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Total Categories: 5
Scientific consensus is accurately defined as the collective agreement among all scientists in a specific field, precluding any dissenting opinions.
Answer: False
Scientific consensus represents the generally held judgment of the majority or supermajority of scientists, not a unanimous agreement among all, and often involves ongoing debates.
The rigorous publication process of research findings constitutes a primary mechanism through which scientific consensus is typically achieved.
Answer: True
The process of scholarly publication, including peer review and replication, is fundamental to the establishment of scientific consensus.
A 'consensus conference' is primarily designed for the public announcement of scientific findings, rather than for the establishment of a common understanding among experts.
Answer: False
Consensus conferences are specifically organized academic events aimed at establishing a shared scientific understanding or position on a particular topic among experts, not merely for public announcements.
Scientific institutes exclusively rely on academic publications and never issue formal position statements to communicate scientific consensus.
Answer: False
Scientific institutes do issue formal position statements and publish consensus review articles to effectively communicate scientific consensus to external audiences, in addition to academic publications.
The establishment of scientific consensus is relatively straightforward when overwhelming and consistent evidence exists, accompanied by minimal controversy within the scientific community.
Answer: True
Scientific consensus is most readily achieved when the subject matter is supported by robust, consistent evidence and faces little internal disagreement among scientists.
Convergent evidence refers to multiple independent sources of evidence that point towards disparate conclusions, thereby challenging the formation of scientific consensus.
Answer: False
Convergent evidence is characterized by multiple independent sources of evidence that consistently point towards the *same* conclusion, often forming the basis for scientific consensus.
The 'shortdescription' for the Wikipedia article on scientific consensus defines it as the 'Collective judgment, position, and opinion of the community of scientists.'
Answer: True
The 'shortdescription' for the Wikipedia article on scientific consensus concisely defines it as the 'Collective judgment, position, and opinion of the community of scientists,' providing a fundamental understanding of the concept.
Which of the following best defines scientific consensus?
Answer: The generally held judgment, position, and opinion of the majority or supermajority of scientists within a specific field.
Which of the following is NOT listed as a mechanism through which scientific consensus is typically achieved?
Answer: Direct public polling of scientific opinions.
What is the primary purpose of a 'consensus conference'?
Answer: To establish a scientific consensus on a particular topic.
How do scientific institutes sometimes communicate a summary of scientific consensus to external audiences?
Answer: By issuing formal position statements or publishing consensus review articles.
In what scenario is establishing scientific consensus relatively straightforward?
Answer: When the subject under study has little controversy or disagreement within the scientific community.
What is 'convergent evidence'?
Answer: Multiple independent sources of evidence pointing towards the same conclusion.
What is the 'shortdescription' provided for the Wikipedia article on scientific consensus?
Answer: The 'Collective judgment, position, and opinion of the community of scientists.'
Developing accurate models for the temporal evolution of scientific consensus is challenging due to the inherent complexity of scientific history and the diverse experimental methodologies employed across various disciplines.
Answer: True
The intricate nature of scientific history, coupled with the varied approaches across scientific disciplines, makes the development of precise models for the evolution of scientific consensus exceptionally difficult.
Karl Popper posited that scientific theories can be definitively proven through a sufficient accumulation of experimental confirmations.
Answer: False
Karl Popper's philosophy of science emphasized falsification, arguing that no number of experiments can definitively prove a theory, but a single experiment can disprove it.
Thomas Kuhn asserted that falsification, in isolation, is consistently sufficient to instigate scientific change or erode existing consensus.
Answer: False
Thomas Kuhn contended that falsification alone is often insufficient to cause scientific change, as experimental data frequently contain anomalies that do not perfectly fit a theory, and scientific consensus operates within broader 'paradigms'.
According to Thomas Kuhn, 'paradigms' are isolated hypotheses developed independently by individual researchers.
Answer: False
In Kuhn's framework, 'paradigms' represent interconnected theories and fundamental assumptions that collectively define a shared understanding and practice within a scientific community, rather than isolated hypotheses.
A 'period of crisis' in scientific consensus, as conceptualized by Kuhn, emerges following a substantial accumulation of anomalies that the prevailing paradigm is unable to adequately explain.
Answer: True
Kuhn's model posits that a 'period of crisis' in scientific consensus is triggered by the significant accumulation of anomalies that fundamentally challenge the explanatory power of the existing paradigm.
A 'paradigm shift' entails a minor adjustment to an existing scientific theory, as opposed to a fundamental transformation.
