Introduction to Scientific Method and Anthropology

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts of scientific reasoning, the scientific method, peer review, and key anthropology studies on human height variation.

Science

The process of discovery that links isolated facts into a coherent and comprehensive understanding of the natural world.

Observable phenomena

Things that are measurable in some capacity, marking the boundary of what can be investigated through science.

Theoretical physics

A branch of science that uses theory to address unobserved or unachieved phenomena, such as predictions or hypotheses regarding space and time.

Pattern searching

A critical component of science involving looking for cause-and-effect relationships and reasons behind occurrences in the world.

Inductive reasoning

A form of scientific reasoning that makes broad generalizations from specific observations, allowing conclusions and hypotheses to be adjusted or disproven as new data is gathered.

Deductive reasoning

Reasoning where specific conclusions are drawn logically from general premises, which can lead to false positives if an original premise is false.

Abductive reasoning

A type of scientific reasoning that starts with an incomplete set of observations and proceeds to the likeliest possible explanation.

Peer review

The process of asking the scientific community to vet, replicate, and verify research to ensure ethical methods and accurate findings.

Scientific method

An experimental technique employed in science to develop and test hypotheses through observation, questioning, experimentation, and theory development.

Falsifying a hypothesis

The process of testing a hypothesis with the goal of attempting to prove it wrong rather than trying to prove it right.

Hypothesis

A testable statement and proposed explanation for a phenomenon that usually proposes a relationship between two variables.

Theory

A well-substantiated, broad explanation of a natural world phenomenon that brings together many tested facts and hypotheses.

Mitochondrial DNA

Genetic material long believed to be passed strictly from mother to offspring, though recent findings show some males with a genetic mutation can also pass it on.

Villarame

A French doctor in the early 1800s who studied French military recruits and attributed human height differences to social class and the wealth of an individual's area of origin.

Doctor Hawkins

A factory commissioner who observed Manchester factory workers and concluded that poor living conditions, overworked shifts, and poor nutrition caused their short stature and pale appearance.

Principle of parsimony

Also known as Occam's razor, the principle stating that the simplest explanation is usually the correct one.

Bogan's 2002 study

A study on Mayan children showing that Guatemalan children born in the United States were significantly taller than those born in Guatemala, demonstrating that environment is more important than genetics in determining height.

Fleagle's 1975 study

An experiment on infant monkeys given different diets, proving that protein is the most critical dietary component for growth.