ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an introduction to falsificationism, followed by a thought experiment. It is followed by a short discussion and then a series of questions. The chapter explains how, in principle, people might try to falsify scientific theory. According to Karl Popper, what people look for in the scientific theories is whether they can demonstrate that they are false. This gives the two useful tools to approach the scientific enterprise. First, a theory isn't properly scientific unless it is falsifiable. Second, when engaging with scientific theories, people should not hold them to be fixed and true. The questions are intended to get the philosophy students thinking about the problems. They have used these kinds of questions in seminars as the questions set for seminars, so they also think that they can be used to spark conversation and discussion. The chapter also gives a cursory sketch of some of the ways in which philosophers have responded to the thought experiment.
