FALSIFIABILITY

By: Genria Nicole G. Guzman

DEFINITION
v  According to popper, what
distinguishes scientific claims from
nonscientific claims
v  A hypothesis is scientific if and only
if there is some way by which it can
be falsified by means of some
experiment.
FALSIFIABLE
v If a crucial experiment which can
potentially falsify a hypothesis
cannot be constructed, then the
hypothesis, even if it is meaningful, is
not really scientific.
 EXAMPLES
v When Einstein developed his theory of
relativity, he claimed that the gravitational
force from large objects such as the sun
would bend light that came in its direction.
v This hypothesis can be falsified by examining
the light coming from stars during an eclipse.
Observations have shown that light indeed
bends when it passes around large objects.
 EXAMPLES
v Falsifiable Statement: All cars are white.
v This statement can be proven false with any
observation that a car is not white
v Unfalsifiable Statement: Invisible fairies
that cannot be detected by humans live in
forests.
v This statement cannot be proven to be
correct or false, thus it is not falsifiable.
 CRITICISM
v Imre Lakatos criticized Popper’s view and said
that scientists do not go around trying to
falsify a hypothesis.
v IF an experiment falsifies a hypothesis, it is
unwise to reject the hypothesis altogether
because the failure of the experiment may be
due to some error in its design or that the
theory being tested only needs modification
and need not be rejected completely.
 SOURCES
v  Falsification Principle. (n.d.). In Alleydog.com's
online glossary. Retrieved from: https://
www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition-cit.php?
term=Falsification+Principle

v  Mansukhani, R. (N.D.) Philosophy of science.