NJIT CIS475: Lesson 1

Each question has only one best answer. Circle clearly the letter of the best answer. If you make a mistake, cross out the circle, and write the letter in capitals next to the question. If a question has both a capital letter and is circled, the letter will be considered to be the answer.

1. Social science encompasses both the positivist empirical epistemology and:

a. A formalist one.

b. An irrationalist one.

c. An interpretive humanist one.

d. A negative subjectivist one.

e. A physical reductionist one.

2. Rene Descarte’s crucial epistemological distinction, which underpins all of science, is the realization that there is a difference between the mind and:

a. External reality.

b. Matter.

c. Unconscious.

d. Imagination

e. Self.

3. The belief that humans acquire knowledge through their ability to reason is called:

a. Empiricism

b. Rationalism

c. Humanism

d. Positivism

e. Intepretivism.

4. Empiricism is the epistemological position that:

a. A priori truths are discovered by applying human reason to phenomena.

b. We are born tabula rasa and through reason, fill our head with knowledge.

c. Both Plato and Leibnitz advocated as the way to acquiring knowledge.

d. Our brains structure what we see and so all knowledge is relative.

e. All knowledge is acquired from sensory experiences.

5. What epistemological position holds that free-flowing texts (such as the Bible, political speeches, and doctor-patient interactions) contain truths and that these truths can be discovered by a close and careful study of their internal meanings?

a. Symbolism

b. Interpretivism

c. Humanism

d. Phenomenology

e. Hermeneutics

6. The Vienna Circle of logical positivists held that:

a. The role of science is to generate ideas, not to test them.

b. Ideas about the relative value of artistic products are testable with the scientific method.

c. Knowledge is based on experience.

d. Metaphysical explanations of phenomena are compatible with science.

e. Art (e.g. painting, music, poetry, literature) is incompatible with science.

7. Phenomenology emphasizes:

a. Direct observation of social phenomena

b. Understanding social reality through the other person’s eyes.

c. The common experiences of all human beings and our ability to relate to others.

d. Describing human reality with words rather than with numbers.

e. All the above.

8. Qualitative data are used in which of the following epistemological traditions of social science?

a. Positivist

b. Hermeneutic

c. Phenomenological.

d. Interpretivist.

e. All the above.

9. Which of the following inventions was most important in the development of modern science?

a. The sextant.

b. The telephone.

c. The printing press.

d. The telescope.

e. Calculus.

10. T F Scientists typically believe that truly objective inquiry is possible.

a. True

b. False