Natural scientific method. Methods of natural science knowledge
Methods and techniques of natural science research
Concept of methodology and method
In the modern understanding, methodology is the study of structure, logical organization, methods and means of activity. In particular, the methodology of natural science is the doctrine of the principles of construction, forms and methods of natural scientific knowledge.
A method is a set of techniques, or operations, practical or theoretical activities.
Method is inextricably linked with theory: any system of objective knowledge can become a method. The inextricable connection between method and theory is expressed in the methodological role of natural scientific laws. For example, the laws of conservation in natural science constitute a methodological principle that requires strict adherence to corresponding theoretical operations; The reflex theory of higher nervous activity serves as one of the methods for studying the behavior of animals and humans.
Describing the role of the correct method in scientific knowledge, F. Bacon compared it with a lamp illuminating the way for a traveler in the dark. You cannot expect success in studying any issue by following the wrong path.
The method itself does not completely determine success in the natural scientific study of reality: not only a good method is important, but also the skill of its application.
Various methods of branches of natural science: physics, chemistry, biology, etc. are particular in relation to the general dialectical method of cognition. Each branch of natural science, having its own subject of study and its own theoretical principles, applies its own special methods resulting from one or another understanding of the essence of its object. The special methods used, for example, in archeology or geography, usually do not go beyond these sciences. At the same time, physical and chemical methods are used not only in physics and chemistry, but also in astronomy, biology, and archaeology. The application of the method of any branch of science in its other branches is carried out due to the fact that their objects obey the laws of this science. For example, physical and chemical methods are used in biology on the basis that objects of biological research include, in one form or another, physical and chemical forms of the movement of matter.
Comparison, analysis and synthesis
Even ancient thinkers argued: comparison is the mother of knowledge. The people aptly expressed this in the proverb: “If you don’t know grief, you won’t know joy.” You cannot know what is good without knowing what is bad, you cannot understand the small without the big, etc. Everything is learned by comparison.
To find out what an object is, you must first find out in what ways it is similar to other objects and how it differs from them. For example, to determine the mass of a body, it is necessary to compare it with the mass of another body taken as a standard, i.e., as a sample measure. This comparison process is carried out by weighing on a scale.
Comparison is the establishment of similarities and differences between objects. Comparison underlies many natural scientific measurements that form an integral part of any experiment.
By comparing objects with each other, a person gets the opportunity to correctly cognize them and thereby correctly navigate the world around him and purposefully influence it. Being a necessary method of cognition, comparison plays an important role in human practical activity and in natural scientific research, when objects that are truly homogeneous and similar in essence are compared. There is no point in comparing, as they say, pounds with arshins.
Comparison, as a very general method of cognition, often appears in various branches of natural science as a comparative method.
The process of natural scientific knowledge is carried out in such a way that we first observe the general picture of the object being studied, in which the particulars remain in the shadows. With such observation, it is impossible to know the internal structure of the object. To study it, we must dismember the objects being studied. Analysis is the mental or real decomposition of an object into its constituent parts. Being a necessary method of cognition, analysis is also one of the elements of the cognition process.
It is impossible to know the essence of an object only by breaking it down into the elements of which it is composed: the chemist, according to Hegel, puts meat in his retort, subjects it to various operations and then says: I have found that it consists of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, etc. . d. But these things are no longer meat. Each branch of natural science has, as it were, its own limit of division of an object, beyond which another world of properties and patterns is observed.
When the particulars have been sufficiently studied through analysis, the next stage of cognition begins - synthesis - the unification into a single whole of elements dissected by analysis.
Analysis mainly captures what is specific that distinguishes parts from each other. Synthesis reveals that commonality that connects the parts into a single whole.
A person decomposes an object into its component parts in order to first discover the parts themselves, find out what the whole consists of, and then consider it as consisting of parts, each of which has already been examined separately. Analysis and synthesis are in dialectical unity with each other: in every movement our thinking is as analytical as it is synthetic.
Analysis and synthesis originate in the practical activities of man, in his work. Man has learned to mentally analyze and synthesize only on the basis of practical dismemberment, cutting, grinding, joining, composing objects in the manufacture of tools, clothing, housing, etc. Only by gradually comprehending what happens to an object when performing practical actions with it, man learned to mentally analyze and synthesize. Analysis and synthesis are the basic methods of thinking: processes of separation and connection, destruction and creation, decomposition and connection: bodies repel and attract; chemical elements come into contact and are separated; in a living organism the processes of assimilation and dissimilation are continuously carried out; in production, something is dismembered to create a product of labor needed by society.
