CRM 1301 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1-5: Spectral Evidence, Conflict Theories, Metatheory

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30 Jan 2016

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A good theory is one that can be tested and that best fits the evidence of research. If a theory is not testable or if evidence does not support it, then the theory is not a good one. As changes in research evidence and the ability to measure and test occur, so do the common criteria for a good theory. In other words, it sometimes takes a while before our ability to measure and produce evidence catches up with a theory. Until that time, the theory may appear to be a bad one because evidence will not be available to support it. As our measuring capabilities and techniques change, we may need to re- examine and retest theories to see if new research evidence provides a better fit. If our approach to assessing a theory is based on measuring and testing, we refer to it as quantitative validation.

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The NOVA series âBecoming Humanâ describes the discoveries ofseveral different fossilized remains found in Africa of humanancestors. These discoveries are changing the way scientists thinkabout the evolution of our species from ape like ancestors. It isbecoming clear that the earth and specifically the African riftvalley, a few million years ago, was going through severe climatechanges. In part II there is new evidence about when humans becameessentially hairless and the selective advantage for thischange.

For your post, choose one of the discoveries above, (bipedalism,or brain size, or hairlessness, or relationshipswith neanderthals) and describe the selective pressures found inthe environment that might have contributed to its development. Dosome additional research on the web to determine if the viewspresented in this NOVA series regarding the trait of your choiceare supported by other scientists or do other scientists disagree.Moreover, can you see any parallels or lessons that relate to theclimate changes we see right now and the future of human evolution?Finally, comment on whether the research presented in this NOVAseries changed your view of the theory of evolution. Does itprovide further support for the theory or does it call intoquestion the validity of the theory as a whole?

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Like all scientific theories, the theory of evolution has undergone some alteration since it was originally proposed â we know a lot more now than we did 150 years ago, and a lot of aspects of Darwin's original proposal have undergone a variety of different kinds of testing and subsequent modifications. One of the things that Darwin didn't apparently get quite right is the pacing of speciation. His primary concept of this phenomenon is generally referred to as "Darwinian Gradualism." Explain just what gradualism is. What is the alternative proposal offered by S.J. Gould and Niles Eldredge? What major body of evidence supports Gould and Eldredge's theory over Darwin's? And finally, are the two proposals mutually exclusive? (In other words, if one is a correct description of the pacing of evolutionary change, must the other necessarily be false?)

Chapter 4 is entitled 'The Theory of Individual Behavior', and much of the chapter is devoted to the use of indifference analysis to build a framework for demand theory. Indifference analysis goes to great lengths to explain consumer behavior and how consumers make choices between options available to them. The options they face include budget constraints, different preferences for risk, and a multitude of products and services from which to choose. If one steps back and looks at consumer behavior, it seems to be based upon a premise that is not actually stated in our book. That premise is that consumers behave rationally in their consumption expenditures.

Do you believe consumers do behave rationally? Is so, how do you explain impulse buying, buying as a result of advertising or strong sales pitches, buying for purposes of conspicuous consumption, or buying to simply have something bigger and better than someone else? If consumers do not behave rationally, how can the theory in chapter 4 account for the above behavior? Is the theory still valid? If you think consumers do behave rationally, how can rational thinking explain the above behaviors? How do your thoughts impact, if at all, your opinion of the theory espoused in our text?

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CRM 1301 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1-5: Spectral Evidence, Conflict Theories, Metatheory

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