Explain the differences between a hypothesis, law, and theory

What will be an ideal response?


A hypothesis is based on prior experience or observation, and is proposed as a potential answer to a specific question. A law is a precise statement, or mathematical formula, that predicts a specific occurrence. Laws only hold true under carefully defined and limited circumstances. By contrast, a theory is a hypothesis that has been proven through many studies with consistent, supporting conclusions. Laws predict what happens, while theories explain how and why something occurs. Unlike a hypothesis, which focuses on a specific problem, theories are comprehensive bodies of work that are useful for making generalized predictions about natural phenomena. Theories unite many different hypotheses and laws.

Biology & Microbiology

You might also like to view...

Some restaurants serve seafood platters that contain oysters, mussels, and clams. Such platters therefore consist of ________.

A. sponges B. gastropods C. mollusks D. cnidarians

Biology & Microbiology

To produce a split-brain individual, an operation

would need to cut the a. corpus callosum. b. reticular formation. c. hypothalamus. d. fissure of Rolando. e. pons.

Biology & Microbiology

FRAP has revealed that some proteins move in cell membranes much slower than they move in reconstituted liposomes. Which of the following could account for limited mobility of proteins in cell plasma membranes?

A) association with other proteins in a large complex. B) association with lipid rafts. C) anchorage to the extracellular matrix. D) anchorage to the cell cytoskeleton. E) All could limit protein mobility.

Biology & Microbiology

The dark gray dots along the trunk of this evolutionary tree represent both common ancestors and:

a) homologous features. b) speciation events. c) convergent traits. d) nodes. e) Both b) and d) are correct.

Biology & Microbiology