Abstraction, idealization and generalization
Each studied object is characterized by many properties and is connected by many threads with other objects. In the process of natural scientific knowledge, the need arises to concentrate attention on one aspect or property of the object being studied and to distract from a number of its other qualities or properties.
Abstraction is the mental isolation of an object in abstraction from its connections with other objects, some property of an object in abstraction from its other properties, any relationship between objects in abstraction from the objects themselves. Initially, abstraction was expressed in the selection of some objects with hands, eyes, and tools and abstraction from others. This is evidenced by the origin of the word “abstract” itself - from the Latin verb “tagere” (to drag) and the prefix “ab” (to the side). And the Russian word “abstract” comes from the verb “voloch” (to drag).
Abstraction is a necessary condition for the emergence and development of any science and human knowledge in general. The question of what in objective reality is highlighted by the abstracting work of thinking and what thinking is distracted from is solved in each specific case in direct dependence on the nature of the object being studied and the tasks that are posed to the researcher. For example, in mathematics, many problems are solved using equations without considering the specific things behind them. Numbers don’t care what lies behind them: people or animals, plants or minerals. This is the great power of mathematics, and at the same time its limitations.
For mechanics, which studies the movement of bodies in space, the physical and kinetic properties of bodies, except for mass, are indifferent. I. Kepler did not care about the reddish color of Mars or the temperature of the Sun to establish the laws of planetary rotation. When Louis de Broglie sought the connection between the properties of the electron as a particle and as a wave, he had the right not to be interested in any other characteristics of this particle.
Abstraction is the movement of thought deep into the subject, highlighting its essential elements. For example, in order for a given property of an object to be considered as chemical, distraction, abstraction is necessary. In fact, the chemical properties of a substance do not include changing its shape, so the chemist examines copper, distracting from what exactly is made of it.
In the living fabric of logical thinking, abstractions make it possible to reproduce a deeper and more accurate picture of the world than can be done with the help of perceptions.
An important method of natural scientific knowledge of the world is idealization as a specific type of abstraction. Idealization is the mental formation of abstract objects that do not exist and are not realizable in reality, but for which there are prototypes in the real world. Idealization is the process of forming concepts, the real prototypes of which can only be indicated with varying degrees of approximation. Examples of idealized concepts: “point”, i.e. an object that has neither length, nor height, nor width; “straight line”, “circle”, “point electric charge”, “ideal gas”, “absolute black body”, etc.
The introduction of idealized objects into the natural scientific process allows for the construction of abstract diagrams of real processes necessary for a deeper penetration into the patterns of their occurrence.
An important task of natural scientific knowledge is generalization - the process of mental transition from the individual to the general, from the less general to the more general.
For example, a mental transition from the concept of “triangle” to the concept of “polygon”, from the concept of “mechanical form of motion of matter” to the concept of “form of motion of matter”, from the judgment “this metal is electrically conductive” to the judgment “all metals are electrically conductive”, from the judgment “mechanical form of energy turns into heat” to the judgment “every form of energy turns into another form of energy”, etc.
The mental transition from the more general to the less general is a process of limitation. The processes of generalization and limitation are inextricably linked. Without generalization there is no theory. Theory is created to be applied in practice to solve specific problems. For example, to measure objects and create technical structures, a transition from the more general to the less general and individual is always necessary, i.e., a process of limitation is always necessary.
Abstract and concrete
The process of natural scientific knowledge is carried out in two interconnected ways: by ascending from the concrete, given in perception and representation, to abstractions, and by ascending from the abstract to the concrete. On the first path, the visual representation “evaporates” to the level of abstraction; on the second path, thought moves again to concrete knowledge, but to a rich set of numerous definitions. Abstract is understood as a one-sided, incomplete reflection of an object in consciousness. Concrete knowledge is a reflection of the real relationship between the elements of an object in the system of the whole, consideration of it from all sides, in development, with all its inherent contradictions.
The concrete is the result of scientific research, a reflection of objective reality in a system of concepts and categories, a theoretically meaningful unity of the diverse in the object of research. The method of theoretical knowledge of an object as a whole is the ascent from the abstract to the concrete.
