Scientific Methods

It takes more than a village to raise a scientist. It takes a village full of scientists. 

The scientific method is fundamental to the inductive process used by scientists in their work. It is the basis for all scientific knowledge understood today. Although the act of discovery (the random phase described earlier) does not depend on the scientific method, the establishment of the truth and reproducibility of modern scientific observations depends almost entirely on this process. Science has made progress (mostly before the early 1800s) without the scientific method, but the rigor of scientific truths has been enhanced through the use of this method. 

Understanding how science develops information allows the student to appreciate the rigor of this process. The scientific method is a relatively simple set of steps that uses established knowledge as the basis to achieve new knowledge, and that in turn can be used to acquire even newer knowledge, and so on. The scientific method is important to a careful and methodical approach to progress in science. 

The basis for the scientific method is this from previous observations, a hypothesis is formed. An experiment is then planned to test this hypothesis. The test may either be one to substantiate the hypothesis or it may be a test to refute the hypothesis. The latter usually forms the more compelling evidence. Sometimes, for particularly strong proof, especially if the subject of the experiment is controversial, both experiments are conducted (see Heilman (2001) or de Kruif (1926) for examples). In the conduct of experiments, new observations are made that lead to additional hypotheses, so the pattern 

Scientific hypotheses, when dealing with a scale large enough, are also called theories. And theories are tentative explanations for events that await further substantiating evidence. As evidence accumulates to support a theory, it becomes trausformed into a law, or principle. However, just as there are no absolutely complete works, there are no laws that are completely 

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The scientific method, as mentioned, involves observation and experimentation (research) to discover or establish facts. These are followed by deduction or hypothesis, establishing theories or principles. This sequence, however, may be reversed. The noted twentieth-century philosopher Karl Popper, who also dealt with science, expressed the view that the scientist s work starts not with collection of data (observation) but with selection of a suitable problem (theory). In fact, both of these paths can be involved. vSignificant and sometimes accidental observations can be made without any preconceived idea of a problem or theory and vice versa. The scientist, however, must have a well-prepared, open mind to be able to recognize the significance of such observations and must be able to follow them through. Science always demands rigorous standards of procedure, reproducibility, and open discussion that set reason over irrational belief. 

The scientific method is taught starting in elementary school. The first step in the scientific method is to form a hypothesis. A hypothesis is just an educated guess or logical conclusion from known facts. It is then compared against all available data and its details developed. If the hypothesis is found to be consistent with known facts, it is called a theory and usually published. The characteristics most theories have in common are that they explain observed phenomena, predict the results of future experiments, and can be presented in mathematical form. When a theory is found to be always correct for many years, it is eventually referred to as a scientific law. However useful this process is, we often use constructs that do not fit in the scientific method scheme as it is typically described. 

For more discussion of the application of the scientific method to chemistry see... 

The first of these statements is close to the way Vladimir Markovnikov expressed it in 1870 the sec ond IS the way we usually phrase it now These two statements differ in an important way—a way that is related to the scientific method... 

Adherence to the scientific method is what de fines science The scientific method has four major el ements observation law theory and hypothesis... 

A theory is our best present interpretation of why things happen the way they do The modern ver Sion of Markovnikov s rule which is based on mecha nistic reasoning and carbocation stability recasts the rule in terms of theoretical ideas Mechanisms and explanations grounded in them belong to the theory part of the scientific method... 

It IS worth remembering that a theory can never be proven correct It can only be proven incor rect incomplete or inadequate Thus theories are always being tested and refined As important as anything else in the scientific method is the testable hypothesis Once a theory is proposed experiments are designed to test its validity If the results are con sistent with the theory our belief in its soundness is strengthened If the results conflict with it the theory IS flawed and must be modified Section 6 7 describes some observations that support the theory that car bocations are intermediates in the addition of hydro gen halides to alkenes... 

Scientific method (Section 6 6) A systematic approach to es tabhshmg new knowledge m which observations lead to laws laws to theories theories to testable hypotheses and hypotheses to expenments... 

