Proposed questions for a written proof

SCIENCE IN SOCIETY

QUESTIONS FOR THE FIRST UNIT


1. Can you explain what a pendulum is? What is the period of a pendulum?

2. Explain every step of the scentific method applied to the period of a pendulum (if you don´t remember the figures in the experiment you can invent them).

3. You have a goldfish bowl at home, but your goldfishes dye after some days. It has happened every time you have tried to breed goldfishes. You suspect that the problem could be an excesive amount of food. Apply the scientific method to this problem (you can invent the results of the experiments).

4. The scientist of the XVIIth century Jean Baptiste Von Helmont famous for his investigations on plants fisiology, published this recippe to create mice: “leave some some wheat beans anda ditrty shirt in a timber box for some days and out of the interaction between them some mice would appear”.

Criticice this experiment using the scientific method and give an alternative explanation to the results of this experiment.

5. Do you think that a contrasted and prestigious theory can be considered the “truth”? Explain why

6. Do you think that the explanation of the origin of the Universe in the Bible could be considered the “truth” by a christian? In what sense?

7. Can you summarise briefly the core of the discussion between Robert Penrose and Stephen Hawkings about the meaning of their investigations about Black Holes?

8. Whose opinion do you like more, Penrose´s or Hawkings´?

9. Write down in words this expresion “10-31”

10. Apply the principle of ockham’s razor to this problem:

“some people suspect that crop circles are due in some way to extraterrestrial influence, whether directly or otherwise. Others suggest that the patterns are the work of dedicated artists or hoaxers and very much an earthly occurrence.”

11. Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson were two of the technicians that were making proofs for the firsts intercontinental TV transmisions, and while doing this they came across the cosmic microwave background radiation and received the Nobel award after this discovery.

What name receives in science this kind of discovery?
12.