keyconceptsandtermsforallchapter（21页）.docVIP

Key Concepts and Terms for all Chapter Earth and Space Science Chapter 1: Intro to Earth Science KEY CONCEPTS ? Earth science can be broadly defined as the investigation of interactions among the four components of the Earth system--the atmosphere (air, weather), hydrosphere (water, ice), biosphere (plants, animals), and geosphere (land, rocks). ? In addition, the sun and assorted features from space, collectively termed the exosphere, interact with the Earth system. ? Science is not a list of facts to be memorized that has no relevance to life. ? Science is a process of discovery that increases our body of knowledge. ? The scientific method is a systematic approach to answering questions. ? Scientists use observations to shape ideas. Their ideas are known as hypotheses. ? Scientific observations are empirical--that is, they can be measured and confirmed by others. ? A scientific hypothesis is developed to provide a potential explanation of observations. ? Inductive reasoning occurs when scientists draw conclusions from specific observations. ? Deductive reasoning occurs when scientists draw specific conclusions based on general principles. ? The best hypotheses are logical and can be readily tested by experiment or by more observation. ? In science a theory is not just an opinion or a guess; it is a well-supported explanation of a natural phenomenon. ? The willingness to continually question prevailing ideas and to modify or discard them as new information becomes available is the strength of science. ? Scientific explanations are tentative and can and do change. ? Scientific explanations should be predictable and testable. ? Scientific explanations are based on empirical observations or experiments and are reproducible. ? A valid scientific hypothesis offers a well-defined natural cause or mechanism to explain the occurrence of a natural event. ? Precision is the degree to which a series of measurements match. ? Accuracy is the degree to which a set of meas