Which concept would best describe a testable idea that could be contradicted by data?

Which concept would best describe a testable idea that could be contradicted by data?

• A. Feasibility
• B. Falsifiable
• C. Replication
• D. Scientific relevance

Answer: (B)

Falsifiability describes a claim that can be tested and possibly contradicted by data. In science, a hypothesis should make predictions that could turn out false if the data don’t match; this openness to refutation lets theories be tested and refined. If a claim cannot, in principle, be contradicted by observation, then no amount of data could falsify it, so it isn’t a scientifically testable idea. For example, “All swans are white” is falsifiable because discovering a nonwhite swan would disprove it. The other terms don’t capture that element: feasibility is about whether something is doable; replication is about repeating studies to confirm results; scientific relevance is about importance to the field. So the best descriptor of a testable idea that could be contradicted by data is falsifiable.

Falsifiability describes a claim that can be tested and possibly contradicted by data. In science, a hypothesis should make predictions that could turn out false if the data don’t match; this openness to refutation lets theories be tested and refined. If a claim cannot, in principle, be contradicted by observation, then no amount of data could falsify it, so it isn’t a scientifically testable idea. For example, “All swans are white” is falsifiable because discovering a nonwhite swan would disprove it. The other terms don’t capture that element: feasibility is about whether something is doable; replication is about repeating studies to confirm results; scientific relevance is about importance to the field. So the best descriptor of a testable idea that could be contradicted by data is falsifiable.