Science works when a person pursues their curiosities. For example, if there weren’t people who took interest in finding out why tornadoes spin a particular way, there wouldn’t be people studying why tornadoes spin a particular way.
Following this curiosity, scientists ask questions, formulate predictions, make observations, construct inferences, write, reflect, test—often in no particular order. (Although, making an inference does involve synthesizing an observation and past experiences.) Even though I grew up learning the scientific method as a way to “do” science, science is much more than the scientific method. Science is more than the scientific method because scientists are consistently maneuvering from asking questions, formulating predictions, making observations, constructing inferences, writing, reflecting, and testing. For example, if I wanted to know why my basil plant is slowly dying, I might first make a prediction as to why this is happening or I might reflect on how the basil plant has existed through the summer. The aforementioned example demonstrates that science works in a very messy model—linear by no means.
In all cognitive processes and actions that scientists make, scientists are influenced by past experiences and prior knowledge. Our questions, predictions, observations, inferences, reflections, and results are in some ways reflections of our own beliefs and experiences. As humans we cannot filter out every life experience—we’re humans.
After all of my above reflections, science is still ultra confusing.
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