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Students Zone / Questions / Chapter 11: Explanations: Confirming and Falsifying Theories

1. Is it fruitless to attempt to confirm scientific explanations?

2. In some cultures people believe in magic and rituals, while we believe in science. Is there no neutral standard by which we can show that our belief is more reasonable than theirs?

3. Is it rational to prefer a simple explanation of a phenomenon to a more complex one?

4. Analyse and discuss the claim that science is based on observation and experiment.

5. Are we right in arguing that scientific knowledge can never be certain knowledge?

6. If scientific theories cannot be observed to be true, what purpose do they have?

7. If a theory is falsifiable does it follow that it is scientific?