The Scientific Method - Not Just for Science A Teaching Module to Rid You of Your Demons, Ghosts, Witches, Extraterrestrial Aliens in UFOs Dr. John F. Dilley June 2017
Are You Afraid of Demons, Ghosts, Witches, Zombies, or ET Aliens? Don t be afraid: science to the rescue! By using a skeptical approach and applying the Scientific Method, which involves collecting scientific data, the real world can be determined to be not as scary. This teaching module will outline how demons can be eliminated from the list of things to worry about. It will also teach you how the Scientific Method is applied and how powerful it is. We wouldn't be where we are now without science! SCIENCE TO THE RESCUE!
Background This teaching module was based on the principles and applications put forth by Carl Sagan in his book, The Demon- Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark The Scientific Method has been and is being used to discover the physical laws that govern the universe that we live in. It can also be used, even though not enough people do, to determine what is real and what is imagined - think demons, ghosts, witches, UFOs/extraterrestrial (ET) aliens, etc.
Introduction Why this topic? The Scientific Method has improved the lives of all of us, starting in the 16 th Century. For example, medical science has extended human life expectancy from 20 30 years when we were hunter/gatherers to 80 years currently It has the potential to improve your personal life by getting rid of demons. How does it work? The Scientific Method uses observations/data to verify a proposed hypothesis. Apply the Scientific Method to the hypothesis that demons exist, where demons can be ghosts, witches, extraterrestrial aliens, with or without UFOs (Unidentified Flying Objects). Collect valid scientific data (think forensics, finger prints, DNA, physical objects)
Definitions Scientific Method - "a method or procedure that has characterized natural science since the 16th century, consisting of systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification of hypotheses. (The Oxford Dictionary) Hypothesis - A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it. Scientists generally base scientific hypotheses on previous observations that cannot satisfactorily be explained with the available scientific theories. Theory - Scientific theory is an explanation of some aspect of the natural world that can, in accordance with the scientific method, be repeatedly tested, using a predefined protocol of observations and experiments. It is a tested and verified hypothesis.
Scientific Method Start with a question or problem Do some research Formulate a hypothesis that is testable Design experiments to test hypotheses. Perform the experiments, collect the data. Analyze the data If the data supports the hypothesis, it becomes a theory and a law of physics/science, or some of the data may indicate that hypothesis needs to be changed. To be termed scientific, a method of inquiry is commonly based on empirical or measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning. See flow charts on next page
The Scientific Method cont.
Class Room Exercises Gravity: Drop an object with negligible drag (i.e. not a feather) and verify that the acceleration due to gravity is g = 32 ft/sec 2 see next page Chemistry experiment Electricity: V = IR Aerospace: Wright Bros/flight, Rocketry, Force equals mass x acceleration: F = ma Boyle s Law (PV) = constant for a gas at constant temperature, where P = pressure and V = volume
Exercise: Prove Hypothesis that Acceleration due to Gravity is 32 ft/sec 2 Problem: Pretend you are back hundreds of years ago and you wonder how fast objects fall and have done some early experiments with objects. Hypothesis: you hypothesize that gravity is a force, F that acts on a mass, m, with an acceleration, a (F = ma from Newton), and in this case, we believe that the acceleration due to gravity = g is 32 ft/sec 2 Experiments; So we design some experiments where objects of different masses, m are dropped from the same height, h, or from different heights and we measure the fall time from height, h to the ground (h=0). Analysis: We can derive equations for velocity of object falling at constant acceleration, g: v(t) = gt, and the distance traveled is d(t) = gt 2 /2 Conclusion: the above gives us an expression for g = 2h/t 2, note that it doesn t depend on mass. If the fall time data is close (have to allow for measurement error*), and it agrees with experiments run with different heights, then the hypothesis becomes a theory. *Note: I dropped a golf ball from 8 ft and got within 10%, using the stop watch on my smart phone.
