SCIENTIFIC METHOD

    OBSERVATIONS
    HYPOTHESIS
    PREDICTION
    EXPERIMENT
    RECYCLE
    PUBLISH
"Facts are not science-as the dictionary is not literature" -- Martin H. Fischer

Theory "... an explanation that has been confirmed to such a degree, by observation and experiment, that knowledgeable experts accept it as fact.  That's what scientists mean when they talk about a theory: not a dreamy and unreliable speculation, but an explanatory statement that fits the evidence.  They embrace such an explanation confidently but provisionally - taking it as their best available view of reality, at least unil some severely conflicting data or some better explanation might come along."  
David Quammen, "Was Darwin Wrong?", National Geographic, November 2004

WEB LINKS

TERMS

observation, hypothesis, prediction, experiment, law, theory, recycling, black box, method of science

Last updated:  January 5, 2006
Any questions: Dr. Baker
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