Answer: False
A 'paradigm shift' signifies a fundamental change in the underlying assumptions and framework of a scientific field, representing a triumph of a new paradigm over an old one, not merely a minor adjustment.
Kuhn's model of theory change exclusively emphasized the logical and objective facts, deliberately excluding social and personal aspects.
Answer: False
Kuhn's model notably emphasized the social and personal dimensions involved in scientific theory change, demonstrating that scientific consensus is not solely determined by pure logic or objective facts.
Kuhn's conceptualized periods of 'normal' and 'crisis' science are regarded as mutually exclusive historical epochs.
Answer: False
Kuhn's periods of 'normal' and 'crisis' science are understood as distinct modes of scientific practice that can coexist or transition, rather than being mutually exclusive historical periods.
The 'Sociology of the history of science' focuses exclusively on the logical progression of scientific facts, disregarding social factors.
Answer: False
The 'Sociology of the history of science' examines the social and historical factors that influence scientific development, acknowledging that scientific consensus is shaped by more than just logical progression of facts.
Why is it difficult to develop accurate models for how scientific consensus changes over time?
Answer: The history of scientific change is highly complicated, and different branches of science use distinct approaches.
According to Karl Popper, what is the basis of scientific inquiry and theory validation?
Answer: Falsification, where a single experiment can disprove a theory.
How did Thomas Kuhn's view challenge Popper's approach to scientific change?
Answer: Kuhn stated that falsification alone doesn't necessarily lead to scientific change due to anomalies and paradigms.
What are 'paradigms' in Thomas Kuhn's theory of scientific change?
Answer: Interconnected theories and underlying assumptions that connect researchers within a field.
According to Kuhn's model, when does scientific consensus enter a 'period of crisis'?
Answer: Only after a significant accumulation of many 'significant' anomalies that cannot be explained by the existing paradigm.
What does a 'paradigm shift' represent in Kuhn's theory?
Answer: A fundamental change in the underlying assumptions and framework of a scientific field.
What additional aspects did Kuhn's model emphasize regarding theory change?
Answer: The social and personal aspects involved in theory change.
Are Kuhn's periods of 'normal' and 'crisis' science mutually exclusive?
Answer: No, they are considered different modes of scientific practice rather than distinct historical periods.
What does the 'Sociology of the history of science' examine?
Answer: The social and historical factors influencing scientific development.
The public frequently misinterprets the inherent debates within scientific discourse as an absence of consensus, thereby complicating effective communication with external audiences.
Answer: True
Normal scientific debates, while crucial for progress, can be misconstrued by the public as a lack of consensus, posing a significant challenge for external communication.
The 'gateway belief' model posits that the perception of scientific consensus on a given issue can significantly influence other related beliefs and subsequent actions.
Answer: True
The 'gateway belief' model highlights how an individual's perception of scientific consensus acts as a foundational belief, shaping their other related beliefs and behaviors concerning that issue.
The general public typically overestimates the degree of scientific consensus regarding human-caused climate change.
Answer: False
Studies indicate that the public substantially *underestimates* the actual degree of scientific consensus on human-caused climate change, which is reported to be between 98.7% and 100%.
In public policy debates, asserting a lack of scientific consensus is frequently employed to bolster the perceived validity of a particular theory.
Answer: False
In public policy discourse, claims of a lack of scientific consensus are typically used to foster doubt about a theory, whereas assertions of consensus are used to support its validity.
Opponents of scientific findings occasionally amplify the inherent scientific uncertainty to create a misleading appearance of disagreement.
Answer: True
Opponents of scientific findings often strategically amplify the normal range of scientific uncertainty to suggest a lack of consensus, even when a strong consensus exists.
The 'Politicization of science' refers to the process by which scientific issues are maintained entirely separate from political agendas.
Answer: False
The 'Politicization of science' describes the process where scientific issues become intertwined with political agendas and public policy debates, often leading to the use of scientific consensus as a rhetorical tool.
Why is communicating scientific consensus to individuals outside the scientific community often challenging?
Answer: The public perceives normal scientific debates as a lack of consensus.
What does the 'gateway belief' model describe?
Answer: The perception of whether a scientific consensus exists on an issue as a foundational belief influencing other beliefs and actions.
What is the public's general perception regarding the scientific consensus on human-caused climate change?
Answer: The public substantially underestimates the actual degree of scientific consensus.
