Cours 1 - What is (Not) Science? PDF

**COURS 1 -- 11/09/24** **What is (not) science ?** [Astrology] is not scientific bc it's always true and it can be refuted, it based on history and legends. - **scientific** = you need a theory an then you have to test the theory, with numbers, experiences, ect. - And then to formul...

**COURS 1 -- 11/09/24** **What is (not) science ?** [Astrology] is not scientific bc it's always true and it can be refuted, it based on history and legends. - **scientific** = you need a theory an then you have to test the theory, with numbers, experiences, ect. - And then to formulate a conclusion, is it in line with the expectation? you can give a yes or no as an answer = its not automatically true, it can be remis en cause by other scientific *"Climate change is happening."* *"The global warming threat is overblown."* *"Global warming is a scam."* - Replicability, knowledge is something cumulate, it's not scientific is there is only one sources which prove it, but it is if many scientific tell that *"A shadowy global elite wants to strip away ordinary people's freedoms and make us live a life of deprivation."* *"Wind turbines cause cancer."* *"Multiple independent studies over the past 19 years have found that between 90 and 100 per cent of scientists agree that humans are responsible for climate change."* - Temporality: it has been tested in different context / we have replicated it in different countries with different scientific *"a claim"* = Scientific has been exposed to scientific scrutiny **Inquiry**= an activity Pseudoscience = use disinformation, conspiracy theories **Inquiry= an activity, recherche** We make inquiry every day / We predict Our reasoning is **causal** and **probabilistic** (**Ex** : study hard →better grades, but not always) We make **errors** in normal inquiry. **Science** is different because it has **standards,** ways in which it guards against human errors of inquiry **Science** makes concepts of causality and probability **more explicit** and **provides techniques** for dealing with them more rigorously - Science = accurate observation and understanding of reality - Science = protection from common pitfalls of ordinary inquiry Science makes us more conscious, rigorous, and explicit in our inquiries [2 pillors of scientific method (45min)] Scientific inquiry attempts to answer both "what" and "why" questions This course is not so much about **what** we know. This course is about **how** to know. - **Epistemology**= the science of knowing - **Methodology**= the science of finding out  **Logical support** (= the [why]) = logic / **empirical support** (the [how]) = observation **Inductive** : when you observe first and then comment with logical explanation - Ex : there is a war, then you comment it to understand it **Deductive** : based on what have been done before, or have already a theory and you look If the theory applies Une image contenant texte, capture d'écran, Police, ligne Description générée automatiquement   **[Scientific inquiries in social sciences]** Social inquiries = **probabilistic patterns** \* Exceptions do not mean that the regularity itself is unreal or unimportant *Example: women tend to have lower earnings* Social inquiries = **aggregates, not individuals** - Social scientists study primarily social patterns rather than individual ones - These patterns reflect the aggregate or collective actions & situations of many individuals. Social scientists create theories about the nature of group life, rather than individual life. They study what happens between individuals *(e.g. couples, small groups, organisations, societies, interactions between societies)* Social science theories try to explain why aggregated patterns of behaviour are so regular.