What Is Science? From Feynman to Sagan to Asimov to Curie, an Omnibus of Definitions

[Ian David]

What Is Science? From Feynman to Sagan to Asimov to Curie, an Omnibus of Definitions

‘The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious — the fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science.’

“We live in a society absolutely dependent on science and technology,” Carl Sagan famously quipped in 1994, “and yet have cleverly arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. That’s a clear prescription for disaster.” Little seems to have changed in the nearly two decades since, and although the government is now actively encouraging “citizen science,” for many “citizens” the understanding of — let alone any agreement about — what science is and does remains meager.

So, what exactly is science, what does it aspire to do, and why should we the people care? It seems like a simple question, but it’s an infinitely complex one, the answer to which is ever elusive and contentious. Gathered here are several eloquent definitions that focus on science as process rather than product, whose conduit is curiosity rather than certainty.

More:
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/04/06/what-is-science/

[longship]

1. Nice

R&

[xocet]

2. K&R

From the end of the article, "What is Science?" by Richard Feynman:

...
It is necessary to teach both to accept and to reject the past with a kind of balance that takes considerable skill. Science alone of all the subjects contains within itself the lesson of the danger of belief in the infallibility of the greatest teachers of the preceding generation.
...
http://www.fotuva.org/feynman/what_is_science.html

[Odin2005]

3. I use Karl Popper's definition:

Science is a discipline who studies the world by thinking up ideas and trying to falsify them by observation and experiment.

[Motown_Johnny]

4. One simple rule: Asimov is always right

Science does not purvey absolute truth, science is a mechanism. It’s a way of trying to improve your knowledge of nature, it’s a system for testing your thoughts against the universe and seeing whether they match.




Not that the others are wrong, but why bother? Just check what The Good Doctor said on the subject and call it a day. You can't go wrong.


And as a bonus....