Analogy
In the very nature of the understanding of facts lies an analogy, connecting the threads of the unknown with the known. The new is easier to comprehend and understand through the images and concepts of the old, known. An analogy is a probable, plausible conclusion about the similarity of two objects in some characteristic based on their established similarity in other characteristics. The conclusion is the more plausible, the more similar features the compared objects have and the more significant these features are. Despite the fact that analogies provide only probable conclusions, they play a huge role in knowledge, as they lead to the formation of hypotheses - scientific guesses and assumptions, which during the subsequent stage of research and evidence can turn into scientific theories. An analogy with what we know helps us understand what is unknown. An analogy with the simple helps to understand the more complex. Thus, by analogy with the artificial selection of the best breeds of domestic animals, Charles Darwin discovered the law of natural selection in the animal and plant world. The analogy with the flow of liquid in a tube played an important role in the emergence of the theory of electric current. Analogies with the mechanism of action of the muscles, brain, and sensory organs of animals and humans prompted the invention of many technical structures: excavators, robots, logical machines, etc.
Analogy as a method is most often used in the theory of similarity, on which modeling is based.
Modeling
In modern science and technology, the modeling method is becoming increasingly widespread, the essence of which is to reproduce the properties of an object of knowledge on a specially designed analogue of it - a model. If the model has the same physical nature as the original, then we are dealing with physical modeling. A model can be built according to the principle of mathematical modeling if it has a different nature, but its functioning is described by a system of equations identical to the one that describes the original being studied.
Modeling is widely used because it allows one to study processes characteristic of the original in the absence of the original itself and in conditions that do not require its presence. This is often necessary due to the inconvenience of studying the object itself and for other reasons: high cost, inaccessibility, difficulty of delivery, vastness, etc.
The value of the model lies in the fact that it is much easier to make, it is easier to carry out experiments with it than with the original, etc.
Recently, electronic simulating devices have been actively developed, in which, using electronic processes, a real process is reproduced according to a given program. The principle of modeling forms the basis of cybernetics. Modeling is used in calculating the trajectories of ballistic missiles, in studying the operating modes of machines and entire enterprises, in the distribution of material resources, etc.
Induction and deduction
As a method of natural scientific research, induction can be defined as the process of deriving a general position from the observation of a number of particular individual facts.
There are usually two main types of induction: complete and incomplete. Complete induction is the conclusion of any general judgment about all objects of a certain set based on consideration of each object of a given set. The scope of application of such induction is limited to objects, the number of which is finite. In practice, a form of induction is more often used, which involves making a conclusion about all objects of a set based on knowledge of only a part of the objects. Such conclusions of incomplete induction are often probabilistic in nature. Incomplete induction, based on experimental studies and including theoretical justification, is capable of producing a reliable conclusion. It is called scientific induction. According to the famous French physicist Louis de Broglie, induction, since it seeks to push the already existing boundaries of thought, is the true source of truly scientific progress. Great discoveries and leaps forward in scientific thought are ultimately created by induction - a risky but important creative method.
Deduction is the process of analytical reasoning from the general to the particular or less general. The beginning (premises) of deduction are axioms, postulates or simply hypotheses that have the nature of general statements, and the end is the consequences of the premises, theorems. If the premises of a deduction are true, then its consequences are true. Deduction is the main means of proof. The use of deduction makes it possible to derive from obvious truths knowledge that can no longer be comprehended with immediate clarity by our mind, but which, due to the very method of obtaining it, appears to be completely justified and thereby reliable. Deduction carried out according to strict rules cannot lead to errors.
Method is a set of rules, methods of cognitive and practical activity, determined by the nature and laws of the object under study.
The modern system of methods of cognition is highly complex and differentiated. The simplest classification of methods of cognition involves their division into general, general scientific, and specific scientific.
1. General methods characterize the techniques and methods of research at all levels of scientific knowledge. These include methods of analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, comparison, idealization, etc. These methods are so universal that they work even at the level of ordinary consciousness.
Analysis is a procedure of mental (or real) dismemberment, decomposition of an object into its component elements in order to identify their systemic properties and relationships.
Synthesis- the operation of combining the elements of the object being studied, selected in the analysis, into a single whole.
