rotten, the 100th (while it is very likely) may not be It is possible to deduce true conclusions (the apple will be rotten in the middle of the barrel) premises that may be false (all the apples are rotten).

1.28 From the video "Patterns and Scientific Thinking," examining sequences C and D, you may first try to guess what the rule is for how the cards are laid down. Explain what this is analogous to in the scientific method.

This is analogous to the scientific method. By trying to imagine the rule by which the cards are organized, one is developing and testing hypothesis. Furthermore, by using a small sequence of the data, one is able to see if their prediction matches what comes later.

1.30 From the video "Patterns and Scientific Thinking," it is possible to come up with more than one rule that could explain each sequence of cards. What problem does this lead to in the scientific method analogy?

This problem leads to conflict within the scientific community regarding the validity of different theories.

1.35 From the video "Cycles in the Sky," since the Earth is tilted, when the Earth's northern half is tilted toward the Sun (northern summer), describe what is different about the Sun's path (two things). And when the Earth's northern half is tilted away from the Sun (during northern winter), describe what is different about the Sun's path (two things).

Toward the Sun: The Sun takes a higher path in the sky; Since the path is longer, the days are longer as well; The days are warmer because the light shines straight down. Away from the Sun: The Sun takes a lower path in the sky; Since the path is shorter, the days are shorter as well; The days are colder because the Sun is lower.

1.4* From the reading "Cargo Cult Science," describe the story of the history of subsequent research that followed the Millikan oil drop experiment, and explain why, in Feynman's opinion, it is such an embarrassing story for scientists.

When Millikan first measured the charge of an electron, his value was lower than the correct charge due to using incorrect value for the velocity of air. When his oil drop experiment was repeated and scientists measured the correct value, they disregarded the numbers that were too high compared to Millikan's, as they believed something was wrong. It is so embarrassing because even though the other scientists were right, they fooled themselves into believing they were wrong by disregarding their scientific integrity.

1.5* From the reading "Cargo Cult Science," describe the story of Mr. Young's rat-running experiment. Explain what Young did right that other scientists did wrong and why, in Feynman's opinion, this was an "A-number-one" experiment.

Young conducted a rat-running experiment to see if he could train the rats to go in at the third door down from wherever he started them off. However, every time he conducted his experiment, the rats ran to the door where the food had been the previous time. He couldn't understand why the rats demonstrated this behavior, so he adjusted one condition after another until he discovered the reason why the rats would always run to the same door: they could tell by the way the floor sounded. After putting his corridor in sand, he was able to train the rains to run where he wanted them too and prove his theory. Young demonstrated scientific integrity by reporting and adjusting the various controls he used to conduct his experiment. Following experiments basically disregarding Young's discoveries and scientists went on running-rats in the same way as before. Young's experiment uncovers the clues the rat is really using to find the door, not what someone might assume