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Republic of Panama
Ministery of Education
Centro Bilingue Vista Alegre

Science Work:
Scientific Method

Astrid Fernández
Larissa Dominguez

10ºD
Teacher:

Date:
May 15,2012

Scientific Method
Scientific method refers to a body of techniques for investigatingphenomena, acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and integrating previous knowledge.[1] To be termed scientific, a methodof inquiry must be based on gathering empirical and measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning.[2] The Oxford English Dictionary says that scientific method is: "a method or procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting in systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification ofhypotheses."[3]The chief characteristic which distinguishes a scientific method of inquiry from other methods of acquiring knowledge is that scientists seek to let reality speak for itself, supporting a theory when a theory's predictions are confirmed and challenging a theory when its predictions prove false. Although procedures vary from one field of inquiry to another, identifiable features distinguishscientific inquiry from other methods of obtaining knowledge. Scientific researchers propose hypotheses as explanations of phenomena, and design experimental studies to test these hypotheses via predictions which can be derived from them. These steps must be repeatable, to guard against mistake or confusion in any particular experimenter. Theories that encompass wider domains of inquiry may bind manyindependently derived hypotheses together in a coherent, supportive structure. Theories, in turn, may help form new hypotheses or place groups of hypotheses into context.
Scientific inquiry is generally intended to be as objective as possible, to reduce biased interpretations of results. Another basic expectation is to document, archive and share all data and methodology so they are available forcareful scrutiny by other scientists, giving them the opportunity to verify results by attempting to reproduce them. This practice, called full disclosure, also allows statistical measures of the reliability of these data to be established.
Scientific methodology has been practiced in some form for at least one thousand years,[4] and is the process by which science is carried out. Because sciencebuilds on previous knowledge, it is consistently improves its understanding of the world; scientific method improves itself in the same way, meaning that it gradually becomes more effective at generating new knowledge. For example, the concept of falsification (first proposed in 1934) reduces confirmation bias by formalizing the attempt to disprovehypotheses rather than prove them.[7]
Theoverall process involves making conjectures (hypotheses), deriving predictions from them as logical consequences, and then carrying out experiments based on those predictions to determine whether the original conjecture was correct. There are difficulties in a formulaic statement of method, however. Though the scientific method is often presented as a fixed sequence of steps, they are better consideredas general principles.[8] Not all steps take place in every scientific inquiry (or to the same degree), and not always in the same order. As noted by William Whewell (1794-1866), "invention, sagacity, [and] genius"[9] are required at every step.
Formulate a question: The question can refer to the explanation of a specificobservation, as in “Why is the sky blue?”, but can also be open-ended, as in“Doessound travel faster in air than in water?” or “How can I design a drug to cure this particular disease?” This stage also involves looking up and evaluating previous evidence from other scientists, as well as considering one’s own experience. If the answer is already known, a different question that builds on the previous evidence can be posed. When applying the scientific method to...