Definitions of the word science

Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.^[1][2]

The earliest written records of identifiable predecessors to modern science come from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia from around 3000 to 1200 BCE. Their contributions to mathematics, astronomy, and medicine entered and shaped the Greek natural philosophy of classical antiquity, whereby formal attempts were made to provide explanations of events in the physical world based on natural causes.^{[3]: 12 [4]} After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, knowledge of Greek conceptions of the world deteriorated in Western Europe during the early centuries (400 to 1000 CE) of the Middle Ages, but was preserved in the Muslim world during the Islamic Golden Age^[5] and later by the efforts of Byzantine Greek scholars who brought Greek manuscripts from the dying Byzantine Empire to Western Europe in the Renaissance.

The recovery and assimilation of Greek works and Islamic inquiries into Western Europe from the 10th to 13th century revived «natural philosophy»,^[6][7] which was later transformed by the Scientific Revolution that began in the 16th century^[8] as new ideas and discoveries departed from previous Greek conceptions and traditions.^[9][10] The scientific method soon played a greater role in knowledge creation and it was not until the 19th century that many of the institutional and professional features of science began to take shape,^[11][12] along with the changing of «natural philosophy» to «natural science».^[13]

Modern science is typically divided into three major branches:^[14] natural sciences (e.g., biology, chemistry, and physics), which study the physical world; the social sciences (e.g., economics, psychology, and sociology), which study individuals and societies;^[15][16] and the formal sciences (e.g., logic, mathematics, and theoretical computer science), which study formal systems, governed by axioms and rules.^[17][18] There is disagreement whether the formal sciences are science disciplines,^[19][20][21] because they do not rely on empirical evidence.^[22][20] Applied sciences are disciplines that use scientific knowledge for practical purposes, such as in engineering and medicine.^[23][24][25]

New knowledge in science is advanced by research from scientists who are motivated by curiosity about the world and a desire to solve problems.^[26][27] Contemporary scientific research is highly collaborative and is usually done by teams in academic and research institutions,^[28] government agencies, and companies.^[29][30] The practical impact of their work has led to the emergence of science policies that seek to influence the scientific enterprise by prioritizing the ethical and moral development of commercial products, armaments, health care, public infrastructure, and environmental protection.

Etymology

The word science has been used in Middle English since the 14th century in the sense of «the state of knowing». The word was borrowed from the Anglo-Norman language as the suffix -cience, which was borrowed from the Latin word scientia, meaning «knowledge, awareness, understanding». It is a noun derivative of the Latin sciens meaning «knowing», and undisputedly derived from the Latin sciō, the present participle scīre, meaning «to know».^[31]

There are many hypotheses for science‘s ultimate word origin. According to Michiel de Vaan, Dutch linguist and Indo-Europeanist, sciō may have its origin in the Proto-Italic language as *skije- or *skijo- meaning «to know», which may originate from Proto-Indo-European language as *skh₁-ie, *skh₁-io, meaning «to incise». The Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben proposed sciō is a back-formation of nescīre, meaning «to not know, be unfamiliar with», which may derive from Proto-Indo-European *sekH- in Latin secāre, or *skh₂—, from *sḱʰeh2(i)- meaning «to cut».^[32]

In the past, science was a synonym for «knowledge» or «study», in keeping with its Latin origin. A person who conducted scientific research was called a «natural philosopher» or «man of science».^[33] In 1834, William Whewell introduced the term scientist in a review of Mary Somerville’s book On the Connexion of the Physical Sciences,^[34] crediting it to «some ingenious gentleman» (possibly himself).^[35]

History

Early history

Science has no single origin. Rather, systematic methods emerged gradually over the course of tens of thousands of years,^[36][37] taking different forms around the world, and few details are known about the very earliest developments. Women likely played a central role in prehistoric science,^[38] as did religious rituals.^[39] Some scholars use the term «protoscience» to label activities in the past that resemble modern science in some but not all features;^[40][41][42] however, this label has also been criticized as denigrating^[43] or too suggestive of presentism, thinking about those activities only in relation to modern categories.^[44]

Direct evidence for scientific processes becomes clearer with the advent of writing systems in early civilizations like Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, creating the earliest written records in the history of science in around 3000 to 1200 BCE.^{[3]: 12–15 [4]} Although the words and concepts of «science» and «nature» were not part of the conceptual landscape at the time, the ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians made contributions that would later find a place in Greek and medieval science: mathematics, astronomy, and medicine.^{[45][3]: 12} From the 3rd millennium BCE, the ancient Egyptians developed a decimal numbering system,^[46] solved practical problems using geometry,^[47] and developed a calendar.^[48] Their healing therapies involved drug treatments and the supernatural, such as prayers, incantations, and rituals.^[3]: 9

The ancient Mesopotamians used knowledge about the properties of various natural chemicals for manufacturing pottery, faience, glass, soap, metals, lime plaster, and waterproofing.^[49] They studied animal physiology, anatomy, behavior, and astrology for divinatory purposes.^[50] The Mesopotamians had an intense interest in medicine^[49] and the earliest medical prescriptions appeared in Sumerian during the Third Dynasty of Ur.^[51] They seem to study scientific subjects which have practical or religious applications and have little interest of satisfying curiosity.^[49]

Classical antiquity

In classical antiquity, there is no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, well-educated, usually upper-class, and almost universally male individuals performed various investigations into nature whenever they could afford the time.^[52] Before the invention or discovery of the concept of phusis or nature by the pre-Socratic philosophers, the same words tend to be used to describe the natural «way» in which a plant grows,^[53] and the «way» in which, for example, one tribe worships a particular god. For this reason, it is claimed that these men were the first philosophers in the strict sense and the first to clearly distinguish «nature» and «convention».^[54]

The early Greek philosophers of the Milesian school, which was founded by Thales of Miletus and later continued by his successors Anaximander and Anaximenes, were the first to attempt to explain natural phenomena without relying on the supernatural.^[55] The Pythagoreans developed a complex number philosophy^{[56]: 467–68} and contributed significantly to the development of mathematical science.^[56]: 465 The theory of atoms was developed by the Greek philosopher Leucippus and his student Democritus.^[57][58] Later, Epicurus would develop a full natural cosmology based on atomism, and would adopt a «canon» (ruler, standard) which established physical criteria or standards of scientific truth.^[59] The Greek doctor Hippocrates established the tradition of systematic medical science^[60][61] and is known as «The Father of Medicine».^[62]

