Epistemology (Erkenntnistheorie), Scientific Methodology, and Lay-Audience Science Communication

die Erkenntnistheorie

epistemology / theory of knowledge

die Wissenschaftstheorie

philosophy of science

der Paradigmenwechsel

paradigm shift

die Kausalität

causality / cause-and-effect relationship

die Korrelation

correlation / mutual relationship without proven cause

die Scheinkorrelation

spurious correlation

die Empirie

empirical research / observation-based evidence

die Evidenz

evidence / proof based on data

die Validität

validity (internal or external truth of a test)

die Reliabilität

reliability / consistency of measurement

die Reproduzierbarkeit

reproducibility / replicability of results

die Falsifizierbarkeit

falsifiability (ability to be proven false)

die Hypothese

hypothesis / testable proposition

die Nullhypothese

null hypothesis

die Grundannahme

basic premise / foundational assumption

die Verzerrung

bias / systematic error (e.g., confirmation bias)

der Bestätigungsfehler

confirmation bias

die Dunkelziffer

unreported cases / dark figure / hidden number

die Stichprobengrösse

sample size

die Kontrollgruppe

control group

der Versuchsaufbau

experimental setup / design

die Methodik

methodology / system of methods

die Heuristik

heuristic / rule of thumb / problem-solving shortcut

der Synergieeffekt

synergy effect

die Übertragbarkeit

transferability / generalizability (of findings)

die Limitation

limitation / boundary constraint of a study

die ethische Vertretbarkeit

ethical defensibility / ethical justification

der Erkenntnisgewinn

gain in knowledge / new insight

der Wissenstransfer

knowledge transfer (from academia to public/industry)

der Fachjargon

technical jargon / disciplinary terminology

das Gedankenexperiment

thought experiment

das Postulat

postulate / fundamental claim

falsifizieren

to falsify / disprove empirically

verifizieren

to verify / prove empirically

ableiten

to derive / deduce

herleiten

to deduce logically / trace origins

abstrahieren

to abstract / extract general principles

verallgemeinern

to generalize

nachweisen

to prove / verify / furnish proof

belegen

to substantiate / back up with evidence

widerlegen

to refute / disprove

differenzieren

to differentiate / distinguish nuanced factors

operationalisieren

to operationalize / make a concept measurable

abwägen

to weigh up / consider competing factors

veranschaulichen

to illustrate / make graphic or clear

herunterbrechen auf

to break down to (simpler terms or components)

entmystifizieren

to demystify

simplifizieren

to oversimplify

greifbar machen

to make tangible / make accessible

zugänglich machen

to make accessible (to a wider audience)

plausibel

plausible / believable

stichhaltig

sound / cogent / valid (of an argument or proof)

belastbar

robust / reliable / resilient (of data or conclusions)

fundiert

well-founded / grounded in rigorous research

angreifbar

vulnerable / contestable / open to criticism

widerlegbar

refutable / falsifiable

subjektiv gefärbt

subjectively biased / colored by personal view

kontraintuitiv

counter-intuitive

interdisziplinär

interdisciplinary

multikausal

multicausal / having multiple interrelated causes

signifikant

statistically significant / substantial

repräsentativ

representative (of a broader population)

der Status quo

current state of research / status quo

der State of the Art

state of the art / cutting-edge standard

auf einer Annahme beruhen

to rest on an assumption

einen Beweis erbringen

to provide proof / furnish evidence

die Datenlage ist eindeutig

the evidence/data is unequivocal

die Datenlage ist dünn

the available data is sparse / inconclusive

einen Bogen schlagen zu

to draw a connection to / tie back to

in einfachen Worten ausgedrückt

expressed in simple terms / in layman's terms

bildhaft gesprochen

figuratively speaking / using an analogy

im Widerspruch stehen zu

to contradict / stand in opposition to

eine Gesetzmässigkeit feststellen

to identify an underlying pattern or scientific law

die Aussagekraft einschränken

to limit the validity / explanatory power of a result