Although this is mistaken, no one doubted it until ?the Italian astronomer Galileo Galileid is proved the idea in 1590. While it may seem obvious today that a good scientist must rely on empirical evidence, this was not always apparent.
empirical: relying onexperienceorobservationaloneoften without due regard for system and theory
e.g.
①This sacred cosmology, moreover, was entirelysubject to belief and imaginationrather thandirectempiricalknowledge and reason.
②This is not only a matter ofempiricalobservationbut ofinternal logic.
and so falsify the theory, or to repeat the experiment to make sure that the results are correct.
falsify:
1. to prove or declare false : disprove
e.g. The scientific method cannot establish truths; it can onlyfalsifyhypotheses.
→ Experiment may test a theory, or be purelyspeculative. When the New Zealand-born physicist Ernest Rutherford watched his students fire alphaparticlesat gold leaf in a search fordeflections, he suggested putting thedetectorbeside the source, and to their astonishment some of the alpha particles bounced back off the paper-thinfoil.
spectulative: involving, based on, or constitutingintellectual speculation; also :theoreticalrather than demonstrable
speculation: investment involvinghigh riskbut alsothe possibility of high profits
e.g.
1. ?①They arehighlyspeculativeand you should only invest what you can afford to lose.
②Much has been written about the urgent need for an overhaul of incentive schemes to encouragelongterm sustainable performancerather thanspeculativeshort-term gains.
2.The talks arespeculativerather thansubstantive, for three reasons.
[Synonyms] theoratical, academic, academical
[Antonyms] pratical, empirical
deflection: thechangeindirectionof a light beam as it crosses a boundary between two media with different refractive indexes
goad leaf
in some measure
ingenious
1. Having great inventive skill and imagination: an ingenious negotiator.Ingenious mechanical devices were invented.
2. Marked by or exhibiting originality or inventiveness:an ingenious solution to the problem.
3. Obsolete Having genius; brilliant.
corpse: human corpses
1. dead body
discredit
1. ruin the reputation of...
the idea of... began to take root
harbour life
