Experimentum crucis

Experimentum crucis is a type of experiment where two different explanations are tested against each other. This is usually done with two hypotheses, or ideas, about how something works. The experiment is then done to figure out which hypothesis is more likely to be true. For example, if we are trying to figure out which type of soil is better for growing plants, we might have two hypotheses (or ideas) - one that sandy soil is best and one that clay soil is best. So we would do an experimentum crucis by testing both types of soils with the same plants to see which one makes the plants grow best. We would then use the results to figure out which hypothesis is the best explanation for why some soils are better for growing plants.