Social Science, Natural Science, and Humanities Quiz

Sciences and Branches

• Social Science deals with society
• Natural Science focuses on the natural world, using empirical and scientific methods
• Humanities studies the human condition

Branches of Social Science

• Anthropology: examines different aspects of the human condition
• History: studies events in the past
• Archaeology: analyzes material culture
• Economics: manages available resources to meet increasing demands
• Law: governs a country
• Geography: studies lands, earth, and human population
• Linguistics: is the science of languages
• Sociology: examines societal constructs
• Political Science: explores different systems of governance
• Psychology: investigates the mind and human behavior

Philosophy

• Originated from Greek “Phila” (love) and “Sophia” (wisdom or knowledge)
• Means the love of wisdom
• Considered the parent science

Branches of Philosophy

• Metaphysics: questions reality, including time, space, cause, and chance
• Epistemology: studies the nature and scope of knowledge
• Axiology: examines principles and values
• Logic: analyzes abstract thinking in philosophy, focusing on methods to distinguish correct from incorrect reasoning

Fields in Philosophy

• Philosophy of Education: explores how children should be educated
• Philosophy of Mind: examines consciousness and its interaction
• Philosophy of History: studies the impact of history and its writing
• Philosophy of Science: analyzes how science operates
• Philosophy of Law: examines the concept of law
• Philosophy of Language: explores a broad spectrum of questions about language

Original Centers of Philosophy

• Greek (Western), Indian, and Chinese are the three great original centers of philosophy

Ancient Greek Philosophers

• Thales of Miletus (circa 585 BCE): began philosophy in Greece as a great seafaring power
• Anaximander: represents the second generation of the Milesian School and was the first cartographer
• Pythagoras: developed the Pythagorean theorem
• Anaximenes: believed air is the basic substance
• Heraclitus: was the first philosopher of general process and particular manifestation
• Parmenides: is considered the father of metaphysics
• Empedocles: proposed the four elements: water, earth, fire, and air
• Anaxagoras: contributed to cosmology and the true causes of eclipses
• Democritus: was a wealthy citizen
• Protagoras: was a student of Democritus and a Sophist
• Socrates: never wrote anything, was a master stonemason, and a social critic
• Plato: was a student of Socrates and the father of political science
• Aristotle: is one of the world's greatest ancient philosophers, proposed three kinds of soul: vegetative, aesthetic, and rational

Other Philosophers

• Nicholas Copernicus: is the father of modern astronomy
• René Descartes: is the father of modern philosophy and coined the phrase "Cogito, ergo sum" (I think, therefore I am)
• Thomas Hobbes: wrote anti-parliamentarian works, including "Leviathan", which compares the state to a great sea monster