Falsifiability is the term coined by Karl Popper for the idea that a

Question

”Falsifiability” is the term coined by Karl Popper for the idea that a hypothesis or theory addresses the observable world only insofar as it can be found false as the result of some observation or physical experiment. For instance, the proposition “all cats have fur” can easily be proven false with the observation of a single hairless cat. The proposition “the world will end in the year 3035” is impractical to falsify, but still passes the test of falsifiability in that there exists the logical possibility that 3035 will come and go without the world ending. To the contrary, it is possible to posit that everything that happens is the will of Zeus. No matter what experiment we design—such as praying to Zeus to give us the answer or daring Zeus to strike us with lightning— we can always infer that the result is the will of Zeus. Such a proposition, as conceived here, is not falsifiable. Popper claimed that a falsifiable theory is the only kind that can truly be scientific, or at least useful to the scientific community.

By that logic, we can also say that no theory should be formed that has no chance of being true. However, seeing as that kind of theory is much less likely to be formed, it is understandable that Popper does not devote that much time to the criterion of “confirmability.”

By that logic, we can also say that no theory should be formed that has no chance of being true. However, seeing as that kind of theory is much less likely to be formed, it is understandable that Popper does not devote that much time to the criterion of “confirmability.”    1 
 1. According to the passage, which of the following does not meet the criteria for falsifiability?

(A) All birds are black.
(B) Earth is the only planet in the universe with intelligent life.
(C) It rains on Mars every day.
(D) The sun will explode in 100,000 years.
(E) No human being lives forever.

1  
 2. To which of the following is the author most likely to agree regarding “confirmability”?

(A) It is a more important theory than falsifiability.
(B) It does not have much practical, scientific use.
(C) It applies to a broad range of theories.
(D) It is an unreasonable idea.
(E) Popper should have developed this idea along with falsifiability.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

1. According to the passage, which of the following does not meet the criteria for falsifiability?

A  “falsifiable idea”  is  “one that can be shown to be false.”  The statement in  choice (E), “no human being lives forever,”  can only be shown to be false if one observes a human being that lives forever. However, this would be impossible (because of the word “forever”), and thus the idea is not falsifiable.

In addition, answer  choices (A)  through  (D)  are incorrect. The statement  “All birds are black”  is falsifiable by identifying a single bird that is not black.

The statement  “Earth is the only planet in the universe with intelligent life”  can be proven false by finding intelligent life on any planet in the universe except Earth. The statement  “It rains on Mars every day”  can be proven false by observing Mars on a single non-rainy day. The statement  “The sun will explode in 100,000 years”  can be proven false by waiting more than 100,000 years and verifying that the sun has not exploded. Note that choices (D) and (E) seem somewhat similar—however impractical it is to wait 100,000 years to falsify something, there is still a big difference between  “100,000 years”  and  “forever.”  
 
  Answer: E

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

2. To which of the following is the author most likely to agree regarding “confirmability”?

The author states in the last paragraph that a theory that is unable to be proven true is very unlikely to be formed. Therefore, it appears that the author believes that  “confirmability”  lacks a practical application. This supports  choice (B) .

The author states in the second paragraph,  “it is understandable that Popper does not devote that much time to the criterion of ‘confirmability,’”  implying that confirmability is less important that falsifiability, not more, so  choice (A)  is incorrect.

Regarding  choice (C) , the author states that a theory that is unable to be proven true is unlikely to be formed. Therefore, it is unlikely that the author believes that confirmability applies to a broad range of theories.

As for  choice (D) , the first sentence of the last paragraph states that confirmability follows the same logic as falsifiability (“By that logic... ”), and thus it appears the author believes that confirmability is reasonable.

As for  choice (E) , the author states in the last sentence that  “it is understandable that Popper does not devote that much time to the criterion of ‘confirmability.’”  Thus, the author is unlikely to agree that Popper should have developed the idea of confirmability. 
 
  Answer: B

Falsifiability is the term coined by Karl Popper for the idea that a

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