A turning point in the history of early philosophical science was Socrates’ example of applying philosophy to the study of human matters, including human nature, the nature of political communities, and human knowledge itself. The Socratic method as documented by Plato’s dialogues is a dialectic method of hypothesis elimination: better hypotheses are found by steadily identifying and eliminating those that lead to contradictions. The Socratic method searches for general commonly-held truths that shape beliefs and scrutinizes them for consistency.^[63] Socrates criticized the older type of study of physics as too purely speculative and lacking in self-criticism.^[64]

Aristotle in the 4th century BCE created a systematic program of teleological philosophy.^[65] In the 3rd century BCE, Greek astronomer Aristarchus of Samos was the first to propose a heliocentric model of the universe, with the Sun at the center and all the planets orbiting it.^[66] Aristarchus’s model was widely rejected because it was believed to violate the laws of physics,^[66] while Ptolemy’s Almagest, which contains a geocentric description of the Solar System, was accepted through the early Renaissance instead.^[67][68] The inventor and mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse made major contributions to the beginnings of calculus.^[69] Pliny the Elder was a Roman writer and polymath, who wrote the seminal encyclopedia Natural History.^[70][71][72]

Positional notation for representing numbers likely emerged between the 3rd and 5th centuries CE along Indian trade routes. This numeral system made efficient arithmetic operations more accessible and would eventually become standard for mathematics worldwide.^[73]

Middle Ages

Due to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the 5th century saw an intellectual decline and knowledge of Greek conceptions of the world deteriorated in Western Europe.^[3]: 194 During the period, Latin encyclopedists such as Isidore of Seville preserved the majority of general ancient knowledge.^[74] In contrast, because the Byzantine Empire resisted attacks from invaders, they were able to preserve and improve prior learning.^[3]: 159 John Philoponus, a Byzantine scholar in the 500s, started to question Aristotle’s teaching of physics, introducing the theory of impetus.^{[3]: 307, 311, 363, 402} His criticism served as an inspiration to medieval scholars and Galileo Galilei, who extensively cited his works ten centuries later.^{[3]: 307–308 [75]}

During late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, natural phenomena were mainly examined via the Aristotelian approach. The approach includes Aristotle’s four causes: material, formal, moving, and final cause.^[76] Many Greek classical texts were preserved by the Byzantine empire and Arabic translations were done by groups such as the Nestorians and the Monophysites. Under the Caliphate, these Arabic translations were later improved and developed by Arabic scientists.^[77] By the 6th and 7th centuries, the neighboring Sassanid Empire established the medical Academy of Gondeshapur, which is considered by Greek, Syriac, and Persian physicians as the most important medical center of the ancient world.^[78]

The House of Wisdom was established in Abbasid-era Baghdad, Iraq,^[79] where the Islamic study of Aristotelianism flourished^[80] until the Mongol invasions in the 13th century. Ibn al-Haytham, better known as Alhazen, began experimenting as a means to gain knowledge^[81][82] and disproved Ptolemy’s theory of vision^{[83]: Book I, [6.54]. p. 372} Avicenna’s compilation of the Canon of Medicine, a medical encyclopedia, is considered to be one of the most important publications in medicine and was used until the 18th century.^[84]

By the eleventh century, most of Europe had become Christian,^[3]: 204 and in 1088, the University of Bologna emerged as the first university in Europe.^[85] As such, demand for Latin translation of ancient and scientific texts grew,^[3]: 204 a major contributor to the Renaissance of the 12th century. Renaissance scholasticism in western Europe flourished, with experiments done by observing, describing, and classifying subjects in nature.^[86] In the 13rd century, medical teachers and students at Bologna began opening human bodies, leading to the first anatomy textbook based on human dissection by Mondino de Luzzi.^[87]

Renaissance

New developments in optics played a role in the inception of the Renaissance, both by challenging long-held metaphysical ideas on perception, as well as by contributing to the improvement and development of technology such as the camera obscura and the telescope. At the start of the Renaissance, Roger Bacon, Vitello, and John Peckham each built up a scholastic ontology upon a causal chain beginning with sensation, perception, and finally apperception of the individual and universal forms of Aristotle.^{[83]: Book I} A model of vision later known as perspectivism was exploited and studied by the artists of the Renaissance. This theory uses only three of Aristotle’s four causes: formal, material, and final.^[88]

In the sixteenth century, Nicolaus Copernicus formulated a heliocentric model of the Solar System, stating that the planets revolve around the Sun, instead of the geocentric model where the planets and the Sun revolve around the Earth. This was based on a theorem that the orbital periods of the planets are longer as their orbs are farther from the center of motion, which he found not to agree with Ptolemy’s model.^[89]

Johannes Kepler and others challenged the notion that the only function of the eye is perception, and shifted the main focus in optics from the eye to the propagation of light.^[88][90] Kepler is best known, however, for improving Copernicus’ heliocentric model through the discovery of Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. Kepler did not reject Aristotelian metaphysics and described his work as a search for the Harmony of the Spheres.^[91] Galileo had made significant contributions to astronomy, physics and engineering. However, he became persecuted after Pope Urban VIII sentenced him for writing about the heliocentric model.^[92]

The printing press was widely used to publish scholarly arguments, including some that disagreed widely with contemporary ideas of nature.^[93] Francis Bacon and René Descartes published philosophical arguments in favor of a new type of non-Aristotelian science. Bacon emphasized the importance of experiment over contemplation, questioned the Aristotelian concepts of formal and final cause, promoted the idea that science should study the laws of nature and the improvement of all human life.^[94] Descartes emphasized individual thought and argued that mathematics rather than geometry should be used to study nature.^[95]

Age of Enlightenment

At the start of the Age of Enlightenment, Isaac Newton formed the foundation of classical mechanics by his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, greatly influencing future physicists.^[96] Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz incorporated terms from Aristotelian physics, now used in a new non-teleological way. This implied a shift in the view of objects: objects were now considered as having no innate goals. Leibniz assumed that different types of things all work according to the same general laws of nature, with no special formal or final causes.^[97]

During this time, the declared purpose and value of science became producing wealth and inventions that would improve human lives, in the materialistic sense of having more food, clothing, and other things. In Bacon’s words, «the real and legitimate goal of sciences is the endowment of human life with new inventions and riches«, and he discouraged scientists from pursuing intangible philosophical or spiritual ideas, which he believed contributed little to human happiness beyond «the fume of subtle, sublime or pleasing [speculation]».^[98]

Science during the Enlightenment was dominated by scientific societies^[99] and academies, which had largely replaced universities as centers of scientific research and development. Societies and academies were the backbones of the maturation of the scientific profession. Another important development was the popularization of science among an increasingly literate population.^[100] Enlightenment philosophers chose a short history of scientific predecessors – Galileo, Boyle, and Newton principally – as the guides to every physical and social field of the day.^[101]

