Cell Biology Lecture - Session 1

The Scientific Method

• The practice of science is an ongoing, iterative process of testing and evaluation.
• The scientific method is a guide used to direct the practice of to science.
• Steps in the scientific method commonly include:
  • Observation: defining the problem to be investigated.
  • Hypothesis: one or more testable explanations for the observation.
  • Experimentation: controlled experiments which test one or more hypotheses.
  • Conclusion: was the hypothesis supported or not?
  • Iteration: modification of the hypothesis
• After a hypothesis has been repeatedly tested, a hierarchy of scientific thought is developed. Hypothesis is the most common, with the lowest level of certainty. A theory is a hypothesis that has been repeatedly tested with little modification. A Law is one of the fundamental underlying principles of how the Universe is organized, e.g. The Laws of Thermodynamics, Newton's Law of Gravity.

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