Induction- a method of reasoning or a method of obtaining knowledge in which a general conclusion is drawn based on a generalization of particular premises. Induction can be complete or incomplete. Complete induction is possible when the premises cover all phenomena of a particular class. However, such cases are rare. The impossibility of taking into account all phenomena of a given class forces us to use incomplete induction, the final conclusions of which are not strictly unambiguous.
Deduction- a way of reasoning or a method of moving knowledge from the general to the specific, i.e. the process of logical transition from general premises to conclusions about particular cases. The deductive method can provide strict, reliable knowledge, subject to the truth of the general premises and compliance with the rules of logical inference.
Analogy- a method of cognition in which the presence of similarity in the characteristics of non-identical objects allows us to assume their similarity in other characteristics. Thus, the phenomena of interference and diffraction discovered during the study of light allowed us to draw a conclusion about its wave nature, since previously the same properties were recorded in sound, the wave nature of which had already been precisely established. Analogy is an indispensable means of clarity and visualization of thinking. But Aristotle also warned that “analogy is not proof”! It can only give conjectural knowledge.
Abstraction- a method of thinking that consists in abstracting from unimportant, insignificant for the subject of cognition properties and relationships of the object under study while simultaneously highlighting those of its properties that seem important and significant in the context of the study.
Idealization- the process of mentally creating concepts about idealized objects that do not exist in the real world, but have a prototype. Examples: ideal gas, absolutely black body.
2. General scientific methods– modeling, observation, experiment.
The initial method of scientific knowledge is considered observation, i.e. deliberate and purposeful study of objects, based on human sensory abilities - sensations and perceptions. During observation, it is possible to obtain information only about the external, superficial aspects, qualities and characteristics of the objects being studied.
The result of scientific observations is always a description of the object under study, recorded in the form of texts, drawings, diagrams, graphs, diagrams, etc. With the development of science, observation becomes more and more complex and indirect through the use of various technical devices, instruments, and measuring instruments.
Another important method of natural science knowledge is experiment. An experiment is a way of active, targeted research of objects under controlled and controlled conditions. An experiment includes observation and measurement procedures, but is not limited to them. After all, the experimenter has the opportunity to select the necessary observation conditions, combine and vary them, achieving the “purity” of the manifestation of the properties being studied, as well as interfere with the “natural” course of the processes under study and even artificially reproduce them.
The main task of an experiment, as a rule, is to predict a theory. Such experiments are called research. Another type of experiment is check- intended to confirm certain theoretical assumptions.
Modeling- a method of replacing the studied object with something similar to it in a number of properties and characteristics of interest to the researcher. The data obtained from studying the model is then, with some adjustments, transferred to the real object. Modeling is used mainly when direct study of an object is either impossible (obviously, the phenomenon of “nuclear winter” as a result of the massive use of nuclear weapons is better not to be tested except on a model), or is associated with exorbitant efforts and costs. It is advisable to first study the consequences of major interventions in natural processes (turning rivers, for example) using hydrodynamic models, and then experiment with real natural objects.
Modeling is actually a universal method. It can be used in systems of various levels. Usually there are such types of modeling as subject, mathematical, logical, physical, chemical, etc. Computer modeling has become widespread in modern conditions.
3. K specific scientific methods represent systems of formulated principles of specific scientific theories. N: psychoanalytic method in psychology, method of morphophysiological indicators in biology, etc.
Introduction
Science is one of the main forms of human knowledge. Currently, it is becoming more and more significant and essential part of reality. However, science would not be productive if it did not have such a developed system of methods and principles of knowledge. It is the correctly chosen method, along with the scientist’s talent, that helps him to understand various phenomena, find out their essence, and discover laws and regularities. There are a huge number of methods, and their number is constantly increasing. Currently, there are about 15,000 sciences and each of them has its own specific methods and subject of research.
The purpose of this work- consider the methods of natural scientific knowledge and find out what natural scientific truth is. To achieve this goal I will try to find out:
1) What is a method.
2) What methods of cognition exist.
3) How they are grouped and classified.
4) What is truth.
5) Features of absolute and relative truth.
Methods of natural science knowledge
Scientific knowledge is the solution of various kinds of problems that arise in the course of practical activity. The problems that arise in this case are solved by using special techniques. This system of techniques is usually called a method. Method is a set of techniques and operations of practical and theoretical knowledge of reality.