The 18th century saw significant advancements in the practice of medicine^[102] and physics;^[103] the development of biological taxonomy by Carl Linnaeus;^[104] a new understanding of magnetism and electricity;^[105] and the maturation of chemistry as a discipline.^[106] Ideas on human nature, society, and economics evolved during the Enlightenment. Hume and other Scottish Enlightenment thinkers developed A Treatise of Human Nature, which was expressed historically in works by authors including James Burnett, Adam Ferguson, John Millar and William Robertson, all of whom merged a scientific study of how humans behaved in ancient and primitive cultures with a strong awareness of the determining forces of modernity.^[107] Modern sociology largely originated from this movement.^[108] In 1776, Adam Smith published The Wealth of Nations, which is often considered the first work on modern economics.^[109]

19th century

During the nineteenth century, many distinguishing characteristics of contemporary modern science began to take shape. These included the transformation of the life and physical sciences, frequent use of precision instruments, emergence of terms such as «biologist», «physicist», «scientist», increased professionalization of those studying nature, scientists gained cultural authority over many dimensions of society, industrialization of numerous countries, thriving of popular science writings and emergence of science journals.^[110] During the late 19th century, psychology emerged as a separate discipline from philosophy when Wilhelm Wundt founded the first laboratory for psychological research in 1879.^[111]

During the mid-19th century, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace independently proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection in 1858, which explained how different plants and animals originated and evolved. Their theory was set out in detail in Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, published in 1859.^[112] Separately, Gregor Mendel presented his paper, «Experiments on Plant Hybridization» in 1865,^[113] which outlined the principles of biological inheritance, serving as the basis for modern genetics.^[114]

Early in the 19th century, John Dalton suggested the modern atomic theory, based on Democritus’s original idea of indivisible particles called atoms.^[115] The laws of conservation of energy, conservation of momentum and conservation of mass suggested a highly stable universe where there could be little loss of resources. However, with the advent of the steam engine and the industrial revolution there was an increased understanding that not all forms of energy have the same energy qualities, the ease of conversion to useful work or to another form of energy.^[116] This realization led to the development of the laws of thermodynamics, in which the free energy of the universe is seen as constantly declining: the entropy of a closed universe increases over time.^[a]

The electromagnetic theory was established in the 19th century by the works of Hans Christian Ørsted, André-Marie Ampère, Michael Faraday, James Clerk Maxwell, Oliver Heaviside, and Heinrich Hertz. The new theory raised questions that could not easily be answered using Newton’s framework. The discovery of X-rays inspired the discovery of radioactivity by Henri Becquerel and Marie Curie in 1896,^[119] Marie Curie then became the first person to win two Nobel prizes.^[120] In the next year came the discovery of the first subatomic particle, the electron.^[121]

20th century

In the first half of the century, the development of antibiotics and artificial fertilizers improved human living standards globally.^[122][123] Harmful environmental issues such as ozone depletion, ocean acidification, eutrophication and climate change came to the public’s attention and caused the onset of environmental studies.^[124]

During this period, scientific experimentation became increasingly larger in scale and funding.^[125] The extensive technological innovation stimulated by World War I, World War II, and the Cold War led to competitions between global powers, such as the Space Race^[126] and nuclear arms race.^[127] Substantial international collaborations were also made, despite armed conflicts.^[128]

In the late 20th century, active recruitment of women and elimination of sex discrimination greatly increased the number of women scientists, but large gender disparities remained in some fields.^[129] The discovery of the cosmic microwave background in 1964^[130] led to a rejection of the steady-state model of the universe in favor of the Big Bang theory of Georges Lemaître.^[131]

The century saw fundamental changes within science disciplines. Evolution became a unified theory in the early 20th-century when the modern synthesis reconciled Darwinian evolution with classical genetics.^[132] Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity and the development of quantum mechanics complement classical mechanics to describe physics in extreme length, time and gravity.^[133][134] Widespread use of integrated circuits in the last quarter of the 20th century combined with communications satellites led to a revolution in information technology and the rise of the global internet and mobile computing, including smartphones. The need for mass systematization of long, intertwined causal chains and large amounts of data led to the rise of the fields of systems theory and computer-assisted scientific modeling.^[135]

21st century

The Human Genome Project was completed in 2003 by identifying and mapping all of the genes of the human genome.^[136] The first induced pluripotent human stem cells were made in 2006, allowing adult cells to be transformed into stem cells and turn to any cell type found in the body.^[137] With the affirmation of the Higgs boson discovery in 2013, the last particle predicted by the Standard Model of particle physics was found.^[138] In 2015, gravitational waves, predicted by general relativity a century before, were first observed.^[139][140] In 2019, the international collaboration Event Horizon Telescope presented the first direct image of a black hole’s accretion disk.^[141]

Branches

Modern science is commonly divided into three major branches: natural science, social science, and formal science.^[14] Each of these branches comprises various specialized yet overlapping scientific disciplines that often possess their own nomenclature and expertise.^[142] Both natural and social sciences are empirical sciences,^[143] as their knowledge is based on empirical observations and is capable of being tested for its validity by other researchers working under the same conditions.^[144]

Natural science

Natural science is the study of the physical world. It can be divided into two main branches: life science and physical science. These two branches may be further divided into more specialized disciplines. For example, physical science can be subdivided into physics, chemistry, astronomy, and earth science. Modern natural science is the successor to the natural philosophy that began in Ancient Greece. Galileo, Descartes, Bacon, and Newton debated the benefits of using approaches which were more mathematical and more experimental in a methodical way. Still, philosophical perspectives, conjectures, and presuppositions, often overlooked, remain necessary in natural science.^[145] Systematic data collection, including discovery science, succeeded natural history, which emerged in the 16th century by describing and classifying plants, animals, minerals, and so on.^[146] Today, «natural history» suggests observational descriptions aimed at popular audiences.^[147]

Social science is the study of human behavior and functioning of societies.^[15][16] It has many disciplines that include, but are not limited to anthropology, economics, history, human geography, political science, psychology, and sociology.^[15] In the social sciences, there are many competing theoretical perspectives, many of which are extended through competing research programs such as the functionalists, conflict theorists, and interactionists in sociology.^[15] Due to the limitations of conducting controlled experiments involving large groups of individuals or complex situations, social scientists may adopt other research methods such as the historical method, case studies, and cross-cultural studies. Moreover, if quantitative information is available, social scientists may rely on statistical approaches to better understand social relationships and processes.^[15]

