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Earth Sciences 17 Online
OpenStudy (gracebooth):

What are the steps of Scientific Method?

OpenStudy (osprey):

One example would be to observe a simple pendulum, as in a mass on the end of a piece of string moving to and fro, or oscillating. observe a phenomenon, or think about a phenomenon. Perhaps the observer might think of changing the length of the pendulum's string, and seeing what happens. HYPOTHESISE about a possible THEORY to describe the phenomenon. Develop the theory and attempt to design an experiment to test the theory. Do the experiment. Gather the results. Gather the various estimates of experimental errors and uncertainties. Compare the results with the theory. If all has gone according to plan, then the experimental results should confirm the theory. However, it doesn't always work like that ... "the best laid plans of mice an men" is a quote whose origin I can't remember. Arguably one celebrated example of things not going to plan is the classic and Nobel prize winning research of AA Michelson, in search of the "aether wind". The exact quote from the Maestro I cannot remember, but it was something to the effect of "the fringes did not move", which "told" him, and other researchers that there probably wasn't "an aether" that light would use to travel in. This and a myriad of other research sort of lead to the theories of relativity. Hope the above isn't too long winded ...

OpenStudy (gracebooth):

Thanks so much for the help. You have really helped me.

OpenStudy (osprey):

you're very welcome ... my pleasure. The celebrated Nobel winner Richard P Feynman once "stunned" an audience at Caltech by saying "we guess... "

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