Science

What it is
 Why it‟s important to know about it
 Elements of the scientific method
DEFINITIONS OF SCIENCE:
Attempts at a one-sentence description
Science is
the search for the perfect means of
attaining any end
The whole of science is after all nothing but a
refinement of everyday thinking.
Science is organized knowledge
Science is a method for the description, creation
and understanding of human experience
Science
is distinguished by
testing ideas with measurements
– the “scientific method”
The character of science

Science is a social enterprise
o “I am among those who think that science has a
great beauty. We should not allow it to be
believed that all scientific progress can be
reduced to mechanisms, machines, gearings,
even though such machinery also has its own
beauty.”
Marie Curie
Ignorance of science

American high school students
perform worse than 21 other
countries
 Spending on research declines
 Fewer scientists are produced
 50 % of the population dismiss
evolutionary biology (Live from
Moody, dinosaurs were on the
Ark!)
 Rush Limbaugh is an
“authority” on climate change
Fear of science and embracing
“magic”

Scientific developments under siege
o Useful applications of nuclear power
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Eliminating E-Coli from vegetables with radiation
Replacement for fossil fuels
o Stem cell research

Combating genetic diseases
o Genetic engineering of crops

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Defeating food shortages
The book “Natural Cures „They‟ Don‟t Want You
to Know About” was a top ten seller for more than
a year
Attitudes of the scientist
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Curiosity
Open mind
Interest in knowledge
Courage of convictions
Capability of abandoning beliefs in the light of
new knowledge
Skeptical
Critical
Tools of the trade

Ways of dealing with information and
thinking scientifically:
Laws

and Theories
HYPOTHESIS: an educated guess derived
from various assumptions which can be
tested using a range of methods; a
proposition put forward for proof or
discussion
LAW

A rule which describes specified natural
phenomena within the limits of experimental
observation (LDST)
 Broadly applicable generalization that summarizes
some aspect of the natural world (Tro)
Ohm‟s Law, Gravity, Boyle‟s Law…
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Scientific laws are precise, can be reduced to mathematical
expressions
Laws have limited regions of application - don't always
work in all situations
Laws do not provide understanding of why things happen
Laws cannot be extrapolated
THEORY

Confirmed explanation of phenomena; a
hypothesis tested and confirmed with facts
(scientific evidence) not previously known
(CCTD)
 A scheme or system of ideas or statements held as
an explanation or account of a group of facts or
phenomena; a hypothesis that has been confirmed
or established by observation or experiment, and is
accepted as accounting for the known facts (OED)
 A model that describes the underlying cause of
physical behavior. (Tro)
It’s only a theory

Is a theory ever fact - true?
o
o
o
o
Facts are observations while theories are explanations
Difficult to say theory is “correct” even after predictions proved
It is acceptable to say theory works well
However, new results may falsify the theory
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Theory of relativity demonstrated limitations in Newtonian
mechanics.
Now relativity is being challenged by new results.
o Theories are modified to explain new observations

Theories have predictive power
o Prediction of existence of subatomic particles from quantum theory

Theories provide understanding of why things happen
Law and Theory contrasted using
gases
Boyle‟s Law
P vs V
century)
o Experimental observation of
relationship between pressure and
volume of a gas
12
Pressure (atm)

(17th
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
100
200
Volume (L)

Kinetic theory of gases (19th
century)
o Mathematical derivation of observed
gas law using postulate that a gas
consists of molecules which can be
treated like small hard spheres in
random motion. The behaviour of
the gas is predicted using known
mechanics of spheres
300
Scientific “method”
more than one way to skin a cat
Observation vs imagination
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Imagination plays an increasingly important role in
science.
Inductive approach relies wholly on observation to develop
a theory (“And God forbid we should offer the dreams of
fancy for a model of the world”) Newton offered:
“…hypotheses ... have no place in experimental
philosophy.”
Deductive relies on imagination. More important today.
Hypothesis may originate purely in the realm of the
imagination, using also some known mathematical
relations. Kekule‟s dream about the structure of benzene
Technology and science
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Technology is human activity directed toward satisfaction
of human needs by more effective use of environment
Technology is obtaining a better living from resources making gadgets and tools
Technology is not a contemplative activity, except where it
is used in the design of new things; the pondering is
directed towards a specific practical goal, not
contemplation for its own sake
Technology also gives rise to science as its tools and things
are invented
Technology is older than science: early man made a club to
get food, not because it seemed like an interesting thing to
do
RELATIONS BETWEEN
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
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The relationship between science and technology in history has not
always been clear, and it has not been easy to say which influenced
which.
STEAM ENGINE DEVELOPMENT:
Science had nothing to do with the invention of the steam engine
Science benefited from its invention
Perfecting the steam engine was not made by engineers/technologists
but by a basic scientist (Carnot). His work on heat flow led to
thermodynamics.
Thus: technology developed a steam engine, which lead to scientific
thought and discovery of new scientific relationships thermodynamics.
Basic Research and Technology

Faraday was a scientist who demonstrated that
magnetism generated electricity. This led to
development of electrical supply industry in which
Faraday had no significant part. Edison exploited
electromagnetism in development of new
technology
 Basic research produces new knowledge that
results in new technology in unpredictable ways
over long time periods: magnetic domains from
the study of magnetism for example, which
resulted in new magnetic materials.
TENSION BETWEEN BENEFITS
AND COSTS – Risks and rewards

Technology has meant a vast increase in the
production and consumption of energy
 Technology has enabled massive growth in
population – greater competition for resources
 Technology has brought enormous benefits – and
problems
 Solutions to problems depend on greater
investment in science, not turning the clock back