1. Getting to Know Science or what scientists do…

2. What is Science? 1. A body of knowledge : A set of facts & theories that explain observations made.

3. 2. A particular way of thinking, e.g. that being of skeptical. Being skeptical means questioning claims and demanding evidence. Scientists are rational skeptics.

4. The Danger of Being too Skeptical An accountant, a mathematician and a scientist were traveling through Scotland when they saw a black sheep through the window of the train. "Aha", says the accountant, "I see that Scottish sheep are black." "Hmm", says the mathematician, "You mean that some Scottish sheep are black, probably half". "No", says the scientist, "All we know is that there is at least one sheep in Scotland, and that at least one side of that one sheep is black!"

5. 3. A particular approach or way of solving problems.

6. 4. It is whatever’s being done by scientists and institutions doing scientific activity.

7. What science is not… 1. It’s primary goal is not just the accumulation of facts. “Science is facts. Just as houses are made of stones, so is science made of facts. But a pile of stones is not a house and a collection of facts is not science.”

8. b. Scientific knowledge is NOT a collection of TRUTHS. There are no universal, absolute, and unchangeable truths in science. This makes Science different (and separate) from Religion.

9. c. Science does NOT propose to solve all of the world’s problems. AIDS… Cancer… Global warming… Pollution… World peace… Poverty… Terrorism…

10. Which of the following is a Science? a. Agriculture b. Religion c. Fashion Design d. Astrology e. Astronomy f. Football

11.  Consistency  Observability  Natural  Predictable  Testable  Tentativeness Science meets all of these criteria…

13. …one of the ways scientists investigate solutions to a problem. …is experimental in nature.

14. A hypothesis is called an intelligent guess.

15. 1. Science can’t answer questions about value. 2. Science can’t answer questions about morality [whether something is good or bad, right or wrong]. 3. Finally, science can’t help us with questions about the supernatural.

16. Can SCIENCE answer these questions? 1. Is abortion wrong? 2. Is the Earth only 6000 years old? 3. Do ghosts exist? 4. Is my dress prettier than hers? 5. Was van Gogh a better painter than Leonardo da Vinci ?

17. Finally….. Scientists do NOT accept new claims based on… a. AUTHORITY b. FORCE c. CONSENSUS

18. How do we know the Earth is round? Our parents told us. Our parents told us. Our teachers told us. Our teachers told us. Our minister told us. Our minister told us. Oprah said so. Oprah said so. Our textbook told us. Our textbook told us.