Science Meets Real Life - Essay Example

Science Meets Real Life Submitted to, Submitted By, of the Submitted on, [November 22nd, PART SCIENTIFIC METHOD: Scientific method is a process of experimentation that is used to devise answers by making observations and then evaluating them. Scientific methods are not restricted to laboratory based experimentation only but can realistically be applied to real life scenarios as well. The following are the steps in a scientific method: Make an Observation. Ask a Question. Form a Hypothesis. Conduct an Experiment Analyze output and Conclude. (Harris, 2011) DEPLOYING SCIENTIFIC STEPS IN REAL WORLD SCENARIOS Scenario 1: You arrive home late at night. You walk up to the front door, unlock it, and reach in to turn on the light switch located just inside the front door. The light does not come on! Now what? This is an everyday scenario. The situation can be disintegrated in the following few steps: OBSERVATION It naturally is dark when you reach home since no one else is home. The first observation is that light does not turn on when it is switched on. QUESTION #1 Is there no electricity? HYPOTHESIS If there is no electricity, then the rest of the houses on the street must also be in darkness. EXPERIMENT Going out of the house to observe neighbors’ lights. ANALYSIS If hypothesis is POSITIVE and if any house has it’s lights on then CONCLUDE that electricity has not gone. But there is a chance of error in this analysis. POSSIBLE ERROR The house with the lights turned on may be running on an alternate power source such an inverter or a generator. If all the houses in the neighborhood had their lights turned off then it may be CONCLUDED that electricity has gone. This conclusion also has a chance of being incorrect. POSSIBLE ERROR: All the residents’ of the neighboring houses may have gone to sleep or may have gone out to dine out. Both the above mentioned scenarios do not give a certain conclusion and chances of errors exist in them. It is then sought to revise the experiment. This time another lamp in the house is selected for experimentation. If this new lamp does not turn on as well then it would be certain that there is no electricity in the house. The 5 steps of the scientific method are then executed again. QUESTION #2 Does the light bulb in the second lamp turn on? HYPOTHESIS If the bulb in the lamp does not turn on then there would be no electricity in the house. EXPERIMENT The switch for the second light bulb is turned on. ANALYSIS: If the second bulb does not get turned on then it is CONCLUDED that there is no electricity. If the light bulb gets turned on hypothesis gets rejected. If the hypothesis gets rejected it is now assumed that if the second bulb gets turned on then what may be the reason for the unresponsiveness of the first bulb? QUESTION #3 Has there been a fault in the lamp? HYPOTHESIS If there is a fault in the lamp then the bulb in it would enlighten the other lamp. EXPERIMENT The old bulb is fixed in the second lamp. ANALYSIS If the bulb glows in the second lamp then it is CONCLUDED that there has been a fault in the initial lamp that was lighted when the person reached home. But there could be a POSSIBLE ERROR here and that is that the lamp may not be plugged into the socket properly. If the bulb also does not glow in the second lamp then it is CONCLUDED that the bulb has burned out. Another subsequent query that may now arise is that whether the Initial lamp was fixed properly or not. This series of hypothetical testing continues unless the actual reasoning behind the nonfunctioning of the lamp is assessed. Scenario # 2: The Heat Gauge of the vehicle shows that the car had gotten heated up. OBSERVATION The heating up light that ignited when car gets heated up is glowing. The heat gauge is showing a raise towards the ‘heat’ label. QUESTION: Is the car engine fan functioning? HYPOTHESIS If the fan is not on then it is most probable that it is not functioning. EXPERIMENT Engine is turned on to see whether the engine fan turns on or not. ANALYSIS If the engine fan is spinning then it is CONCLUDED that the car is not heating up due to the non-functioning of the fan. POSSIBLE ERROR It has been learned from experience that sometimes car fans turn on at certain times and do not turn on at others. Then begin to behave unpredictably. The other possible outcome of the experiment is that the fan is not spinning. It If the Fan is not running then it the hypothesis is accepted and it is affirmed that since the engine fan is not working that must be the reason behind the rapid heating up the car. However this can still not be affirmed that whether the fan itself is faulty or there is a fault in the electrical wiring connecting the fan to the engine. In order to clarify these assumptions the scientific experimentation proceeds: QUESTION: Has the fan burned out? HYPOTHESIS If the fan has burned out then it would not function if its connectors are connected to an external battery. EXPERIMENT A spare functional car battery is bought from the car mechanic’s workshop at the nearby gas station. ANALYSIS If the fan turns on after its connections are connected to the battery terminals then it is concluded that the fan has not burned out. If he fan does not turn on when