Each science uses different methods, which depend on the nature of the problems it solves. However, the uniqueness of scientific methods lies in the fact that in each research process the combination of methods and their structure changes. Thanks to this, special forms (sides) of scientific knowledge arise, the most important of which are empirical and theoretical.
Empirical (experimental) side is a collection of facts and information (establishment of facts, their registration, accumulation), as well as their description (statement of facts and their primary systematization).
Theoretical side associated with explanation, generalization, creation of new theories, putting forward hypotheses, discovery of new laws, prediction of new facts within the framework of these theories. With their help, a scientific picture of the world is developed and thereby the ideological function of science is carried out.
The means and methods of cognition discussed above are at the same time stages of the development of scientific knowledge. Thus, empirical, experimental research presupposes a whole system of experimental and observational equipment (devices, including computing devices, measuring installations and instruments), with the help of which new facts are established. Theoretical research involves the work of scientists aimed at explaining facts (presumptive - with the help of hypotheses, tested and proven - with the help of theories and laws of science), at the formation of concepts that generalize the data. Both together test what is known in practice.
The methods of natural science are based on the unity of its empirical and theoretical sides. They are interconnected and complement each other. Their gap, or uneven development, closes the path to correct knowledge of nature - theory becomes pointless, and experience becomes blind.
Natural science methods can be divided into the following groups:
1. General methods relating to any subject and any science. These are various methods that make it possible to connect together all aspects of knowledge, for example, the method of ascent from the abstract to the concrete, the unity of the logical and historical. These are, rather, general philosophical methods of cognition.
2. Private methods - These are special methods that operate either only within a particular branch of science, or outside the branch where they originated. This is the method of bird ringing used in zoology. And the methods of physics used in other branches of natural science led to the creation of astrophysics, geophysics, crystal physics, etc. A complex of interrelated private methods is often used to study one subject. For example, molecular biology simultaneously uses the methods of physics, mathematics, chemistry, and cybernetics.
3. Special methods relate only to one side of the subject being studied or a certain research technique: analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction. Special methods also include observation, measurement, comparison and experiment.
In natural science special methods science is given extreme importance. Let's consider their essence.
Observation - This is a purposeful process of perceiving objects of reality without any intervention. Historically, the observation method develops as an integral part of a labor operation, which includes establishing the conformity of the product of labor with its planned model.
Observation as a method of understanding reality is used either where experiment is impossible or very difficult (in astronomy, volcanology, hydrology), or where the task is to study the natural functioning or behavior of an object (in ethology, social psychology, etc.). Observation as a method presupposes the existence of a research program formed on the basis of past beliefs, established facts, and accepted concepts. Special cases of the observation method are measurement and comparison.
Experiment - a method of cognition with the help of which phenomena of reality are studied under controlled and controlled conditions. It differs from observation by intervention in the object being studied. When conducting an experiment, the researcher is not limited to passive observation of phenomena, but consciously intervenes in the natural course of their occurrence by directly influencing the process under study or changing the conditions in which this process takes place.
The specificity of the experiment also lies in the fact that under normal conditions processes in nature are extremely complex and intricate and cannot be fully controlled and controlled. Therefore, the task arises of organizing a study in which it would be possible to trace the progress of the process in a “pure” form. For these purposes, the experiment separates essential factors from unimportant ones and thereby significantly simplifies the situation. As a result, such simplification contributes to a deeper understanding of phenomena and creates the opportunity to control the few factors and quantities that are essential for a given process.
The development of natural science raises the problem of the rigor of observation and experiment. The fact is that they need special tools and devices, which have recently become so complex that they themselves begin to influence the object of observation and experiment, which, according to the conditions, should not be the case. This primarily applies to research in the field of microworld physics (quantum mechanics, quantum electrodynamics, etc.).
Analogy - a method of cognition in which the transfer of knowledge obtained during the consideration of any one object occurs to another, less studied and currently being studied. The analogy method is based on the similarity of objects according to a number of characteristics, which allows one to obtain completely reliable knowledge about the subject being studied.
The use of the analogy method in scientific knowledge requires some caution. Here it is extremely important to clearly identify the conditions under which it works most effectively. However, in cases where it is possible to develop a system of clearly formulated rules for transferring knowledge from a model to a prototype, the results and conclusions using the analogy method acquire evidentiary force.