Formal science

Formal science is an area of study that generates knowledge using formal systems.^{[148][17][18]} A formal system is an abstract structure used for inferring theorems from axioms according to a set of rules.^[149] It includes mathematics,^[150][151] systems theory, and theoretical computer science. The formal sciences share similarities with the other two branches by relying on objective, careful, and systematic study of an area of knowledge. They are, however, different from the empirical sciences as they rely exclusively on deductive reasoning, without the need for empirical evidence, to verify their abstract concepts.^{[22][152][144]} The formal sciences are therefore a priori disciplines and because of this, there is disagreement on whether they constitute a science.^[19][153] Nevertheless, the formal sciences play an important role in the empirical sciences. Calculus, for example, was initially invented to understand motion in physics.^[154] Natural and social sciences that rely heavily on mathematical applications include mathematical physics,^[155] chemistry,^[156] biology,^[157] finance,^[158] and economics.^[159]

Applied science

Applied science is the use of the scientific method and knowledge to attain practical goals and includes a broad range of disciplines such as engineering and medicine.^[160][25] Engineering is the use of scientific principles to invent, design and build machines, structures and technologies.^[161] Science may contribute to the development of new technologies.^[162] Medicine is the practice of caring for patients by maintaining and restoring health through the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of injury or disease.^[163][164] The applied sciences are often contrasted with the basic sciences, which are focused on advancing scientific theories and laws that explain and predict events in the natural world.^[165][166]

Computational science applies computing power to simulate real-world situations, enabling a better understanding of scientific problems than formal mathematics alone can achieve. The use of machine learning and artificial intelligence is becoming a central feature of computational contributions to science for example in agent-based computational economics, random forests, topic modeling and various forms of prediction. However, machines alone rarely advance knowledge as they require human guidance and capacity to reason; and they can introduce bias against certain social groups or sometimes underperform against humans.^[167][168]

Interdisciplinary science

Interdisciplinary science involves the combination of two or more disciplines into one,^[169] such as bioinformatics, a combination of biology and computer science^[170] or cognitive sciences. The concept has existed since the ancient Greek and it became popular again in the 20th century.^[171]

Scientific research

Scientific research can be labeled as either basic or applied research. Basic research is the search for knowledge and applied research is the search for solutions to practical problems using this knowledge. Most understanding comes from basic research, though sometimes applied research targets specific practical problems. This leads to technological advances that were not previously imaginable.^[172]

Scientific method

Scientific research involves using the scientific method, which seeks to objectively explain the events of nature in a reproducible way.^[173] Scientists usually take for granted a set of basic assumptions that are needed to justify the scientific method: there is an objective reality shared by all rational observers; this objective reality is governed by natural laws; these laws were discovered by means of systematic observation and experimentation.^[2] Mathematics is essential in the formation of hypotheses, theories, and laws, because it is used extensively in quantitative modeling, observing, and collecting measurements.^[174] Statistics is used to summarize and analyze data, which allows scientists to assess the reliability of experimental results.^[175]

In the scientific method, an explanatory thought experiment or hypothesis is put forward as an explanation using parsimony principles and is expected to seek consilience – fitting with other accepted facts related to an observation or scientific question.^[176] This tentative explanation is used to make falsifiable predictions, which are typically posted before being tested by experimentation. Disproof of a prediction is evidence of progress.^{[173]: 4–5 [177]} Experimentation is especially important in science to help establish causal relationships to avoid the correlation fallacy, though in some sciences such as astronomy or geology, a predicted observation might be more appropriate.^[178]

When a hypothesis proves unsatisfactory, it is modified or discarded.^[179] If the hypothesis survived testing, it may become adopted into the framework of a scientific theory, a logically reasoned, self-consistent model or framework for describing the behavior of certain natural events. A theory typically describes the behavior of much broader sets of observations than a hypothesis; commonly, a large number of hypotheses can be logically bound together by a single theory. Thus a theory is a hypothesis explaining various other hypotheses. In that vein, theories are formulated according to most of the same scientific principles as hypotheses. Scientists may generate a model, an attempt to describe or depict an observation in terms of a logical, physical or mathematical representation and to generate new hypotheses that can be tested by experimentation.^[180]

While performing experiments to test hypotheses, scientists may have a preference for one outcome over another.^[181][182] Eliminating the bias can be achieved by transparency, careful experimental design, and a thorough peer review process of the experimental results and conclusions.^[183][184] After the results of an experiment are announced or published, it is normal practice for independent researchers to double-check how the research was performed, and to follow up by performing similar experiments to determine how dependable the results might be.^[185] Taken in its entirety, the scientific method allows for highly creative problem solving while minimizing the effects of subjective and confirmation bias.^[186] Intersubjective verifiability, the ability to reach a consensus and reproduce results, is fundamental to the creation of all scientific knowledge.^[187]

Scientific literature

Scientific research is published in a range of literature.^[188] Scientific journals communicate and document the results of research carried out in universities and various other research institutions, serving as an archival record of science. The first scientific journals, Journal des sçavans followed by Philosophical Transactions, began publication in 1665. Since that time the total number of active periodicals has steadily increased. In 1981, one estimate for the number of scientific and technical journals in publication was 11,500.^[189]

Most scientific journals cover a single scientific field and publish the research within that field; the research is normally expressed in the form of a scientific paper. Science has become so pervasive in modern societies that it is considered necessary to communicate the achievements, news, and ambitions of scientists to a wider population.^[190]

Challenges

The replication crisis is an ongoing methodological crisis that affects parts of the social and life sciences. In subsequent investigations, the results of many scientific studies are proven to be unrepeatable.^[191] The crisis has long-standing roots; the phrase was coined in the early 2010s^[192] as part of a growing awareness of the problem. The replication crisis represents an important body of research in metascience, which aims to improve the quality of all scientific research while reducing waste.^[193]

An area of study or speculation that masquerades as science in an attempt to claim a legitimacy that it would not otherwise be able to achieve is sometimes referred to as pseudoscience, fringe science, or junk science.^[194][195] Physicist Richard Feynman coined the term «cargo cult science» for cases in which researchers believe and at a glance looks like they are doing science, but lack the honesty allowing their results to be rigorously evaluated.^[196] Various types of commercial advertising, ranging from hype to fraud, may fall into these categories. Science has been described as «the most important tool» for separating valid claims from invalid ones.^[197]

There can also be an element of political or ideological bias on all sides of scientific debates. Sometimes, research may be characterized as «bad science,» research that may be well-intended but is incorrect, obsolete, incomplete, or over-simplified expositions of scientific ideas. The term «scientific misconduct» refers to situations such as where researchers have intentionally misrepresented their published data or have purposely given credit for a discovery to the wrong person.^[198]

