right or wrong?

[LUDWIK KOWALSKI <kowalskil@alpha.montclair.edu>]

On May 12, 1997 George Spagna wrote:

> I don't think the original question was about the efficacy of using
> percentages vs. units when reporting uncertainties. The issue is whether
> the uncertainty is measured relative to the experiment, or relative to some
> "right" answer.  
>
> The "formula" quoted in the original post is clearly telling the students
> that the purpose of scientific experiment and measurement is to get the
> right answer, reinforcing the notion that the content of our discipline is
> one of memorizable facts rather than a process for examining the world
> around us.

How can I teach, and grade lab reports, if I do not accept the idea that
"the purpose of scientific experiment and measurement is to get the right 
answer"? In one setup the right answer may be 9.8 +/- 0.2 while in another
it can be 9.8 +/- 2 (or +/- 0.0002, if you a prospector). The answer does
not have to be quantitative but it is always either right or wrong. That
is why teaching physics is different from teaching artistic subjects, for
example. 
                                                   Ludwik Kowalski

P.S. A philosophical issue of objectivity does not have to be involved in
this consideration. That why the term "accepted value" is better than "true 
value". But that is a topic for another thread, if you wish.