Modeling - a method of scientific knowledge based on the study of any objects through their models. The emergence of this method is caused by the fact that sometimes the object or phenomenon being studied turns out to be inaccessible to the direct intervention of the cognizing subject, or such intervention is inappropriate for a number of reasons. Modeling involves transferring research activities to another object, acting as a substitute for the object or phenomenon of interest to us. The substitute object is called a model, and the research object is called the original, or prototype. In this case, the model acts as a substitute for the prototype, which allows one to obtain certain knowledge about the latter.
Thus, the essence of modeling as a method of cognition is to replace the object of study with a model, and objects of both natural and artificial origin can be used as a model. The ability to model is based on the fact that the model, in a certain respect, reflects some aspect of the prototype. When modeling, it is very important to have an appropriate theory or hypothesis that strictly indicates the limits and boundaries of permissible simplifications.
Modern science knows several types of modeling:
1) subject modeling, in which research is carried out on a model that reproduces certain geometric, physical, dynamic or functional characteristics of the original object;
2) symbolic modeling, in which diagrams, drawings, and formulas act as models. The most important type of such modeling is mathematical modeling, produced by means of mathematics and logic;
3) mental modeling, in which, instead of sign models, mental visual representations of these signs and operations with them are used.
Recently, a model experiment using computers, which are both a means and an object of experimental research, replacing the original, has become widespread. In this case, the algorithm (program) for the functioning of the object acts as a model.
Analysis - a method of scientific knowledge, which is based on the procedure of mental or real division of an object into its constituent parts. The purpose of dismemberment is the transition from the study of the whole to the study of its parts.
Analysis is an organic component of any scientific research, which is usually its first stage, when the researcher moves from an undifferentiated description of the object being studied to identifying its structure, composition, as well as its properties and characteristics.
Synthesis - This is a method of scientific knowledge, which is based on the procedure for combining various elements of a subject into a single whole, a system, without which truly scientific knowledge of this subject is impossible. Synthesis acts not as a method of constructing the whole, but as a method of representing the whole in the form of a unity of knowledge obtained through analysis. In synthesis, there is not just a unification, but a generalization of the features of an object. The provisions obtained as a result of synthesis are included in the theory of the object, which, enriched and refined, determines the path of new scientific research.
Induction - a method of scientific knowledge, which is the formulation of a logical conclusion by summarizing observational and experimental data (a method of constructing from the particular to the more general).
The immediate basis of inductive inference is the conclusion about the general properties of all objects based on the observation of a sufficiently wide variety of individual facts. Typically, inductive generalizations are viewed as empirical truths, or empirical laws.
A distinction is made between complete and incomplete induction. Complete induction builds a general conclusion based on the study of all objects or phenomena of a given class. As a result of complete induction, the resulting conclusion has the character of a reliable conclusion. The essence of incomplete induction is that it builds a general conclusion based on the observation of a limited number of facts, if among the latter there are no ones that contradict the inductive conclusion. Therefore, it is natural that the truth obtained in this way is incomplete; here we obtain probabilistic knowledge that requires additional confirmation.
Deduction - a method of scientific knowledge, which consists in the transition from certain general premises to particular results and consequences.
The inference by deduction is constructed according to the following scheme:
All items of class "A" have the property "B"; item "a" belongs to class "A"; This means "a" has property "B". In general, deduction as a method of cognition is based on already known laws and principles. Therefore, the deduction method does not allow us to obtain meaningful new knowledge. Deduction is only a way of identifying specific content based on initial knowledge.
The solution to any scientific problem involves putting forward various guesses, assumptions, and most often more or less substantiated hypotheses, with the help of which the researcher tries to explain facts that do not fit into old theories. Hypotheses arise in uncertain situations, the explanation of which becomes relevant for science. In addition, at the level of empirical knowledge (as well as at the level of its explanation), there are often contradictory judgments. To resolve these problems, hypotheses are required.
Sherlock Holmes used similar research methods. He used both inductive and deductive methods in his investigations. Thus, the inductive method is based on identifying evidence and the most insignificant facts, which later form a single, inextricable picture. Deduction is built on the following principle: when there is already a general - a picture of a crime committed - then the specific is sought - the criminal, that is, from the general to the specific.