Philosophy of science

There are different schools of thought in the philosophy of science. The most popular position is empiricism, which holds that knowledge is created by a process involving observation; scientific theories generalize observations.^[199] Empiricism generally encompasses inductivism, a position that explains how general theories can be made from the finite amount of empirical evidence available. Many versions of empiricism exist, with the predominant ones being Bayesianism^[200] and the hypothetico-deductive method.^[199]

Empiricism has stood in contrast to rationalism, the position originally associated with Descartes, which holds that knowledge is created by the human intellect, not by observation.^[201] Critical rationalism is a contrasting 20th-century approach to science, first defined by Austrian-British philosopher Karl Popper. Popper rejected the way that empiricism describes the connection between theory and observation. He claimed that theories are not generated by observation, but that observation is made in the light of theories: that the only way theory A can be affected by observation is after theory A were to conflict with observation, but theory B were to survive the observation.^[202]
Popper proposed replacing verifiability with falsifiability as the landmark of scientific theories, replacing induction with falsification as the empirical method.^[202] Popper further claimed that there is actually only one universal method, not specific to science: the negative method of criticism, trial and error,^[203] covering all products of the human mind, including science, mathematics, philosophy, and art.^[204]

Another approach, instrumentalism, emphasizes the utility of theories as instruments for explaining and predicting phenomena. It views scientific theories as black boxes with only their input (initial conditions) and output (predictions) being relevant. Consequences, theoretical entities, and logical structure are claimed to be something that should be ignored.^[205] Close to instrumentalism is constructive empiricism, according to which the main criterion for the success of a scientific theory is whether what it says about observable entities is true.^[206]

Thomas Kuhn argued that the process of observation and evaluation takes place within a paradigm, a logically consistent «portrait» of the world that is consistent with observations made from its framing. He characterized normal science as the process of observation and «puzzle solving» which takes place within a paradigm, whereas revolutionary science occurs when one paradigm overtakes another in a paradigm shift.^[207] Each paradigm has its own distinct questions, aims, and interpretations. The choice between paradigms involves setting two or more «portraits» against the world and deciding which likeness is most promising. A paradigm shift occurs when a significant number of observational anomalies arise in the old paradigm and a new paradigm makes sense of them. That is, the choice of a new paradigm is based on observations, even though those observations are made against the background of the old paradigm. For Kuhn, acceptance or rejection of a paradigm is a social process as much as a logical process. Kuhn’s position, however, is not one of relativism.^[208]

Finally, another approach often cited in debates of scientific skepticism against controversial movements like «creation science» is methodological naturalism. Naturalists maintain that a difference should be made between natural and supernatural, and science should be restricted to natural explanations.^[209] Methodological naturalism maintains that science requires strict adherence to empirical study and independent verification.^[210]

The scientific community is a network of interacting scientists who conducts scientific research. The community consists of smaller groups working in scientific fields. By having peer review, through discussion and debate within journals and conferences, scientists maintain the quality of research methodology and objectivity when interpreting results.^[211]

Scientists

Scientists are individuals who conduct scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of interest.^[212][213] In modern times, many professional scientists are trained in an academic setting and upon completion, attain an academic degree, with the highest degree being a doctorate such as a Doctor of Philosophy or PhD.^[214] Many scientists pursue careers in various sectors of the economy such as academia, industry, government, and nonprofit organizations.^{[215][216][217]}

Scientists exhibit a strong curiosity about reality and a desire to apply scientific knowledge for the benefit of health, nations, the environment, or industries. Other motivations include recognition by their peers and prestige. In modern times, many scientists have advanced degrees^[218] in an area of science and pursue careers in various sectors of the economy such as academia, industry, government, and nonprofit environments.^[219][220]

Science has historically been a male-dominated field, with notable exceptions. Women in science faced considerable discrimination in science, much as they did in other areas of male-dominated societies. For example, women were frequently being passed over for job opportunities and denied credit for their work.^[221] The achievements of women in science have been attributed to the defiance of their traditional role as laborers within the domestic sphere.^[222] Lifestyle choice plays a major role in female engagement in science; female graduate students’ interest in careers in research declines dramatically throughout graduate school, whereas that of their male colleagues remains unchanged.^[223]

Learned societies

Learned societies for the communication and promotion of scientific thought and experimentation have existed since the Renaissance.^[224] Many scientists belong to a learned society that promotes their respective scientific discipline, profession, or group of related disciplines.^[225] Membership may either be open to all, require possession of scientific credentials, or conferred by election.^[226] Most scientific societies are non-profit organizations,^[227] and many are professional associations. Their activities typically include holding regular conferences for the presentation and discussion of new research results and publishing or sponsoring academic journals in their discipline. Some societies act as professional bodies, regulating the activities of their members in the public interest or the collective interest of the membership.^{[citation needed]}

The professionalization of science, begun in the 19th century, was partly enabled by the creation of national distinguished academies of sciences such as the Italian Accademia dei Lincei in 1603,^[228] the British Royal Society in 1660,^[229] the French Academy of Sciences in 1666,^[230] the American National Academy of Sciences in 1863,^[231] the German Kaiser Wilhelm Society in 1911,^[232] and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1949.^[233] International scientific organizations, such as the International Science Council, are devoted to international cooperation for science advancement.^[234]

Awards

Science awards are usually given to individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to a discipline. They are often given by prestigious institutions, thus it is considered a great honor for a scientist receiving them. Since the early Renaissance, scientists are often awarded medals, money, and titles. The Nobel Prize, a widely regarded prestigious award, is awarded annually to those who have achieved scientific advances in the fields of medicine, physics, and chemistry.^[235]

Society

Funding and policies

Scientific research is often funded through a competitive process in which potential research projects are evaluated and only the most promising receive funding. Such processes, which are run by government, corporations, or foundations, allocate scarce funds. Total research funding in most developed countries is between 1.5% and 3% of GDP.^[236] In the OECD, around two-thirds of research and development in scientific and technical fields is carried out by industry, and 20% and 10% respectively by universities and government. The government funding proportion in certain fields is higher, and it dominates research in social science and humanities. In the lesser-developed nations, government provides the bulk of the funds for their basic scientific research.^[237]

Many governments have dedicated agencies to support scientific research, such as the National Science Foundation in the United States,^[238] the National Scientific and Technical Research Council in Argentina,^[239] Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization in Australia,^[240] National Centre for Scientific Research in France,^[241] the Max Planck Society in Germany,^[242] and National Research Council in Spain.^[243] In commercial research and development, all but the most research-oriented corporations focus more heavily on near-term commercialization possibilities rather than research driven by curiosity.^[244]

