SXEX1411: INTRODUCTION TO SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY STUDIES Lecture 1: RESEARCH & VALIDITY From this lecture, students should

be able to: Give various definitions of science Appreciate the multidimensional nature of the scientific endeavour State the characteristics of modern science Explain what is meant by the scientific method and the role it plays in validating knowledge Understand the history and development of the scientific method

Introduction: What is Science? Some definitions: A study of natural phenomena which is done systematically, logically, and objectively using specific methods so that knowledge can be trusted. Azizan Baharuddin. (1993). Science and Belief: Discourses on New Perspectives. Kuala Lumpur: Institut Kajian Dasar. p. 223. organized knowledge, especially when obtained by observation and testing of facts, about the physical world, natural laws and society; study leading to such knowledge and branch of such knowledge: the natural science, eg. biology and geology; the physical science, eg. physics and chemistry. - Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary. (1991). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 1130.

The term science has many connotations. Science has its origins from the Latin word scire which means to know. Conventional definitions of science tend to emphasise different features, depending upon the differing points-of-view, which include (but not limited to): History of science Philosophy of science Sociology of science Psychology of creativity Economics of research Politics of science

Science as a means of solving problems: Emphasis on the instrumental aspect. Connected with technology.

Appropriate for economic and political study. Utilisation of technology if used wisely can solve problems, but is also open to social conflicts.

Illustration: Knowledge of genetics has brought about developments in genetic modification (GM) technology. GM technology has the potential to solve problems, but it is also highly controversial. Science as an organised knowledge: Emphasis on the archival aspect. Information about natural phenomena is acquired by research, organised into coherent theoretical schemes, and published in books and journals. Accumulation of scientific knowledge is a significant historical process.

Illustration: Beginning with Mendels idea on traits that can be passed on from generation to another, the idea of genetics is then brought forth. Later, Watson and Crick proposed the structure of the DNA, which led to more studies and advancements in genetics, genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics. Science as a methodology: Emphasis on the philosophical aspect. Involves procedures such as experimentation, observation, and theorisation, as the methodology to obtain reliable information about the natural phenomena. Science is regarded as essentially objective, transcending all sociopolitical considerations.

Illustration: Observations made on a certain natural phenomena are the same regardless of who and where the observations are made. Results may differ, but the methodology is the same. Science as a vocation: Emphasis on the psychological aspect. Science is defined as whatever is discovered by people with a special gift for research. Involves personal aptitudes such as intelligence and curiosity. Scientists are members of a distinct profession, of considerable political significance.

Illustration: Discoveries and theories made by esteemed scientists are accepted and upheld in great respect by the general public.

The linear Discovery Model of science: Divides the labour equitably between the major metascientific disciplines. Is simplistic and neglects some very significant realities. It assumes that information only flows in one direction.

Science can only be understood if science is treated as a social institution. When we say science as a social institution, we refer to the three dimensions of discourse about science: (i) (ii) (iii) Person: motives, perceptions, intelligence Knowledge: theory, contradiction, causality Community: institutions, norms, interests

Our natural way of talking about science draws on all these three dimensions. The true realm of discourse about science is, in actuality, multidimensional in nature. Research and Scientific Knowledge The purpose of research is to obtain scientific knowledge. What are the characteristics of scientific knowledge? What distinguishes scientific knowledge from other forms of knowledge? What makes an information scientific as opposed to unscientific?

Scientists endeavour to describe the natural world. A scientific description of an object or an event is expected to conform to characteristics such as accuracy, completeness, and reliability. Observation leads to description, which is then recorded. Scientific knowledge is useful because it can be expressed in general statements. Scientific effort is devoted to classifying objects and events. Examples: Taxonomy Periodic Table of Elements Classification of rocks

Scientific generalisation has rules that need to be followed. These rules are often based on distinct patterns based on a more structured scheme of classification. Scientific work is not just about observation, but also involves phases of exploration. Purposeful investigation involves asking specific questions, followed by the process of seeking for the answers.

