Monthly Archives: January 2015

Using Deductive and Inductive Logic in Science

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

There are several different types of logic, but probably the two most common are deductive and inductive. Both of these play a vital role in science, but we use them for different purposes. Therefore, it is my intention to explain … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science, Rules of Logic | Tagged ,

Science and the Public Part 3: A Scientific Consensus is Based on Evidence, not Peer Pressure and Adherence to Dogma

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

In this post, I am going to debunk an argument that is very commonly used by the anti-science movement. Namely, the argument that scientists merely go along with the accepted dogma of their field and either refuse to consider contrary … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged ,

Science and the Public Part 2: Scientific Results Are Facts, Not Conspiracies

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

As I explained in the first post of this series, there is widespread and unfounded disagreement between what scientists know to be true and what the general public chooses to believe. Many people choose to blindly reject the science behind … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged | 1 Comment

Science and the Public Part 1: Why You Shouldn’t Trust Blogs

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

An enormous disparity exists between what scientists know to be true, and what the general public chooses to believe. This disparity exists largely because of the internet, and it is perpetuated by those who readily read and disperse blogs and … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Basic Statistics Part 2: Correlation vs. Causation

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

Updated with additional sources on 16-June-16 It is fairly widely known that correlation does not inherently indicate causation. In fact, inappropriately asserting causation is a logical fallacy known simply as a correlation fallacy. Nevertheless, there is a great deal of … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Basic Statistics Part 1: The Law of Large Numbers

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

Statistics are a fundamental and vital component of science, and a good grasp of statistics is absolutely essentially if you want to be able to understand scientific results. Nevertheless, the vast majority of people have little or no knowledge of … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged ,

Facts, Hypotheses, Theories, and Laws: What’s the Difference?

Posted on January 28, 2015 by

Perhaps no topic in science garners more confusion among the general public than the distinction between a theory and a hypothesis. This confusion is highly regrettable, because the distinction is one of the most fundamental concepts in science, and a … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science, Science of Evolution | Tagged