Science policy is concerned with policies that affect the conduct of the scientific enterprise, including research funding, often in pursuance of other national policy goals such as technological innovation to promote commercial product development, weapons development, health care, and environmental monitoring. Science policy sometimes refers to the act of applying scientific knowledge and consensus to the development of public policies. In accordance with public policy being concerned about the well-being of its citizens, science policy’s goal is to consider how science and technology can best serve the public.^[245] Public policy can directly affect the funding of capital equipment and intellectual infrastructure for industrial research by providing tax incentives to those organizations that fund research.^[190]

Education and awareness

Science education for the general public is embedded in the school curriculum, and is supplemented by online pedagogical content (for example, YouTube and Khan Academy), museums, and science magazines and blogs. Scientific literacy is chiefly concerned with an understanding of the scientific method, units and methods of measurement, empiricism, a basic understanding of statistics (correlations, qualitative versus quantitative observations, aggregate statistics), as well as a basic understanding of core scientific fields, such as physics, chemistry, biology, ecology, geology and computation. As a student advances into higher stages of formal education, the curriculum becomes more in depth. Traditional subjects usually included in the curriculum are natural and formal sciences, although recent movements include social and applied science as well.^[246]

The mass media face pressures that can prevent them from accurately depicting competing scientific claims in terms of their credibility within the scientific community as a whole. Determining how much weight to give different sides in a scientific debate may require considerable expertise regarding the matter.^[247] Few journalists have real scientific knowledge, and even beat reporters who are knowledgeable about certain scientific issues may be ignorant about other scientific issues that they are suddenly asked to cover.^[248][249]

Science magazines such as New Scientist, Science & Vie, and Scientific American cater to the needs of a much wider readership and provide a non-technical summary of popular areas of research, including notable discoveries and advances in certain fields of research.^[250] Science fiction genre, primarily speculative fiction, can transmit the ideas and methods of science to the general public.^[251] Recent efforts to intensify or develop links between science and non-scientific disciplines, such as literature or poetry, include the Creative Writing Science resource developed through the Royal Literary Fund.^[252]

Anti-science attitudes

While the scientific method is broadly accepted in the scientific community, some fractions of society reject certain scientific positions or are skeptical about science. Examples are the common notion that COVID-19 is not a major health threat to the US (held by 39% of Americans in August 2021)^[253] or the belief that climate change is not a major threat to the US (also held by 40% of Americans, in late 2019 and early 2020).^[254] Psychologists have pointed to four factors driving rejection of scientific results:^[255]

• Scientific authorities are sometimes seen as inexpert, untrustworthy, or biased.
• Some marginalized social groups hold anti-science attitudes, in part because these groups have often been exploited in unethical experiments.^[256]
• Messages from scientists may contradict deeply-held existing beliefs or morals.
• The delivery of a scientific message may not be appropriately targeted to a recipient’s learning style.

Anti-science attitudes seem to be often caused by fear of rejection in social groups. For instance, climate change is perceived as a threat by only 22% of Americans on the right side of the political spectrum, but by 85% on the left.^[257] That is, if someone on the left would not consider climate change as a threat, this person may face contempt and be rejected in that social group. In fact, people may rather deny a scientifically accepted fact than lose or jeopardize their social status.^[258]

Politics

Attitudes towards science are often determined by political opinions and goals. Government, business and advocacy groups have been known to use legal and economic pressure to influence scientific researchers. Many factors can act as facets of the politicization of science such as anti-intellectualism, perceived threats to religious beliefs, and fear for business interests.^[260] Politicization of science is usually accomplished when scientific information is presented in a way that emphasizes the uncertainty associated with the scientific evidence.^[261] Tactics such as shifting conversation, failing to acknowledge facts, and capitalizing on doubt of scientific consensus have been used to gain more attention for views that have been undermined by scientific evidence.^[262] Examples of issues that have involved the politicization of science include the global warming controversy, health effects of pesticides, and health effects of tobacco.^[262][263]

See also

• List of scientific occupations
• List of years in science

Notes

References

External links

• Media related to Science at Wikimedia Commons

Featured Definitions of Science

Flower

Process

Radio

Periodic table

Characteristics of a science

Some of them are:

• It is factual since it is not based on opinions, but on specific facts.
• It is analytical, because when addressing complex issues you must study each of its components for a better understanding.
• It is verifiable, since all scientific knowledge must be subject to verification.

Science Classification

The classification of science is based on two main sets: factual and formal science; the first is the one that works on reality in its research, its technique is experimentation and observation, however, it also includes deduction. The second is the one that is based on logical reasoning and uses ideal objects, its work tactic is deduction, in which mathematics and logic are found.

The most prevalent classifications are listed below:

Formal Sciences

The formal or ideal sciences are those whose main research objective is not the physical or chemical laws of origin, nor the planet and nature, but a system of relationships that are, in principle, free of their own content, although they can be implemented in analysis of any section of reality.

Examples of formal or logical sciences include:

Mathematics

It is where the analysis of the formal-logical methods of calculations and the representation of what the human being has and its use in practical life is applied.

Logic

It is the study of systems of thought, that is, of the mechanisms and the proportions of certain conclusions that emerge from them.

natural Sciences

They are dedicated to the study of nature, which is made up of the following branches:

Astronomy

Study and investigate the celestial stars and the intercommunication between them.

Physical

It analyzes the essential forces of the universe (space, time, energy, among others.) And the laws that come from it. Physics books are based on the knowledge of the universe and all the laws that comprise it.

geology

It is the one in charge of carrying out studies of the planet earth, as well as focusing on its transformation and formation.

Chemistry

In this discipline the structure, composition and reaction of matter are studied

biology

It focuses on analyzing and investigating all living beings, their behavior, their evolution, internal process, their origin, as well as their interactions.

Currently there are science books of biology where we can see all the studies that scientists have carried out on living beings, based on everything mentioned above.

social Sciences

It is known as the different organisms of knowledge organized methodically that have as their goal the analysis of man in society. These types of science try to carry out the fulfillment of the requirements of the scientific method. The following are included in this class:

Economy

It is the study of the methods of distribution, management, exchange and consumption of goods, in addition to analyzing the level of satisfaction in human needs, starting with a specific group of elements.

Linguistics

Known in many countries under the name of humanistics, it is a subject aimed at understanding and studying the different methods of human communication: both verbal and non-verbal.

