Test Bank Chapter 8 Science, Nonscience, And The Media

Chapter 8: Science, Nonscience, and the Media

Multiple Choice

(Correct answers are marked with an asterisk.)

1. The first step in the scientific method is…

a. Observe

b. Derive a test implication or prediction

c. Identify the problem or pose a question

d. Perform a test

2. A kind of study that does not treat groups and compare the results is known as …

a. A double-blind trial

b. A test-tube study

c. A nonintervention study

d. A cautionary trial

3. The conditional argument that expresses the logical pattern of disconfirming a hypothesis is called…

a. Modus ponens

b. Denying the antecedent

c. Affirming the consequent

d. Modus tollens

4. Science is not…

a. Motivated reasoning

b. Empirical

c. Evidence based

d. Fallible

5. The standards used to judge the worth of scientific theories are known as…

a. The rules of consistency

b. The criteria of evaluation

c. The criteria of adequacy

d. The scientific method

6. Compared to Ptolemy’s geocentric theory, Copernicus’s heliocentric theory was…

a. More conservative

b. Superior in scope

c. More complicated

d. Simpler

7. The theory of creationism is…

a. Conservative

b. Testable

c. Untestable

d. Fruitful

8. The fallacious leap to a nonnatural explanation for a phenomenon is an example of the fallacy of…

a. Appeal to ignorance

b. Begging the question

c. Straw man

d. Division

9. If a theory is testable…

a. It is true

b. There is some way to determine whether it is true or false

c. It is more likely to be true than other theories

d. It cannot predict anything

10. The concept of evolution began with…

a. Darwin

b. Anaximander

c. Thales

d. Plato

11. Science seeks to acquire knowledge and understanding of reality through the formulation, testing, and evaluating of…

a. Deductive reasoning

b. Theories

c. Technology

d. Scientific method

12. The scientific method cannot be identified with any particular set of experimental or observational procedures because…

a. Science is not empirical

b. There is only one procedure used in science

c. Science is philosophical

d. There are many different methods to evaluate the worth of a hypothesis

13. The simplest theory is the one that…

a. Is physically possible

b. Doesn’t need to be tested

c. Makes the fewest assumptions

d. Is the most beautiful

14. To test a hypothesis, scientists must…

a. Not reason deductively

b. Accurately predict the outcome of tests

c. Ignore test implications of the hypothesis

d. Derive a test implication from the hypothesis

15. In double-blind experiments…

a. Test results are unacceptable

b. Neither the participants nor experimenters know who receives the real treatment

c. Only the experimenters know who receives the real treatment

d. Placebos are not used

16. The criterion of conservatism is a measure of…

a. How well a theory fits with existing knowledge

b. The amount of diverse phenomena explained

c. The number of novel predictions made

d. The number of assumptions made

17. The main problem with conspiracy theories is that…

a. They violate laws of science

b. They fail the criteria of adequacy, especially the criterion of simplicity

c. People reject them for no good reason

d. They are difficult to understand

18. In most cases, a single scientific study, a small study, or a case study…

a. Can yield strong evidence of cause and effect

b. Cannot prove very much

c. Can prove that a medical treatment works

d. Are superior to double-blind trials

19. One approach that definitely does not yield a random sample in opinion polls is…

a. Margin of error

b. Inverted sampling

c. Self-selecting sampling

d. Confidence level

20. Maintaining a hypothesis in the face of mounting negative evidence is…

a. Unreasonable

b. Impossible

c. Acceptable

d. Reasonable

Short Answer/Short Essay

1. What is the TEST formula? How is it applied to theories?

2. What are the criteria of adequacy? How are they used to evaluate theories?

3. Why is a fruitful theory more likely to be true than an unfruitful theory?

4. What is the minimum requirement of consistency? What is the difference between internal and external consistency?

5. Why are conservative theories more likely to be true than ones that aren’t conservative?