Instruments are important in scientific investigation. Human perception is extended by instrumentation, allowing us to observe very small and minute objects, all the way to far away objects in space. Instruments are used to make measurements where data is presented in numerical form. Experiments depend on the measurability of events. Findings from experiments should be replicable and reproducible. All results of scientific observation and experimentation should be able to be reduced to simplified generalisations. Research is focused on the discovery of patterns of classification for generalisation. When the regularity is profound, it becomes law. One of the major goals of science is to explain the facts of nature, and the laws that govern them. A scientific explanation must be convincing and logical. A traditional form of scientific explanation is to argue that the cause of a certain event B was the previous occurrence of a specific event A. A causal explanation calls for much more information than mere association of event A with subsequent event B. It is possible to give a satisfactory account of a body of scientific facts by referring to a model. A model can provide an explanation for a vast range of observed facts. Scientific theories explain general classes of observational and experimental facts. A wellfounded theory, covering a wide range of facts to a high degree of accuracy, is the most compact and manageable form in which scientific information can be recorded, manipulated, used, or understood. Theories must be rational, relevant, and extensible. A hypothesis is formulated mentally for further study, worth consideration for its explanatory potentialities, but with no firm commitment as to its eventual validity. A hypothesis is a part of theory-building, and is the germ of a discovery. Understanding Validity Scientific knowledge takes many forms, from the most obvious descriptive facts to the most speculative of theories. The fundamental concern of epistemology is how much of this knowledge can be considered true, or how firmly it should be believed. Science is a tool to seek the truth: What is the truth? Can we ever know the truth?

A scientist who conducts research would utilise his/her five senses: Sight Hearing Smell Touch Taste

Truth is sought for its own sake. And those who are engaged upon the quest for anything for its own sake are not interested in other things. Finding the truth is difficult, and the road to it is tough. Ibn al-Haytham. A scientist observes the phenomena that occurs. However, this observation may be biased or influenced by his/her previous experience, belief system or knowledge. Observation of x is shaped by prior knowledge of x. Another influence on observations rests in the language or notation used to express what we know, and without which there would be little we could recognize as knowledge. Hanson, N.R. (1958). Patterns of Discovery. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 19. Therefore, most philosophers are of the opinion that scientific observation must be based on a priori knowledge, while avoiding from being influenced by a scientists previous experience. However, while scientific knowledge must be based on a priori knowledge, this does not mean that science could not choose objectively from several e xisting theories based on empirical tests. In science, all forms of knowledge are temporary or tentative; and is very dependent on new discoveries and new evidence. Even though science is not able to ascertain the ultimate truth, the scientific method is seen as the only way to develop knowledge in an objective manner. A posteriori knowledge: Knowledge obtained and justified by experience. Also known as empirical knowledge. A posteriori knowledge is knowledge that requires ones experience, and could not be understood without any prior experience. Examples: Some bachelors are happy. I had a heavy lunch this afternoon, and that is why I feel sleepy in this lecture. An acid when reacted with an alkali produces water and salt.

A priori knowledge: Knowledge obtained independent of experience. A priori knowledge does not require a person to experience it in order to understand it. Examples: All bachelors are not married. 1+1=2 The most stable and most abundant oxygen isotope is 16O. In order to ensure that scientific findings are valid, a scientific method is applied. Scientific method includes techniques for: Investigating phenomena Acquiring new knowledge Correcting previous knowledge Integrating previous knowledge

A scientific inquiry or research must be based on gathering observable, empirical, and measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning. A scientific method consists of the collection of data through observation and experimentation, as well as the formulation and testing of hypotheses. The first person to develop a proper scientific method is Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen/Alhacen). Ibn al-Haytham developed the scientific method after years of effort in proving that light travels in a straight line. Scientific method is not a fixed prescription or a recipe. Instead, scientific method requires intelligence, imagination and creativity. Each element of the scientific method is subject to peer review to identify possible mistakes. Scientific method is an ongoing cycle, constantly developing more useful, accurate and comprehensive models and methods. Essentially, the history of the scientific method is the history of science itself. Early philosophers/scientists used various methods to validate their ideas, theories, observations, discoveries, and findings. In the early days of mankinds civilisation, there are records that implied the basic components of scientific methods. An Egyptian ancient medical text, the Edwin Smith Papyrus (c. 1600 B.C.) mentions examination, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis. Aristotle provided another ingredient for the scientific method, namely empiricism. While Aristotlean science is not empirical in nature, he did bring science closer to being empirical

