DECIDE

Imagine rejecting that the world is flat! How do you KNOW it is round? Well, scientific theories and ideas are usually the product of a long process of investigating, debating, and reconstructing the way we think about the world based on the information and observations we make.

Scientists spend time repeating each other's experiments only after careful analysis of the initial investigation. Experimentation is an expensive process, so scientists look very closely at the processes used by previous experiments and look critically at the methods of analysis and possible sources of error, before repeating the work of another scientist or prior to extending the research of another scientist. In addition, scientists work to evaluate and respond to the assumptions that others make and to the criticisms of other scientists.

Being able to evaluate the arguments or assumptions of scientific claims involves:

1) recognizing the differences between a fact supported by data and an opinion
2) knowing the sample size used in the data collection process
3) judging the reliability of the conclusions formed from the data of the experiment
4) evaluating the impact of available evidence and its limitations