Science in the News

Did you know…… With oil spilling into the gulf as we speak, the concern surrounding DHMO (dihydrogen monoxide ) is again in the headlines. It has been detected in samples from the gulf!

The coalition to ban Dihydrogen Monoxide wants you to know that it : has been found in excised tumors of terminal cancer patients is the major component of acid rain contributes to the “greenhouse effect" may cause severe burns is fatal if inhaled accelerates corrosion and rusting of many metals may cause electrical failures and decreased effectiveness of automobile brakes

Despite the danger, dihydrogen monoxide is often used: as an industrial solvent and coolant in nuclear power plants in the production of Styrofoam as a fire retardant in many forms of cruel animal research as an additive in certain "junk-foods" and other food products

This information about DHMO makes me worried. mad. want to do something about it. calm.

Why hasn’t something been done?

Well……………………………….

Water really is not that scary!!!!!

Have you ever been lied to? How can you tell fact from fiction?

Index Cards Write the headings “Science” and “Pseudoscience” Sort the following words under the “Science” column or the “Pseudoscience” column.

Place the following topics under each heading? Astrology Full Moon Behavior Bermuda Triangle Crop Circles Ufology Magnet Therapy Big Foot Loch Ness Monster Answer: All are Pseudoscience

With your partner, discuss and write 3 ways how you can tell the difference between science and pseudoscience?

Science vs. Pseudoscience Scientific ideas are measurable, observable and logical. Pseudoscience ideas are not discovered through scientific methods. Science relies on empirical evidence (what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell) and ideas and inferences (what you think). Scientists must base their ideas on empirical evidence. Pseudoscience claims do not use these.

Science vs. Pseudoscience Is there evidence to support it? Is it grounded in empirical evidence? Is it testable? Is the evidence replicable by others? Is it open to change as new evidence or interpretations are encountered? Has there been a great deal of debate and confirmation in the scientific community about it?

Florida Standard - SC.8.N.1.6 Scientific investigations involve the collection of relevant empirical evidence, the use of logical reasoning, and the application of imagination in devising hypotheses, predictions, explanations and models to make sense of the collected evidence.

See What You Know . . . A skin cream claims to get rid of wrinkles. How would you be able to know if this is a scientific claim?

The Earth is Flat Scientific Proof: If you look in any direction as far as you can see, Earth appears flat. I have driven very far, have flown thousands of miles in a plane, and I have never seen any rounding of Earth. Everyone I know agrees with me that Earth is flat. You can measure the ground with meter sticks or other scientific instruments, and the instruments lay flat across the ground, proving that Earth is not round. I have conducted this experiment hundreds of times. It has been replicated by many other people. We always get the same result: Earth is flat.

See What You Know . . . What is wrong with these conclusions? What makes these conclusions pseudoscience? What is wrong with the science used?

Standards Dealing With Nature of Science SC.8.N.2.1 - Distinguish between scientific and pseudoscientific ideas. SC.8.N.1.3 - Use phrases such as 'results support' or 'fail to support' in science, understanding that science does not offer conclusive 'proof' of a knowledge claim. SC.8.N.1.4 - Explain how hypotheses are valuable if they lead to further investigations, even if they turn out not to be supported by the data. SC.8.N.1.6 - Understand that scientific investigations involve the collection of relevant empirical evidence, the use of logical reasoning, and the application of imagination in devising hypotheses, predictions, explanations and models to make sense of the collected evidence. SC.8.N.3.2 - Explain why theories may be modified but are rarely discarded.