Hypothesis is any assumption, guess or prediction put forward to eliminate a situation of uncertainty in scientific research. Therefore, a hypothesis is not reliable knowledge, but probable knowledge, the truth or falsity of which has not yet been established.
Any hypothesis must be justified either by the achieved knowledge of a given science or by new facts (uncertain knowledge is not used to substantiate the hypothesis). It must have the property of explaining all facts that relate to a given field of knowledge, systematizing them, as well as facts outside this field, predicting the emergence of new facts (for example, the quantum hypothesis of M. Planck, put forward at the beginning of the 20th century, led to the creation of a quantum mechanics, quantum electrodynamics and other theories). Moreover, the hypothesis should not contradict existing facts.
A hypothesis must either be confirmed or refuted. To do this, it must have the properties of falsifiability and verifiability. Falsification - a procedure that establishes the falsity of a hypothesis as a result of experimental or theoretical testing. The requirement for falsifiability of hypotheses means that the subject of science can only be fundamentally falsifiable knowledge. Irrefutable knowledge (for example, the truths of religion) has nothing to do with science. However, the experimental results themselves cannot refute the hypothesis. This requires an alternative hypothesis or theory that provides further development of knowledge. Otherwise, the first hypothesis is not rejected. Verification - the process of establishing the truth of a hypothesis or theory through empirical testing. Indirect verifiability is also possible, based on logical conclusions from directly verified facts.
Lecture No. 1
Topic: Introduction
Plan
1. Basic sciences about nature (physics, chemistry, biology), their similarities and differences.
2. Natural scientific method of cognition and its components: observation, measurement, experiment, hypothesis, theory.
Basic sciences about nature (physics, chemistry, biology), their similarities and differences.
The word "natural science" means knowledge about nature. Since nature is extremely diverse, in the process of understanding it, various natural sciences were formed: physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, geography, geology and many others. Each of the natural sciences studies some specific properties of nature. When new properties of matter are discovered, new natural sciences appear with the aim of further studying these properties, or at least new sections and directions in existing natural sciences. This is how a whole body of natural sciences was formed. Based on the objects of research, they can be divided into two large groups: sciences about living and inanimate nature. The most important natural sciences about inanimate nature are: physics, chemistry, astronomy.
Physics– a science that studies the most general properties of matter and the forms of its motion (mechanical, thermal, electromagnetic, atomic, nuclear). Physics has many types and sections (general physics, theoretical physics, experimental physics, mechanics, molecular physics, atomic physics, nuclear physics, physics of electromagnetic phenomena, etc.).
Chemistry– the science of substances, their composition, structure, properties and mutual transformations. Chemistry studies the chemical form of the movement of matter and is divided into inorganic and organic chemistry, physical and analytical chemistry, colloidal chemistry, etc.
Astronomy- science of the Universe. Astronomy studies the movement of celestial bodies, their nature, origin and development. The most important branches of astronomy, which today have essentially turned into independent sciences, are cosmology and cosmogony.
Cosmology– physical doctrine about the Universe as a whole, its structure and development.
Cosmogony– a science that studies the origin and development of celestial bodies (planets, Sun, stars, etc.). The newest direction in the knowledge of space is astronautics.
Biology- science of living nature. The subject of biology is life as a special form of movement of matter, the laws of development of living nature. Biology seems to be the most branched science (zoology, botany, morphology, cytology, histology, anatomy and physiology, microbiology, virology, embryology, ecology, genetics, etc.). At the intersection of sciences, related sciences arise, such as physical chemistry, physical biology, chemical physics, biophysics, astrophysics, etc.
So, in the process of understanding nature, separate natural sciences were formed. This is a necessary stage of cognition - the stage of differentiation of knowledge, differentiation of sciences. It is due to the need to cover an increasingly larger and more diverse number of natural objects being studied and to penetrate deeper into their details. But nature is a single, unique, multifaceted, complex, self-governing organism. If nature is one, then the idea of it from the point of view of natural science should also be one. Such a science is natural science.
Natural science– the science of nature as a single integrity or the totality of sciences about nature, taken as a single whole. The last words in this definition once again emphasize that this is not just a set of sciences, but a generalized, integrated science. This means that today the differentiation of knowledge about nature is being replaced by its integration. This task is determined, firstly, by the objective course of knowledge of nature and, secondly, by the fact that humanity learns the laws of nature not for the sake of simple curiosity, but for using them in practical activities, for its own life support.
