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RE: "scientifically/technically literate"

> Andy, I don't want to enter into another controversy, but who is decide who is scientifically
> and technically literate?

Anybody that wants to make the judgement call. The most reliable are likely to be peers recognising peers or non-peers. The most unreliable are likely to be those that know a little but consider themselves to know more.

> Also if people hear differences one can offer two explanations–one, that they want to hear a
> difference and delude themselves and two, our measurements are insufficiently precise or
> measure the wrong things.

I am sure one can come up with a lot more hypotheses than these two. What about ones involving little green men from mars with ray guns?

> How do you prove or disprove either?

If the hypothesis predicts an observable outcome of an experiment it can be tested by performing experiments and observing the outcomes. If the prediction is always correct regardless of who performs the experiments then it will tend to be accepted as holding by those that make the effort to learn about the successful hypotheses (the literate in this area). It only takes one failed repeatable experiment for a hypothesis to be disproved.

If the hypothesis involves multiple quantities (e.g. not separating sound and sound perception) then some experiments will be failed and the hypothesis will have to be discarded. New hypotheses will need to be thought up that involve the observation of a single quantity.

If a hypothesis does not predict the outcome of an experiment observable by others (i.e. it is untestable) but is offered as an explanation for something that is observable or should be observable then it will tend to be discarded given the presence of successful competing hypotheses. It generally would not in their absence.

> Finally, what difference does it make if people buy what they hear as better?

Difference to what? Their happiness and well being, their bank balance, the colour of their car?

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