How is the assertion of scientific consensus frequently used in public policy debates?
Answer: As an argument to support the validity of a theory.
According to Naomi Oreskes, how do opponents of scientific findings sometimes create an appearance of disagreement?
Answer: By amplifying the normal range of scientific uncertainty to suggest a lack of consensus.
What is the 'Politicization of science'?
Answer: The process by which scientific issues become entangled with political agendas and public policy debates.
The safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a subject where popular debate frequently references scientific consensus, despite the existence of significant scientific controversy.
Answer: False
The safety of GMOs is an example where public and political discourse often invokes scientific consensus, even though there is little scientific controversy on the matter within the scientific community itself.
The scientific consensus on global warming attributes the recent increase in global surface temperatures primarily to natural solar cycles.
Answer: False
The scientific consensus on global warming attributes the recent increase in global surface temperatures primarily to human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases, not natural solar cycles.
Naomi Oreskes' survey of climate change articles revealed a significant number of explicit disagreements with the concept of anthropogenic global warming.
Answer: False
Naomi Oreskes' survey of 928 science article abstracts found *none* that explicitly disagreed with the notion of anthropogenic global warming, indicating a strong consensus.
The theory of evolution through natural selection is widely regarded as one of the least empirically tested theories in scientific inquiry.
Answer: False
The theory of evolution through natural selection is supported by overwhelming scientific consensus and is considered one of the most reliable and empirically tested theories in science.
Opponents of evolutionary theory frequently assert significant scientific dissent to undermine its broad acceptance.
Answer: True
Despite overwhelming scientific consensus, opponents of evolution commonly claim significant dissent within the scientific community to challenge the theory's acceptance.
The 'wedge strategy' sought to advance intelligent design by emphasizing the robust scientific consensus on evolutionary theory.
Answer: False
The 'wedge strategy' was designed to promote intelligent design by creating public doubt about the scientific consensus on evolution, rather than highlighting its strength.
Which of the following topics is cited as an example where popular or political debate invokes scientific consensus despite little scientific controversy?
Answer: The safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
What is the scientific consensus regarding the primary cause of global warming in recent decades?
Answer: Human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases.
What did Naomi Oreskes' survey of science articles on climate change published between 1993 and 2003 reveal?
Answer: None of the articles explicitly disagreed with the notion of anthropogenic global warming.
How reliable and empirically tested is the theory of evolution through natural selection?
Answer: It is considered one of the most reliable and empirically tested theories in science.
What claims do opponents of evolution frequently make despite overwhelming scientific consensus?
Answer: That there is significant dissent on evolution within the scientific community.
What was the 'wedge strategy' designed to promote?
Answer: Intelligent design, by creating public doubt about the scientific consensus on evolution.
The inherent uncertainty in scientific inquiry, where theories are never definitively proven, simplifies the decision-making process for policymakers.
Answer: False
The inherent uncertainty in science complicates decision-making for policymakers, as they must make sound decisions based on available data even when a 'final truth' is not yet established, to avoid policy paralysis.
Social action against smoking transpired immediately following the scientific community's attainment of a consensual understanding of its associated harms.
Answer: False
Social action against smoking occurred with a significant delay after the scientific community reached a 'pretty consensual' understanding of its harms, illustrating a potential lag between scientific consensus and policy implementation.
Policymakers are compelled to rely on scientific consensus, particularly when intervention is urgent, to avert policy paralysis.
Answer: True
Policymakers often must rely on scientific consensus to guide policy, especially when intervention is compelling, as waiting for 'final truth' would lead to inaction and acceptance of risks.
Policymakers bear no ongoing responsibility to review scientific consensus subsequent to policy implementation.
Answer: False
Policymakers have an ongoing responsibility to continuously review both the relevant scientific consensus and the tangible outcomes of implemented policies, allowing for necessary adjustments.
What challenge does the inherent uncertainty in science pose for policymakers?
Answer: It requires policymakers to make sound decisions based on currently available data, even if not the 'final truth'.
What historical example is given to illustrate the delay between scientific consensus and social action?
Answer: Social action against smoking coming too long after scientific understanding of its harms.
Why is it often necessary for policymakers to rely on scientific consensus?
Answer: To guide policy design and implementation, especially when intervention is compelling, to avoid paralysis.
What ongoing responsibility do policymakers have regarding scientific consensus and policy outcomes?
Answer: To persistently review both the relevant scientific consensus and the tangible results of implemented policies.