Psychology

It is the discipline in charge of the study of human behavior and the composition of the psyche, both from its community and social perspectives, as well as introspective and individual. Several of his tools come from medicine.

History

There is currently a great debate as to whether or not history belongs to the social sciences. But in this case, it is the one in charge of studying the interaction styles and time of human societies, as well as the processes and events that characterized it.

Sociology

It is the subject dedicated to the analysis of the systems and structures of the functioning of the different human societies, always taking into consideration the historical and cultural sphere.

Politics

Also called political theory, it is a social discipline that studies the different bodies of legislation and government, both in antiquity and today.

communication Sciences

Also known as communicology, it analyzes, studies or discusses the social event linked to communication and computing, as well as the mass transmission media and cultural production, and the semiotic group that they make up, creating its own analytical tools and study methods.

Applied Science

It is the implementation of scientific knowledge of one or different specialized areas, used to solve practical problems. In the field of engineering, for example, it is related to what is applied science. These technical fields of knowledge are fundamental to the evolution of technology.

Among what this area encompasses are the following disciplines:

Architecture

It is the technique of projecting the art of designing and constructing buildings, restoring the habitat of the human being and analyzing the good use, aesthetics and functionality of the areas, whether urban or architectural.

Medicine

Represents applied science number one of man. Because it obtains information from biology, physics and chemistry, and even mathematics, medicine applies to the study and analysis of the human body. For this, a series of books on the science of medicine have been prepared, where all the specialist scientists reflect all their studies on the improvement of health, medicines for diseases, and a host of exhaustive analyzes of the human body.

Pharmacy

It starts from biochemistry and shares several areas with medicine, pharmacology aims to achieve the development of medicines and elements that manage to appease some type of ailment in the human body. It refers to a very complete scope of the chemistry of life and biological development, implemented to improve and extend the life of the human being.

Engineering

It is the set of science and technology methods that, structured in different branches of interest, approve man to produce, innovate and invent tools that simplify, protect and improve the quality of life. Among the sciences that make up engineering are mathematics, physics, chemistry, among others.

Anthropology

This science is dedicated to the study of the human being in an integral way. Anthropology analyzes man’s responses to relationships, the environment, interpersonal relationships, as well as the social and cultural aspect in which he operates.

Archeology

It is the discipline that studies ancient peoples from their material remains, through the analysis of objects and certain works manufactured by ancient communities, this discipline can reach conclusions about their culture and lifestyles.

Other types of science

Science fiction

The concept of science fiction refers to a genre that emerged from fiction literature, along with horror fiction and fantasy literature.

Certain authors believe that the explanation is a wrong translation of English science fiction and that the correct one is science fiction. It emerged as a genre in 1920 (although there are works that had been previously recognized) and was later exported to other media, such as television, cinematography and comic strips (related to the elaboration of science fiction stories), it enjoyed a great boom at the end of the 20th century due to popular interest in relation to the unrivaled advances made in science and technology in recent years.

Origin Science

The science of origin deals with the facts of origin, it does not fall into the category of empirical sciences, which refers to the regularities visualized in the present. Actually, it’s more like forensic science. In many respects, source science is more like scientific studies conducted by investigators at a crime scene.

Sciences of the Spirit

They are those that allow the human being to get to know himself, by examining what makes him unique.

From the perspective of knowledge, since the origin of the faculty of experimental sciences, there has been a great duality between practical and theoretical knowledge.

Forensic Science

Forensic science is a group of scientific disciplines that cooperate with the justice and the police, by specifying the exact causes of the participation of an offense and recognizing its authors, Scientific practices within the legal framework or the group of sciences that uses the law to catch a criminal.

Latest definitions of Science

Oceanography

Power supply

Spring

Taxonomy

Computer

Spark

What is the scientific method

The scientific method is a series of ordered processes that are applied mainly to find new knowledge. To be called scientific, a research system must be based on measurement and empirical, connected with the principles of disquisition tests.

By means of a scientific method, science can gather its established knowledge, this is nothing more than an organized way or means to reach a certain objective. It consists of observation, problem statement, data collection, hypothesis formulation, experimentation, results analysis, and dissemination.

The knowledge of nature achieved through the scientific method, as well as the research that makes it possible, is known as pure science (mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, etc.). There are other scientists who work on research aimed at obtaining practical applications of the results obtained by pure science, which constitutes applied science (agriculture, engineering, aeronautics, medicine, etc.).

Among the required processes that make up the scientific method, is observation (the scientist must use his senses to analyze the fact in the same way that it is shown in reality), induction (starting with observations, the researcher must draw the characteristic principles of them), the establishment of a hypothesis (starting from the observation itself), the refutation or demonstration of it and the presentation of the scientific theory.

Among the different types of scientific methods, the dialectical, the experimental, the empirical-analytical, the phenomenological, the historical and the hermeneutic stand out. Each of them has its own applications and has its own area of ​​action in which it turns out to be more profitable or more useful than the rest.

What are auxiliary sciences

They are all those that serve as a support for another discipline so that it can meet its objectives or goals. These are scientific subjects that can support a science in some specific aspects.

Despite the fact that the expression can refer to different sciences, its meaning is closely associated with history. Its function is to complement and support a specific discipline, that is, to provide an instrumental dimension.

Last Updated:
8 Apr 2023
— Updated example sentences

English[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle English science, scyence, borrowed from Old French science, escience, from Latin scientia (“knowledge”), from sciens, the present participle stem of scire (“to know”).

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /ˈsaɪ.əns/, enPR: sīʹ-əns
• Hyphenation: sci‧ence
• Rhymes: -aɪəns

Noun[edit]

science (countable and uncountable, plural sciences)

1. (countable) A particular discipline or branch of learning, especially one dealing with measurable or systematic principles rather than intuition or natural ability. [from 14th c.]

   • 2013 August 3, “Boundary problems”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:

     Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too. GDP measures the total value of output in an economic territory. Its apparent simplicity explains why it is scrutinised down to tenths of a percentage point every month.

   Of course in my opinion Social Studies is more of a science than an art.

2. Specifically the natural sciences.

   My favorite subjects at school are science, mathematics, and history.

3. (uncountable, archaic) Knowledge gained through study or practice; mastery of a particular discipline or area. [from 14th c.]
   • If we conceive God’s sight or science, before the creation, to be extended to all and every part of the world, seeing everything as it is, […] his science or sight from all eternity lays no necessity on anything to come to pass.

   • 1819, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Notes on Hamlet

     Shakespeare’s deep and accurate science in mental philosophy

4. (now only theology) The fact of knowing something; knowledge or understanding of a truth. [from 14th c.]
5. (uncountable) The collective discipline of study or learning acquired through the scientific method; the sum of knowledge gained from such methods and discipline. [from 18th c.]

