Scientific method

The scientific method is the process by which scientists attempt to discover accurate and consistent new information about some aspect of the universe. An important advancement in science, the scientific method was designed to reduce errors and bias in scientific work by demonstrating the specific steps a researcher takes to reach a conclusion. These demonstrations allow the work to be scrutinized, retested, and expanded upon by other scientists. The scientific method requires observation, the formation of a hypothesis, experimentation, and a conclusion in which a successful hypothesis becomes a theory.

Development of the Scientific Method

In ancient times scientific knowledge was limited and scholars did not generally apply strict methods to their research. Religious beliefs, philosophies, opinions, and casual observations of nature led to many of the prevailing theories of the ancients. Only by the end of the medieval period, as scientific practices as well as technology and communication improved, did science become more advanced. During the Age of Enlightenment, a time when intellectualism flourished in Europe, scientists began studying not only the world around them but also the processes of scientific study itself.

In 1637, French scientist René Descartes published Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting One's Reason and of Seeking Truth in the Sciences in which he proposed changes in scientific attitudes. He believed that science should be a demonstrative process involving careful deductive reasoning and documentation rather than a purely mental exercise carried out in isolation. Other scientists, including Sir Isaac Newton and Sir Francis Bacon, also improved upon scientific approaches and techniques. These scientists endorsed an empirical approach, meaning they based their findings on observation and experience rather than on mere theories or reasoning, and supported Descartes's desire for more standardized methods in scientific research.

In time, scientists began following a universal investigative method designed to gather the most accurate and verifiable knowledge possible. This method, based on deductive reasoning and empirical study, involved making observations, asking questions, and forming hypotheses (tentative explanations) about the world. These hypotheses would then be tested in thorough and carefully controlled experiments.

The scientists would document not only the findings of the experiments but also the experiments themselves. That way, other scientists who may doubt the validity of the results might replicate the experiments themselves. This safeguard was meant to reduce the effects of both scientist mistakes and bias, prejudice that might cause a scientist to consciously or unconsciously misrepresent his or her findings. It also helped to foster the idea of scientists as a community that shares and cooperates for mutual benefit, even across cultural or political lines.

The Scientific Method in Practice

The scientific method most commonly used today involves a number of steps to be completed in a sequence to derive the most accurate and verifiable results. Different scientists and different experiments may use slight deviations, but in general the steps of the modern scientific method are observation, hypothesis, experimentation, and conclusion.

Observation and Hypothesis

The first step of the scientific method is observation. This step is the most basic, often requiring only the senses and an open mind. The scientist simply takes note of some phenomenon or phenomena in the universe. This observation could be small and specific (such as "a car does not start") or massive and wide reaching (such as "the matter that made the stars and planets must have originated somewhere").

Next, this observation must lead the scientist to some hypothesis to be further explored. The hypothesis may take many forms, from verbal statements to mathematical equations, but it should be testable. (Without a testable hypothesis, no experiments can be performed, and the scientific method cannot reach a valid end.) For the first example above, the scientist may hypothesize that the car is not starting because its battery is dead. For the second example, the scientist may hypothesize that all the matter in the universe originated eons ago as one tiny particle.

Experimentation

The hypothesis has little validity until it is tested through experimentation. The experiment stage is the most complex and variable step in the scientific method. The scientist must design an experiment to address the specific hypothesis and prove whether it is true. Experiments may take many forms, but they must be more than mere observations; they must include comprehensive tests with variables and some sort of measurements so the scientist can produce solid data.

Sometimes one or more scientists will run several experiments on a hypothesis to test different aspects of the concept or to reduce the possibility of mistakes in the data. No matter how much care scientists take, however, errors are always possible. Some errors in experimental findings are random (they can skew the results in any way) or systematic (they skew the results in only one way). Because of the pervasiveness of errors, the field of error analysis developed to understand and account for flawed results. Scientists should avoid errors whenever possible; if impossible, scientists should carefully document any shortcomings in their experiments.

Conclusion

After careful experimentation, the scientist should examine the resulting data and draw a conclusion, the final stage of the scientific method. The experiments may have failed to support the hypothesis. In that case, the scientist should either try new experiments or modify the hypothesis and start again.

If the experiments do succeed in supporting the hypothesis, then the scientist has succeeded in showing that the hypothesis is likely true. It is now a theory, or a proposition that explains some occurrence in nature. The scientist will most likely do further research into the theory to check whether it corresponds with existing theories. He or she should also publicize the theory so other scientists can replicate the experiment and verify the results if need be. Publicizing the theory also allows other scientists to share the knowledge and build upon it in their own work to create ever-greater discoveries for the benefit of humankind. The peer review system is one way in which research can be checked and validated by other experts in before publication.

A theory that has been supported by an extensive body of experimentation by a range of scientists over an extended period of time is generally accepted as fact by the scientific community, though few can be absolutely proven. An important aspect of the scientific method is that it allows for any theory to be changed or even disproven if new, contradictory evidence or data emerges, allowing science to continually progress and adapt to new discoveries. Such adaptability does not mean that theories are pure guesswork, however; the scientific method ensures that accepted theories are based on the best experimentation and evidence available at any given time. A conclusion reached by the scientific method that is regarded as near-universal may be considered a scientific law (also called laws of nature), such as the first law of thermodynamics (conservation of energy), though even these may be modified. Unlike a theory, a law does not seek to explain why and observed phenomenon is true, it simply states that it holds true every time it is tested. Scientific theories and scientific laws are distinct concepts but both are based on fact as determined by the scientific method.

Bibliography

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