The Solar System

448 PART 4^ |^ THE SOLAR SYSTEM

The So-Called Scientifi c Method

Why is playing catch more than just looking
at the ball? Like any technical subject, sci-
ence includes a mass of details, facts, fi gures,
measurements, and observations. The fl ood
of details can be overwhelming, but one of
the most important characteristics of science
comes to your rescue. The goal of science is
not to discover more details but to explain the
details with a unifying hypothesis or theory.
A good theory is like a basket that makes it
easier for you to carry a large assortment of
details.
For example, when a psychologist begins
studying the way the human eye and brain
respond to moving objects, the data are a
sea of detailed measurements and observa-
tions. Infants look at a moving ball for only
moments, but older children look longer.
Adults can concentrate longer on the moving
ball, but their eyes move differently if they
are given a stick to point with. Scans of brain

activity show that different areas of the brain

are active in different age subjects and under

different circumstances.

From the data, the psychologist might form

the hypothesis that the human brain processes

visual information differently depending on

its intended use. If you look at a baseball

being rubbed in the hands of a pitcher, your

brain processes the visual information one

way. If you see a baseball fl ying at you and

you have to catch it, your brain processes the

information in a different way. The psycholo-

gist’s theory brings all of the details into place

as parts of a logical theory about the ability

and necessity of action. Babies don’t catch

balls. Sometimes a ball is an object that

might be rough or smooth, but sometimes it

is an object to be caught. The brain responds

appropriately.

The goal of science is to understand nature,

not to memorize details. Whether scientists

When scientists create a hypothesis, it draws

together a great many observations and

measurements. (Phyllis Leber)

are psychologists studying brain functions or

astronomers studying the formation of other

worlds, they are trying to unify their data and

explain it with a single hypothesis or theory.

21-1

How Hypotheses and Theories Unify
the Details

■ Figure 21-3

Inside the lunar module, the two astronauts stood in a space hardly bigger than two telephone booths. The metal skin

was so thin it was easily fl exible, like metal foil, and the legs of the module, designed specifi cally for the moon’s weak

gravity, could not support the lander’s weight on Earth. Only the upper half of the lander blasted off from the surface to

return the astronauts to the command module in orbit around the moon. (NASA)

Visual-wavelength image