It can be said that science is the art of budding models to explain observations and predict new ones. Chemistry, as the central science, utilizes models ia virtually every aspect of the discipline. From the first week of a first chemistry course, students use the scientific method to develop models which explain the behavior of the elements. Anyone who studies or uses chemistry has, ia fact, practiced some form of molecular modeling. 

Disciplined Approach to Problem Definition Specific technical objectives Quality function deployment or similar process Acquisition of background, literature, etc Networked to many technology resources Scientific Method... 

Our discussion to this point has been confined to those areas in which the governing laws are well known. However, in many areas, information on the governing laws is lacking. Interest in the application of statistical methods to all types of problems has grown rapidly since World War II. Broadly speaking, statistical methods may be of use whenever conclusions are to be drawn or decisions made on the basis of experimental evidence. Since statistics could be defined as the technology of the scientific method, it is primarily concerned with the first two aspec ts of the method, namely, the performance of experiments and the drawing of conclusions from experiments. Traditionally the field is divided into two areas ... 

Chemical agents that increase the rate of grinding are an attractive prospect since their cost is low. However, despite a voluminous literature on the subject, there is no accepted scientific method to choose such aids there is not even agreement on the mechanisms by which they work. The subject has been recently reviewed [Fuerstenau, KONA Powder and Paiticle, 13,5-17 (1995)]. 

Environmental analytical association Ecoanalytica produce standai d samples during last 12 years. Two topics will be discussed. The first is the principles of development of staictures and maintenance of quality of standai d samples. The organization of manufacture and maintenance of their stability ai e considered too in the report. Besides them authors consider scientifically-methodical aspects of preparation of samples for experimental check of technical competence of analytical laboratories and also samples for interlaboratory tests. 

The scientific method has been successfully used throughout human history to enlighten us to our natural world and beyond. Since the earliest days there have been... 

However, like the scientific method, the engineering method is an interative process and embedded in the engineering method is the systematic use of the scientific method itself to predict behavior of a prototype device or process. This means both methods require the use of trial and error. The interdependency of irtiil and error was explained by someone who said. One cannot have trail and error without error. ... 

From a practical viewpoint toughness is readily understood, but technically there tends to be no scientific method of measuring it. One definition of toughness is simply the energy required to break the plastic. This... 

Fieser, The Scientific Method A Personal Account of Unusual Projects in War and Peace , Reinhold, NY (1964) 4) Ellern (1968)... 

Scientists pursue ideas in an ill-defined but effective way called the scientific method, which takes many forms. There is no strict rule of procedure that leads you from a good idea to a Nobel prize or even to a publishable discovery. Some scientists are meticulously careful, others are highly creative. The best scientists are probably both careful and creative. Although there are various scientific methods in use, a typical approach consists of a series of steps (Fig. 6). The first step is often... 

FIGURE 6 A summary of the principal activities that constitute a common version of the scientific method. At each stage, the crucial activity is experiment and its comparison with the ideas proposed. 

Schilling test, 727 Schrodinger, E., 16 Schrodinger equation, 17 scientific method, F2 scientific notation, AS scintillation counter, 711 sea of instability, 705 second, F6, A3 second derivative, A9 second ionization energy, 43 second law of... 

The literature on sucrose loss in manufacture is extensive, but not all studies have been conducted on the principles of sound scientific method. An example from the literature of a study with questionable results is a report by Cecil,62 on the effect of pH on sucrose loss during boiling in the open-pan sulfitation (OPS) process. The OPS process is used in some tropical sugar cane growing areas to produce small amounts of a sugar product known as gur, panela, or piloncillo for local consumption. Juice (massecuite from Kenyan OPS mill diluted to 20... 

Hodson, D. (1996). Laboratory work as scientific method Three decades of confusion and distortion. Jonma/of Cnmcn/w/M 28, 115-135. 

Author s comment] Because a general rendition of the Scientific Method cannot be cast in legally watertight wording, all possible outcomes of a series of measurements and pursuant actions must be in writing before the experiments are started. This includes but is not limited to the number of additional samples and measurements, and prescriptions on how to calculate and present final results. Off-the-cuff interpretations and decisions after the fact are viewed with suspicion. 

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