Refresher:Rules for Good Science

I've thought a lot about science lately. Probably due to the fact that I taught an undergraduate course in psychology.

While teaching the class, I was confronted with an array of students with various beliefs about the world. I finally understood what Mr. Scopes must have felt when he taught evolution to his students.

In my life, the rules of science have been rather useful tools for wading through all the much and mire we humans often willingly saddle ourselves with.

So without further adieu, I give you some of the basic rules for science:

1. Parsimony - aka "Occam's Razor", when confronted with two or more competing explanations, choose the simpler explanation. Example: If someone is peeking into your daughter's bedroom window and they look like an alien, chances are they are a person and your perception is off.

2. Falsifiability - aka "testability", if your theory or belief cannot be falsified, then it isn't testable. If a notion isn't testable, then it's nothing more than faith.

3. Provisionality - aka "No final answers", Scientific theories must be open to change otherwise they are dogma. Knowledge grows and changes so our ideas about the world must grow and change too.

These are just a few rules of science. I've found them to be quite useful at eliminating B.S. from my life. You should try them at home, with the loved ones.