Supernatural Explanations: Science or Not?.
Peter Eastwell · 2011
Contrary to the advice of supposedly authoritative sources, the a priori exclusion of supernatural explanations or claims from scientific scrutiny is not appropriate. This paper shows how supernatural hypotheses or claims should be treated by science and, in the process, differentiates scientific and non-scientific hypotheses or claims. Educational strategies are provided to help reduce the widespread belief in claims that have been contradicted by scientific testing and to help students avoid advancing hypotheses that are unlikely to be supported by empirical evidence. Both science and religion appear to play a role in societies, and there need be no conflict between these two very different domains. Students need to be provided with opportunities to apply the scientific method (or hypotheticodeductive approach) during science classes. An outline of the scientific method may be found in, for example, Eastwell (2010). During this process they will likely be asked to suggest one or more hypotheses (i.e., proposed explanations) for an observed phenomenon and test it or them. What hypotheses are acceptable for consideration in science classes? Are there restrictions? In particular, what is the status of a supernatural hypothesis in science? This paper addresses these questions and, in so doing, provides the best answer to the following multiple-choice question: Which of the following appears to be the best choice?