Use these questions to practice discussing meaning, ethics, and the limits of empirical knowledge in English. The goal is to think critically, argue clearly, and express yourself with confidence.
Science can tell us how the universe began, but can it tell us why it exists at all — or whether existence has any meaning? Is "why" a question science is simply not built to answer, or is it a question that has no answer at all?
Try to use: meaning, empirical, beyond the scope, metaphysical, limit
Ethics asks questions like: Is it wrong to lie? Is it right to sacrifice one person to save five? Can science answer these questions — or does morality exist in a different domain entirely? What grounds your own moral beliefs?
Try to use: ethics, morality, empirical, value judgment, ought
Science can describe consciousness — brain waves, neurons, activity patterns — but can it explain what it actually feels like to be you? Is there something about subjective experience that will always remain outside the reach of scientific explanation?
Try to use: consciousness, subjective, inner experience, reduction, hard problem
Some scientists argue that free will is an illusion — that everything you do is determined by brain chemistry you cannot control. Do you believe this? And if it were true, what would it mean for responsibility, punishment, and praise?
Try to use: free will, determinism, responsibility, implication, agency
Can science tell us what makes a life well-lived — what we should value, how we should treat each other, what to strive for? Or are those questions that every person and every culture must answer for themselves?
Try to use: flourishing, well-being, value, prescribe, universal
Some people argue that scientism — the belief that science can answer all important questions — is itself a kind of dogma. Do you agree? Is there a danger in extending scientific thinking beyond its proper domain?
Try to use: scientism, overreach, dogma, domain, humility