connected to the new battery terminals then it is ascertained that the reason for the non-functioning of the fan and thus heating up of the car was the burning out of the fan only. However, if the fan is functional then further analysis is required to assess that what is the actual reason behind the inoperability of the fan and the scientific methodology of figuring out the root cause by assessing one factor after the other unless a deductive conclusion is reached, continues. PART II: WHY I CANNOT LIVE WITH/WITHOUT SCIENCE Science is a natural and indispensible option for humans to exercise. Even if life of the human beings is considered in its simplest of forms as it was in the primitive times, the applications of science in it remain there and are obvious. Thus it can very well be ascertained that human life and Science go hand in hand. The daily routine of human being and the impact of science on it. Considering our daily routine we get benefitted with the applications of science round the clock. It doesn’t matter whether we are at work, are spending leisure time or are into slumber; science is applied into our lives all the time. The scientific methods are integral part of our lives with all routines and exceptions. Generally a person starts a day with the loud ringing of the alarm clock. This time measuring scientific device named clock is the first gift of science that we encounter as soon as the day starts. This is followed by the breakfast and preparations to leave for work. Whether it is the preparation of the breakfast or the taking of a bath, whether it is the ironing of clothes or is the process of getting dressed, all these actions involve the implementation of the five basic steps of scientific methodology in them. The exceptional situations, observations, hypothesis formulations and testing and re-adjustments of solutions is what are doing throughout the day, assisted by the innumerable scientific inventions without which our lives are inevitable. The key impact of science is considered to be the ease along with the addition in working capacities to perform daily tasks. This saves time and efforts both. People do better in all respects of life when they exercise science or use scientific products. Numerous examples of the said phenomenon are there. The communication gadgets we use, the transportation means we opt, the leisure facilities that we enjoy and appliances that assist us, all are the deliverables of science and making our lives more productive and easier. As there are merits and demerits associated with each and every thing or phenomena, the science also has its negative impacts. These impacts are numerous and cannot be taken into account in some simple discussion as this one. However some of the summarized notions can be highlighted in this regard. One of the major negative impacts of science based products in current times is the social and demographic change that occurred. The structures of conventional relationships and meetings have changed mostly. The new life style curbs physical socialization and promotes or enhances a physically more introvert life style through strong communication and socialization means like social media and cellular phones. The other major issue considered to be lethal is of vulnerable privacy and personal security. The level of crimes and sophistication both increased linearly with the advent of science in the past century. Despite less socialization people are more vulnerable to all kinds of crimes and lies. Health hazards are considered as a direct result of the extra ordinary ease produced by science. For example the e-commerce on one hand saves lot of effort and time and on the other hand it facilitates lethargy, obesity and other medical ailments that originate as a result of sedentary life style. Survival without sciences, as mentioned above, is out of question. The most elementary needs of life are fulfilled through exploitation of scientific methods. The capacity to observe, think, understand, reason and solve are built in for humans. With these capabilities it is impossible to run away from science in any walk of life. The cave-men also exploited science for survival. Tools for hunting food and lighting fire through very basic means all are examples of scientific applications. Basically it is true to say that needs are always there to be fulfilled and science helps us devise means and solutions. The text above is the outcome of the invoked thought process. This course poses many critical yet common aspects that we usually don’t seriously consider. “A hidden world is there even in the highest levels of simplicity and we can explore it by invoking simplest considerations”, is the message this course delivers in my view. REFERENCES: Haris, W. (2011). How the Scientific Method Works. HowStuffWorks. Retrieved from http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/scientific-experiments/scientific-method6.htm Scientific Buddies. (2011). Steps of the Scientific method. Scientific Buddies.com. Retrieved from http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_scientific_method.shtml Curran L. G. (2008). The Scientific Method. Science Help Online Chemistry. Retrieved from http://www.fordhamprep.org/gcurran/sho/sho/lessons/lesson12.htm Read More