Natural Sciences — Scope
Notes
Unit knowledge question: “Is there solid justification for regarding knowledge in the natural sciences more highly than knowledge in another area of knowledge?”
What makes a natural science?
The natural sciences study the natural world bereft of human interference — their subject matter would exist even if humans did not. Their method (replication, peer review, falsifiability) is designed to cancel out the human component.
Three categories:
| Category | Definition |
|---|---|
| Science | Systematic, testable knowledge of the objective world |
| Legitimate knowledge of things inherently human | |
| Claims that look scientific but cannot be properly tested |
Key criterion: (Karl Popper) — a claim is scientific only if it can, in principle, be shown to be false. A that can explain any outcome is not scientific.
Pure vs. Applied Science:
| Goal | Knowledge for its own sake | Solve a practical problem |
| Knowledge fits the world | World fits the specification |
Case study: Grindavik, Iceland (2023–24) — seismologists used risk assessment (not certainty) to recommend evacuation. No lives lost. Applied science does not require precision to save lives.