What is an explanation?
Q: What is an explanation?
A: An explanation is an attempt to answer the question "why". It is a way of understanding the cause and effect relationship between two events, or the motive behind why someone did something.
Q: What did Mario Bunge say about explanations?
A: Mario Bunge said that people do not just want to find facts, but they also want to know why those facts occur.
Q: Why might different people need different explanations?
A: Different people may need different explanations because what they already know will be different. For example, a child, a lay person and an expert may need different explanations of the same thing.
Q: How does asking questions relate to language?
A: Asking questions depends on language, which is peculiar to humans. When children learn how to speak they start asking questions in a game called the 'why game'.
Q: Is it always appropriate for an explanation to be given?
A: Not necessarily - there can be plenty of argument about whether or not an explanation is appropriate, and if so, whether it is correct.
Q: What was thought to cause heat and light from the sun before the 20th century?
A: Before the 20th century peoples like the ancient Egyptians thought that heat and light from the sun was caused by a god (Aten).
