Scientific method

The scientific method is a systematic approach to developing and testing explanations through observation, hypothesis formation, experimentation, and evidence-based revision.

Observation: The deliberate recording of phenomena or measurements as evidence. Observations supply the initial evidence and later checks that guide scientific inquiry.
Evidence: Information that supports or challenges a claim. The method relies on evidence to evaluate explanations rather than accepting them on authority.
Pseudoscience: A claim or practice presented as scientific but lacking reliable methods of testing and correction. It often borrows scientific language while avoiding the method’s exposure to disconfirming evidence.
Peer review: The evaluation of scholarly work by specialists before publication or funding decisions. Expert scrutiny can identify weaknesses in methods and arguments before findings circulate widely.
Hypothesis: A proposed explanation that can be tested against evidence. A testable hypothesis turns an observed pattern into a specific scientific claim.
Induction: Reasoning from particular observations toward broader patterns or general claims. Inductive reasoning helps form general explanations from repeated observations.
Appeal to authority: An argument that treats a source’s status as sufficient support for a claim. Scientific claims require evidence that can be assessed beyond the speaker’s credentials.
Open science: Practices that make research methods, data, and outputs more accessible and reusable. Transparency enables independent scrutiny and repetition of scientific work.
Experiment: A planned procedure for testing a claim by gathering evidence under defined conditions. Experiments expose hypotheses to observations designed to distinguish possible outcomes.
Deduction: Reasoning in which a conclusion follows necessarily from stated premises. Deduction derives predictions that can be checked against observations.

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