A theory cannot properly

Answer choices

1. A

   Weak Trigger Match11% picked this

   Since no one was present at the origin of the universe, the Big Bang theory of the universe’s origin

   Does saying that "no one was present at the origin of the universe" establish that "there is no conceivable observation that could refute the Big Bang theory"? No. Say we have an empirical theory that "Jeff killed Samantha at an Applebee's last weekend". If no one was present at that Applebee's, does that mean there's no conceivable observation that could refute our theory? Of course not. Samantha might walk up to us and say, "What are you guys talking about?" and our observation of her would refute this theory.

   11%
2. B

   Reversal7% picked this

   Since set theory is not an empirical theory, there is no conceivable observation that

   This goes from the right side of our Principle to the left side. No conceivable observation → can't consider that could refute a theory the theory to be empirical It's saying "if theory X isn't empirical, then that means that there's no conceivable observation that could refute it".

   7%
3. C

   Correct54% picked this

   Psychoanalysis is such a flexible theory that no conceivable observation could show it to be false, so it

   Why this is right

   Do we establish that a theory could not be conceivably refuted by observation? Yes — no conceivable observation could show it to be false. Do we then conclude that the theory isn't empirical? Yes.

   Skill tested: Principle-Conform · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

   54%
4. D

   Opposite20% picked this

   There are conceivable observations that would refute quantum theory, so quantum theory is

   This performs an illegal opposite (negation) of our Principle. We mentioned before that we can get rid of any answer concluding that theory is empirical. No conceivable observation → can't consider that could refute a theory the theory to be empirical This answer choice says "if there is a conceivable observation that could refute, then it is empirical"

   20%
5. E

   Bad Conclusion Match7% picked this

   The theory of relativity must be true since, although scientists have conceived of observations that would refute it, it

   This concludes that a theory "must be true", but this principle doesn't give us any power to derive that conclusion. We can either derive that "not an empirical theory" or we can derive that "there is some conceivable observation that would refute".

   7%