What Makes Science So Great? Science may be hard to understand. p.30 (in Sagan s book) However, the benefits from science are well worth the effort to learn how science and the Scientific Method works. The Scientific Method, in this case Medical Science, has given the gift of life to all humans over the last several hundred years life expectancy is now 80 years, up from 20 30 years when humans were hunter/gathers. Do you have a crystal ball that can predict the future? Some sciences can predict the future with stunning accuracy: Motion of the planets/eclipses can be computed with high accuracy 100s of years in future The weather can be predicted a week in advance with 80-90% accuracy The sex of a fetus can be determined with amniocentesis and sonograms at 99% accuracy
Pseudoscience Pseudoscience is prevalent and popular, as surveys suggest that 95% of Americans are scientifically illiterate p.6 Pseudoscience is easier to contrive than (real) science, because the standards for evidence are much more relaxed. Pseudoscience speaks to people s emotional needs that science often doesn t meet. Pseudoscience is faithless to the nature of science, as it lacks the real evidence of science Pseudoscience can be likened to a halfway house between old religion and new science. For real science, hypotheses are framed to be disproved, while in pseudoscience they are framed so that they can t be disproved. p. 20, 21
Pseudoscience- cont. Pseudoscience differs from erroneous science science thrives on errors, cutting them away, one at a time, and used to update hypothesis. Examples of pseudoscience: Astrology, which dates back 4,000 years 10 times more astrologers in U.S. than Astronomers p. 303 Psychic Friends Network, which has about a million followers who follow their guidance in their everyday lives. p.18 Age of the Earth - some Fundamentalists claim that the Earth is less than 10,000 years old vice scientific age of 4 billion years, Pseudoscience/old religion vs early science: Galileo lost the battle but won the war when the Church persecuted him for supporting Copernicus Sun-centric solar system see next chart
Science vs Religion History Lesson 1610 Galileo Galilei improved the then recently invented telescope. In 1610, he used it to observe the planets, including Jupiter, and discovered 4 of its moons. Using the scientific method, he concluded that Copernicus was right about the planets, including Earth, orbiting our Sun (published in 1543). His problem was that the Catholic Church doctrine (belief based, pseudoscience) said that the Earth was the center of the Universe, and everything else orbited the Earth. He was persecuted by the Church for his heretical position which he stuck to for the rest of his life (because he knew he was right!) This was a major turning point in history because scientific facts were shown to rule the universe, instead of beliefs!
Be Skeptical Key to Applying Scientific Method Being skeptical is not the same as being negative, it s about asking questions, like What data backs up the existence of demons (ghosts, witches, extraterrestrial aliens, etc)? Let s pick something to be skeptical about: ET Aliens in UFOs (unidentified flying objects) Ghosts or poltergeists Witches For this exercise, we pick the first one, extraterrestrial (ET) aliens Alleged UFO over NJ - July 31, 1952 Homework Assignment: collect data on UFOs/ET aliens Lenticular clouds have been reported as UFOs
Existence of Extraterrestrial Aliens The hypothesis is that extraterrestrial aliens exist on Earth The next step is to collect credible data, similar to what criminologists (like Crime Scene Investigators, CSI) collect: powder burns, fingerprints, DNA samples, and footprints p.181 There are plenty of UFO reports over more than 50 years Our skeptical approach asks, How credible is that data? Reports of alien abductions have been attributed to dreams or hallucinations and a large majority of UFO sighting have been explained as natural phenomena or other airborne vehicles. Example of bad science: Crop Circles in agricultural fields Started in southern England during the 1970s. Hoaxes were discounted, they were attributed to UFOs, weather phenomena. Many people were enthralled with these amazing explanations, and didn t bother to collect data. The perpetrators of this hoax, Doug Bower and Dave Chorley confessed in 1991.
Existence of Extraterrestrial Aliens cont. The US Government has sophisticated radar and optical tracking systems for orbiting objects and incoming asteroids => there have been no detected incoming ET UFOs. There have been reports of ET UFO crashes, which have been explained as meteorites or hoaxes. There are to date, no ET alien UFO pieces or parts that have been collected, and no alien life forms have been recovered. Thus, based on a lack of any credible evidence of existence that ET UFOs and aliens exist, we must conclude that there is no evidence that they exist on Earth and the hypothesis is not proven. This example holds for the all the demons (ghosts, witches, ET aliens, etc), so we can rest easier in a World without these demons. Apply Scientific Method NO DEMONS!
Summary Science has made a huge impact on our lives over the last 400+ years. The Scientific Method has been described as a powerful tool to develop new scientific theories. This method can be used in our personal lives to get rid of demons which can haunt us or cause us harm (in he case of witch hunts). It can also be used to avoid being taken advantage of by Snake Oil Salesmen who would have us believe in miracle cures or fraudulent products that make impossible claims. May the (Science) Force be with you and guide you through life without Demons in many forms!