Hypothesis and Experiment 107

ination , in fact , had already made them receptive to the

observations others would have missed , and the cause and
effect stage represented only the last step in a long chain
of imaginative hypotheses and experiments .

Criteria for Good Hypotheses

Regardless of type , causal or creative , the criteria for

good hypothesis are common to all .

1. They must be capable of being tested .

2. They must be susceptible to deductive reasoning and

logical inferences of their consequences ( including
mathematical development of these consequences
when possible ) .

3. They must not conflict with well - established laws

of nature .

4. They must be as simple at the facts permit .

Adherence to these rules will lead to more clearly

stated and more easily tested hypotheses . The most fre-
quently violated rule is the last , for many hypotheses con-
tain extraneous facts which may be interpreted falsely
in analyzing experimental data . For instance , the causal
hypothesis in the example on catalyst deactivation may
have been stated :

"Temperature surges to approximately 1200 ° F , or

above , cause rapid deactivation of the Ni - Kieselguhr cata-
lyst due to reduction of surface area ."

The added phrase in italics has complicated the original

simple statement . Experimental data which was taken
only to settle the immediate problem is inadequate for