Falsification and Science

In its basic form, the term of falsifiability is the belief that for any hypothesis to have credence, it must be inherently disprovable before it can become accepted as a scientific hypothesis or theory. For example, if a scientist asks, "Does God exist?" then this can never be science because it is a theory that cannot be disproved.

The idea is that no theory completely correct, but if not falsified, it can be accepted as truth. For example, Newton's Theory of Gravity was accepted as truth for centuries, because objects do not randomly float away from the earth. It appeared to fit the figures obtained by experimentation and research, but was always subject to testing.

However, Einstein's theory makes falsifiable predictions that are different from predictions made by Newton's theory, for example concerning the precession of the orbit of Mercury, and gravitational lensing of light. In non-extreme situations Einstein's and Newton's theories make the same predictions, so they are both correct. But Einstein's theory holds true in a superset of the conditions in which Newton's theory holds, so Einstein's theory is preferred. On the other hand, Newtonian calculations are simpler, so Newton's theory is useful for almost any engineering project, including some space projects. But for GPS we need Einstein's theory.

According to Popper, many branches of applied science, especially social science, are not scientific because they have no potential for falsification. Anthropology and sociology, for example, often use case studies to observe people in their natural environment without actually testing any specific hypotheses or theories. Whilst such studies and ideas are not falsifiable, most would agree that they are scientific because they significantly advance human knowledge. Even 'pure' or 'true' science must make compromises and assumptions on occasion. The testing of any theory must take into account the equipment and resources available.But there is something that would be problem for other sciences because as mentioned before science such as Anthropology and some other social science may not be counted. In this context, the major disadvantage falsifiability is that it is strict in its definitions and does not take account that many sciences are observational and descriptive. On The other hand, the advantage of Popper's idea is that such truths can be falsified when more knowledge and resources are available. Even long accepted theories such as Gravity, Relativity and Evolution are increasingly challenged and adapted.

Taking everything into account, the main idea of Falsifiability is not a simple black and white matter because a theory, which is difficult to falsify at the time, may be falsified in the future. For many of the pure sciences, the idea of falsifiability is a useful tool for generating theories that are testable and realistic. If a falsifiable theory is tested and the results are significant, then it can become accepted as a scientific truth.