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For example, the suggestion that I would be a very happy if I were ten years younger is not falsifiable, because I lack the ability to test the hypothesis by making myself ten years younger and seeing how I feel.

For example, the suggestion that I would be a very happy if I were ten years younger is not falsifiable, because I lack the ability to test the hypothesis by making myself ten years younger and seeing how I feel.

Falsifiability is commonly used as a criterion for whether a particular proposition is "scientific."  Philosopher [[Karl Popper]] popularized this criterion, arguing that science progresses through the process of "Observation, speculation, falsification;" That is, we observe the universe, we develop a speculative hypothesis about the universe, and we test our hypothesis.  If our hypothesis is proven false, we discard it.  If our hypothesis is not proven false, we can consider it provisionally true.  According to Popper, there is no such thing as ''scientific certainty;'' on the contrary, all our beliefs are properly held ''provisionally,'' and always subject to the possibility that they will somebody be disproven by experiment.   

Falsifiability is commonly used as a criterion for whether a particular proposition is "scientific."  Philosopher [[Karl Popper]] popularized this criterion, arguing that science progresses through the process of "Observation, speculation, falsification;" That is, we observe the universe, we develop a speculative hypothesis about the universe, and we test our hypothesis.  If our hypothesis is proven false, we discard it.  If our hypothesis is not proven false, we can consider it provisionally true.  According to Popper, there is no such thing as ''scientific certainty;'' on the contrary, all our beliefs are properly held ''provisionally,'' and always subject to the possibility that they will someday be disproven by experiment.   

Popper, and those who agree with him, categorize many types of ideas as unfalsifiable, particularly in psychology and religion.  For example, the proposition "Joe beats his children because his father beat him" is unfalsifiable, because we cannot perform a test in which Joe was ''not'' beaten by his father, and see if Joe still beats his children.  Because the proposition is not testable, according to falsificationism, it is no better than any other hypothesis, and therefore not useful, and not scientific.

Popper, and those who agree with him, categorize many types of ideas as unfalsifiable, particularly in psychology and religion.  For example, the proposition "Joe beats his children because his father beat him" is unfalsifiable, because we cannot perform a test in which Joe was ''not'' beaten by his father, and see if Joe still beats his children.  Because the proposition is not testable, according to falsificationism, it is no better than any other hypothesis, and therefore not useful, and not scientific.