Philosophy of Science

Professor Stemwedel

Fall 2004

FINAL EXAM REVIEW SHEET

Important concepts and terminology

metaphysics

epistemology

logical consistency

descriptive vs. normative

norms of science

"Strong Program" sociology of science

naturalism

objectivity

intersubjectivity

ways the peer review system is supposed to improve objectivity

theoretical entities

observable vs. unobservable entities

empirical adequacy

realism vs. anti-realism

arguments for realism

arguments against realism

entity realism

explanation

"Covering law" or "Deductive-Nomological" model of explanation

problems with the covering law model of explanation

falsification

confirmation vs. corroboration

progressive vs. degenerating research programs

independent testability

deductive reasoning

inductive reasoning

crucial experiment

analytic vs. synthetic statements

underdetermination

holism

paradigm

normal science

puzzle-solving

anomaly

crisis

revolution

incommensurability

scientific progress

Questions about the reading:

∑      What, according to Lakatos, distinguishes a progressive research program from a degenerating one?

∑      What does Duhem say about our ability to test hypotheses against experiments?

∑      What role does Kuhn think a paradigm plays in a normal science tradition?

∑      Explain why Kuhn thinks unsolved puzzles donπt automatically lead to a change in scientific theory.

∑      What factors does Kuhn say scientists consider when choosing between paradigms?

∑      Kuhn writes, " ... after a revolution scientists are responding to a different world."  What does he mean by this?  How does this relate to the inverting lenses experiment?

∑      What, according to Laudan, is the difference between accepting a theory and pursuing a theory?

∑      Explain Feyerabend's principle of proliferation and principle of tenacity.

∑      How does Longino's understanding of objectivity differ from the view she attributes to traditional philosophy of science?

∑      According to Hempel and Oppenheim, what is required for a good explanation?

∑      According to Merton, what are the four norms of science?

∑      How could a naturalist use information about "perceptual modules" to respond to Kuhn's claim that all observation is theory-laden?

∑      Explain what a constructive empiricist commits to when accepting a scientific theory, and briefly discuss why van Fraassen thinks this commitment is more warranted than the realist's commitment.

EXAM FORMAT:

5 true/false

5 multiple choice

10 fill-ins (with a "well" to choose from)

4 very short answer questions (about 2 sentences each)

1 evaluation of a scientific hypothesis or argument (about 1 paragraph)

2 short essays (1 page each)

Sample exam questions

True/False:

1.  Maxwell thinks that there are no entities in scientific theories that are in principle unobservable.                                                                          TRUE            FALSE

2. All naturalists think philosophical questions should be replaced by scientific questions.                                                                                                    TRUE            FALSE

3. Kuhn claims that the choice between competing paradigms in science is usually made on the basis of objective factors.                                       TRUE            FALSE

4. Duhem thinks it is possible to perform a definitive experimental test of an individual hypothesis.                                                                              TRUE            FALSE

5. Kuhn claims that scientists abandon their hypotheses immediately once experiments or observations seem to falsify them.                                           TRUE            FALSE

Multiple choice:

1. Van Fraassen claims that we should NOT commit to believing:
1. Claims a theory makes about what is observable.
2. Claims a theory makes about what is unobservable.
3. Claims a theory makes about what has been observed so far.
4. Claims a theory makes about what will be observed in the future.
2. Feyerabend thinks good empiricism requires:
1. Seriously investigating a number of different theories which aim to account for the same phenomena.
2. Requiring a new theory to explain the success of the old theory it replaces.
3. Accepting well-confirmed theories and rejecting theories that are not well-confirmed.
4. An appeal to facts which are theory-independent.


3. Longino thinks:
1. Objective knowledge is the sort of thing an individual scientist can achieve by following the scientific method.
2. Science creates reliable knowledge by means of a transformative interaction between different observers.
3. It is impossible for humans to get reliable knowledge about the world.
4. All of the above.
5. None of the above.

Fill in the blanks:

1. __________________________ is the branch of philosophy dealing with what we can know and how we can come to know it.
2. The "ultimate argument" attempts to show that the predictive success of our scientific theories compel us to take a(n) _________________________ attitude toward them.
3. Concluding, from all the sunrises you have experienced or heard about, that the sun will rise tomorrow is an example of _______________________ reasoning.
4. Van Fraassen says Maxwell confuses unobservable entities with ______________________ entities.
5. The "Strong Program" in sociology of science claims that scientific beliefs, like other beliefs, are justified relative to ________________________ factors.

WELL:      anti-realist

                  realist

                  inductive

                  deductive

                  bridge laws

                  epistemology

                  metaphysics

                  theoretical

                  local

                  global

                  falsification

Evaluation of a scientific claim:

Recently, a new product was introduced called The Laundry Solution.  It consisted of a hard plastic ball filled with a blue liquid.  Its makers claim this product eliminates the need for laundry soap.  Just put the ball in the washing machine with your laundry and everything will come clean without the need for soap.

The manufacturers of The Laundry Solution claim that that liquid within the ball is specially structured water that emits a negative charge through the walls of the ball into the laundry water.  This causes the water molecule cluster to dissociate, allowing much smaller individual water molecules to penetrate into the innermost parts of the fabric.

List the testable claims in this passage:

Design a thorough and simple test of some of these claims using only common household items (e.g., dirty clothes, a washing machine, etc.).  Identify the claim(s) you are testing, describe the test, and explain what outcomes would support or undermine the claim(s).

Given the testable claims that could not be tested in a household setting, what is the most your test could let you conclude about the efficacy of The Laundry Solution?

Evaluation of a scientific claim:

The following case has been cited in support of the claim that pyramids have special powers.  A young woman who was having difficulty with her complexion was told to keep a pitcher of water under a pyramid and then wash her face in that water, with only the mildest soap, once in the morning and once in the evening.  She was also told to put nothing else on her face, no creams or medications of any kind and no makeup.  Although she has been in the habit of using quantities of makeup, she agreed to the experiment.  Within two weeks, there was a clearly noticeable improvement in her complexion.

In this particular scenario, state the hypothesis about the special powers of the pyramid.

Propose another method to test this hypothesis. 

What outcome to this test procedure would support the hypothesis? 

What outcome to this test procedure would undermine this hypothesis?

Possible short essays:

1. Bas C. van Fraassen discusses observations of a vapor trail in a bubble chamber.  How does he argue that a bubble chamber need not make us realists about the subatomic particles a bubble chamber is supposed to detect?
2. Charles Chihara and Carol Chihara discuss experiments with mites which are just barely visible to unaided eyes but which seem to have legs when viewed under a microscope.  Explain how they argue that these experiments should convince us to be realists.
3. Explain how the Müller-Lyer illusion (shown on p. 159 of Theory and Reality) can be used to respond to Kuhn's claim that all observations are theory-laden.
4. Explain Longino's claim that an individual cannot achieve objective knowledge but a group of individuals might.
5. Describe the "covering-law" model of explanation and discuss the problem the case of the flagpole and the shadow shows with this model.