compared to his predecessors, because he proposed both the inductive and deductive methods of inquiry. Empiricism: A theory of knowledge which asserts that knowledge arises from experience. Empiricism emphasises the role of experience and evidence, especially sensory perceptions, especially as discovered through experimentation, in the formation of ideas. Deductive reasoning / deduction: An argument is deductive when the truth of the conclusion is purported to be a logical consequence of the premises and consequently its corresponding conditional is a necessary truth. Deductive arguments are either valid or invalid, and never true or false; and a valid deductive argument with true premises is said to be sound, and conversely an invalid deductive argument which has one or more false premises is said to be unsound. DEDUCTIVE REASONING uses GENERAL FACTS to make SPECIFIC CONCLUSIONS. Inductive reasoning / induction: Inductive reasoning takes us beyond the confines of our current evidence or knowledge to conclusions about the unknown. The premises of an inductive argument indicate some degree of support for the conclusion, but they do not ensure the truth. Conclusions arrived by inductive reasoning do not have the same degree of certainty as the original premises. INDUCTIVE REASONING uses SPECIFIC FACTS to make GENERAL CONCLUSIONS. After Aristotle, significant developments were made during the height of the Islamic civilisation. Muslim scientists used experimentation and quantification to distinguish between competing scientific theories, set within a generically empirical orientation, as can be seen in the works of Jabir Ibn Hayyan (Geber) and Alkindi (Alkindus). However, it was Ibn al-Haytham who first developed proper experimental scientific methods, who used experimentation and mathematics to obtain the results as seen in his magnum opus, Kitab al-Manazir (Book of Optics). He combined observations, experimentations and rational arguments to support his intromission theory of vision, where rays of light are emitted from the objects rather than the eyes. Ibn al-Haytham used the same scientific approach to prove that the emission theory of vision as proposed by Ptolemy and Euclid (where the eyes emit rays of light) as well as the intromission theory of vision as proposed by Aristotle (where objects emit physical particles into the eyes) were both wrong. Ibn al-Haythams scientific method was similar to modern scientific method, and consisted of: Explicit statement of the problem, tied to observation and to proof by experiment Testing and/or criticism of a hypothesis through experimentation Interpretation of data and formulation of a conclusion using mathematics Publication of findings

Al-Biruni expanded the application of scientific method in various fields of science, such as mineralogy, mechanics, astronomy and geography. Al-Biruni emphasised on the importance of repeating experiments in order to prevent systematic errors and random errors, such as errors in instrumentation as well as human errors. Robert Grosseteste introduced the scientific method to Europe during the Renaissance based on what was written by Aristotle, Ibn al-Haytham and Ibn Sina (Avicenna). Roger Bacon, inspired by Grosseteste, described the scientific method as a repeating cycle of observation, hypothesis, experimentation and verification. While earlier scientific methods have existed, it was Galileo Galilei who is regarded as the father of the scientific method. During the time of religious conservatism, he introduced his new science of motion, which differed greatly from Aristotlean teachings, as Galileo used experimentation as his tool of inquiry. Nevertheless, Galileo presented his findings in the form of mathematical demonstrations without referring to the actual experimentation results. While Galileo shied away from the role of experimenter, his English counterpart, Francis Bacon attempted to describe a rational procedure for establishing causation between phenomena using induction. Bacons induction differed from Aristotles induction because Bacon relied heavily on experimental histories to eliminate alternative theories. While Bacon stressed on empiricism, Rene Descartes emphasised on rationalism. Descartes described the intriguing and disciplined thought experiments he used to arrive at the idea associated with him: Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am). If someone is thinking whether he exists or not, the fact that he is thinking is proof that he exists. Isaac Newtons inductive approach formed the basis of natural philosophy through the 18th and 19th centuries, and his work became a model for other scientists to emulate. Karl Popper denied the existence of evidence and scientific method. He holds that there is only one universal method, i.e. trial and error. He argued that all hypotheses must be falsifiable, and science would best progress using deductive reasoning.