My trip through the Dewey Decimal System is currently stopped at “A Demon Haunted World” by Carl Sagan. Reading “A Demon Haunted World” has reminded me of the importance of the scientific method.
- Observe: Gather data on the phenomena or system of interest.
- Hypothesize: Explain the phenomena based on observations.
- Predict: Based on the hypothesis, predict how the phenomena or system will react to changes.
- Experiment: Design an experiment to test the prediction. Good experiments are repeatable and verifiable.
- Refine: If the experiment proves the prediction, then make another prediction and perform another experiment. If the experiment fails to verify the prediction, observe and record the results of the experiment and formulate a new hypothesis.
This is the best method for finding investigating the physical world. It is not the
only method, but I believe it to be the best because it’s the only method that allows for theories to be tested, refined, re-evaluated and even discarded.
Why is the scientific method important to the average person? Let me explain. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I was at a trade show recently where a vendor advertised the benefits of quantum energy and quantum healing to improve gas mileage, make your water purer, your produce fresher, and reduce your heating bills. I have a rudimentary understanding of quantum physics, so there’s a lot I don’t know about the subject, but I’m fairly certain it doesn’t have anything to do with crisp lettuce or 56 mpg. Perhaps I’m wrong about this quantum vendor, perhaps not. The scientific method can help determine if they’re selling miracles, or snake oil. Can they explain how their machines work (hypothesis)? Can they predict what will happen in all scenarios(predict)? Are the willing to stop selling the products if their claims are disproved (refine)? Keep the scientific method in your back pocket, you never know when you might need it.
There are other methods for learning about the physical world, various religions explain the origins of the life, the universe and everything. While I don’t object to religious explanations of the physical world, I prefer the scientific method because it invites criticism of theories, and theories can be tested. Many religions don’t allow, or tolerate this type of criticism. Scientific breakthroughs are often made when theories are disproven, usually after a scientists says “Didn’t expect that to happen…”.
If I need to find meaning in life, I’ll go to church (this is where I go). If I want to discover the mysteries of the physical universe, I’ll go with science.
The Universal Chan 