   • 1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I, page 201:

     ‘I always ask leave, in the interests of science, to measure the crania of those going out there,’ he said.

   • 1929, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Disintegration Machine‎^[1]:

     «That this use should be destructive is no doubt very deplorable, but Science knows no distinctions of the sort, but follows knowledge wherever it may lead.»

   • 1931 November 15, Winston Churchill, “Fifty Years Hence”, in Maclean’s‎^[2]:

     What is it that has produced this new prodigious speed of man? Science is the cause. Her feeble groping fingers lifted here and there, often trampled underfoot, often frozen in isolation, have now become a vast organized, united, class-conscious army marching forward upon all the fronts toward objectives none may measure or define.

   • 1951 January 1, Albert Einstein, letter to Maurice Solovine, as published in Letters to Solovine (1993)

     I have found no better expression than «religious» for confidence in the rational nature of reality […] Whenever this feeling is absent, science degenerates into uninspired empiricism.

   • 2012 January 1, Philip E. Mirowski, “Harms to Health from the Pursuit of Profits”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 1, page 87:

     In an era when political leaders promise deliverance from decline through America’s purported preeminence in scientific research, the news that science is in deep trouble in the United States has been as unwelcome as a diagnosis of leukemia following the loss of health insurance.

6. (uncountable) Knowledge derived from scientific disciplines, scientific method, or any systematic effort.

   • 2001 September, Neil deGrasse Tyson, “Over the rainbow”, in Natural History, volume 110, number 7, page 30:

     While much good science has come from the Hubble telescope (including the most reliable measure to date for the expansion rate of the universe), you would never know from media accounts that the foundation of our cosmic knowledge continues to flow primarily from the analysis of spectra and not from looking at pretty pictures.

7. (uncountable, collective) The scientific community.

   • 2008, Dara Ó Briain Talks Funny – Live in London, United Kingdom, published 2008, spoken by stand-up comedian (Dara Ó Briain):

     Science knows it doesn’t know everything; otherwise, it’d stop.

   • 2020 September 14, “As Trump Again Rejects Science, Biden Calls Him a ‘Climate Arsonist’”, in New York Times‎^[3]:

     With wildfires raging across the West, climate change took center stage in the race for the White House on Monday as former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. called President Trump a “climate arsonist” while the president said that “I don’t think science knows” what is actually happening.

   • 2021 April 27, Amanda Hess, “Inject the Vaccine Fan Fiction Directly Into My Veins”, in The New York Times‎^[4], →ISSN:

     There are plenty of earnestly respectful vaccine selfies, where the inoculated person bares a shoulder and thanks science for their shot.

   • 2021 June 3, Katherine Eban, quoting Robert Redfield, “The Lab-Leak Theory: Inside the Fight to Uncover COVID-19’s Origins”, in Vanity Fair‎^[5]:

     “I expected it from politicians. I didn’t expect it from science.”

8. (euphemistic, with definite article) Synonym of sweet science (“the sport of boxing”)
   • 1816, The art and practice of English boxing (page v)

     From a conviction, that the science is universally understood, the strong are taught humility, and the weak confidence. Many have laughed at the idea, that Boxing is of national service, but they have laughed at the expence^[sic] of truth.

   • 1888, William Edwards, Art of Boxing and Science of Self-Defense:

     […] for not a blow or guard in boxing will repay you more than the cross-counter, which may well be called the sheet-anchor of the science.

Usage notes[edit]

Since the middle of the 20th century, the term science is normally used to indicate the natural sciences (e.g., chemistry), the social sciences (e.g., sociology), and the formal sciences (e.g., mathematics). In the 18th and 19th centuries, the term was broader and encompassed scholarly study of the humanities (e.g., grammar) and the arts (e.g., music).

Synonyms[edit]

• sci
• sci.

Hyponyms[edit]

Coordinate terms[edit]

• art

Derived terms[edit]

[edit]

Translations[edit]

See also[edit]

• science on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Verb[edit]

science (third-person singular simple present sciences, present participle sciencing, simple past and past participle scienced)

1. (transitive, dated) To cause to become versed in science; to make skilled; to instruct.

   • 1742, Philip Francis, Odes, Epodes, and Carmen Seculare of Horace in Latin and English:

     I mock’d at all religious Fear, Deep-scienced in the mazy Lore Of mad Philosophy

2. (transitive, colloquial, humorous) To use science to solve a problem.

Etymology 2[edit]

See scion.

Noun[edit]

science

1. Obsolete spelling of scion

Further reading[edit]

• science on Wikiquote.Wikiquote
• «science» in Raymond Williams, Keywords (revised), 1983, Fontana Press, page 276.

French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle French science, from Old French science, escience, borrowed from Latin scientia.^[1]

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /sjɑ̃s/

• Audio (France, Paris)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑ̃s
• Homophone: sciences

Noun[edit]

science f (plural sciences)

1. (literary or archaic) knowledge
2. science (field of study, etc.)

Derived terms[edit]

[edit]

• scientificité
• scientifique
• scientiste

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• “science”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Middle English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

• scyence, syens, sciens, sciense, sience

Etymology[edit]

From Old French science, from Latin scientia.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /siːˈɛns(ə)/, /siˈɛns(ə)/

Noun[edit]

science (plural sciences)

1. facts, knowledge; that which is known:
   1. A science; the body of knowledge composing a specific discipline.
   2. learnt knowledge, especially from written sources.
   3. applied or situational knowledge.
   4. truth, reality, verified information.
2. One’s faculty of finding information; knowing or insight
3. One’s faculty of making sound decisions; sagaciousness.
4. One’s aptitude or learning; one’s knowledge (in a field).
5. A non-learned discipline, pursuit, or field.
6. (rare) verifiability; trust in knowledge.

Descendants[edit]

• English: science
• Scots: science

References[edit]

• “scī̆ence, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-05-24.

Middle French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Old French science.

Noun[edit]

science f (plural sciences)

1. science (field of study, etc.)
2. knowledge

Descendants[edit]

• French: science

Old French[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

• escience

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from Latin scientia.

Noun[edit]

science f (nominative singular science)

1. knowledge; wisdom

Descendants[edit]

• → Middle English: science
  • English: science
    • → Japanese: サイエンス
    • → Malay: sains
      • → Indonesian: sains
    • → Swahili: sayansi
• Middle French: science
  • French: science
    • → Khmer: ស្យង់ (syɑng)
• Norman: scienche