Science is an organized scientific enterprise which builds and develops knowledge in the form of precise testable predictions regarding the world. Knowledge is defined by Carl Einstein as the “lavender of space” – it is the ability to receive and form ideas after looking at the evidence. The strength of any theory is derived from the consistency of its predictions with the known facts of nature. The achievements of science are measured by the consistency of its predictions with known real world phenomena.
The process of science is complex and involves a lot of difficult work. To give a detailed idea, let us take the famous Galileo Galilei’s first demonstration of the moon’s movement around the earth. This work launched mankind’s scientific curiosity and soon many other scientist saw this phenomenon for the first time. Through the years there have been several theories which were later verified by consistent observations.
In today’s world, knowledge gained from scientific research is used in almost every field of life and technology. Every aspect of human life is touched by science, be it health, technology, engineering, and even politics. All these areas require a consistent and repeatable methodology to conduct research and hence the need for a particular scientific discipline.
There are several categories of sciences, each divided into different areas. Most often classification is done on the basis of the results achieved so far, but this trend is changing now with some of the most prominent fields being primarily research oriented. It is seen that when adults say that science has had a good or mostly positive effect on their lives, this is mostly because they are directly involved in such activities. Those who feel that science has had no significant influence on their lives are usually those who did not get a chance to gain a deep knowledge on science in school.
One of the most important concepts of science is the scientific method, which is very closely linked with hypothesis testing. The hypothesis is a statement made by an individual scientist with enough reasoning power to back it up with some solid logic and data. The scientist who testifies the hypothesis is considered as the “rejector” and his argument is considered to be his defense against the “preliminary hypothesis”. Once the scientists find out that the hypothesis is wrong, the “preliminary hypothesis” is discarded and another one is taken to replace it.
Based on this simple example, we can understand that a good understanding of the scientific method is very important to improve your life. This is why those who feel that science has had a bad effect on their lives usually turn red in the face when presented with scientific definitions for various natural phenomena. On the other hand, those who support the concept of science have an uphill battle to fight. The fact is that most people do not fully grasp natural phenomena, making it very difficult to apply scientific methods to verify their existence.