2. Natural scientific method of cognition and its components: observation, measurement, experiment, hypothesis, theory.
Method- is a set of techniques or operations of practical or theoretical activity.
Methods of scientific knowledge include the so-called universal methods , i.e. universal methods of thinking, general scientific methods and methods of specific sciences. Methods can also be classified according to the ratio empirical knowledge (i.e. knowledge obtained as a result of experience, experimental knowledge) and theoretical knowledge, the essence of which is knowledge of the essence of phenomena, their internal connections.
Features of the natural scientific method of cognition:
1. Is objective in nature
2. The subject of knowledge is typical
3. Historicity is not required
4. Only knowledge creates
5. The natural scientist strives to be an outside observer.
6. Relies on the language of terms and numbers
There are two universal methods in the history of knowledge: dialectical and metaphysical. These are general philosophical methods.
The dialectical method is a method of understanding reality in its inconsistency, integrity and development.
The metaphysical method is a method opposite to the dialectical one, considering phenomena outside of their mutual connection and development.
Since the mid-19th century, the metaphysical method has been increasingly displaced from natural science by the dialectical method.
The relationship between general scientific methods can also be presented in the form of a diagram (Fig. 2).
Analysis is the mental or real decomposition of an object into its constituent parts.
Synthesis is the combination of elements learned as a result of analysis into a single whole.
Generalization is the process of mental transition from the individual to the general, from the less general to the more general, for example: the transition from the judgment “this metal conducts electricity” to the judgment “all metals conduct electricity”, from the judgment: “the mechanical form of energy turns into thermal” to the proposition “every form of energy turns into heat.”
Abstraction (idealization) is the mental introduction of certain changes to the object being studied in accordance with the goals of the study. As a result of idealization, some properties and attributes of objects that are not essential for this study can be excluded from consideration. An example of such idealization in mechanics is a material point, i.e. a point with mass but without any dimensions. The same abstract (ideal) object is an absolutely rigid body.
Induction is the process of deriving a general position from the observation of a number of particular individual facts, i.e. knowledge from the particular to the general. In practice, incomplete induction is most often used, which involves making a conclusion about all objects of a set based on knowledge of only a part of the objects. Incomplete induction, based on experimental research and including theoretical justification, is called scientific induction. The conclusions of such induction are often probabilistic in nature. This is a risky but creative method. With a strict setup of the experiment, logical consistency and rigor of conclusions, it is able to give a reliable conclusion. According to the famous French physicist Louis de Broglie, scientific induction is the true source of truly scientific progress.
Deduction is the process of analytical reasoning from the general to the particular or less general. It is closely related to generalization. If the initial general provisions are an established scientific truth, then the method of deduction will always produce a true conclusion. The deductive method is especially important in mathematics. Mathematicians operate with mathematical abstractions and base their reasoning on general principles. These general provisions apply to solving private, specific problems.
In the history of natural science, there have been attempts to absolutize the meaning in science of the inductive method (F. Bacon) or the deductive method (R. Descartes), to give them universal meaning. However, these methods cannot be used as separate methods, isolated from each other. each of them is used at a certain stage of the cognition process.
Analogy is a probable, plausible conclusion about the similarity of two objects or phenomena in some characteristic, based on their established similarity in other characteristics. An analogy with the simple allows us to understand the more complex. Thus, by analogy with the artificial selection of the best breeds of domestic animals, Charles Darwin discovered the law of natural selection in the animal and plant world.
Modeling is the reproduction of the properties of an object of cognition on a specially designed analogue of it - a model. Models can be real (material), for example, airplane models, building models. photographs, prosthetics, dolls, etc. and ideal (abstract) created by means of language (both natural human language and special languages, for example, the language of mathematics. In this case, we have a mathematical model. Usually this is a system of equations that describes the relationships in the system being studied.
The historical method involves reproducing the history of the object under study in all its versatility, taking into account all the details and accidents. The logical method is, in essence, a logical reproduction of the history of the object being studied. At the same time, this history is freed from everything accidental and unimportant, i.e. it is, as it were, the same historical method, but freed from its historical form.
Classification is the distribution of certain objects into classes (divisions, categories) depending on their general characteristics, fixing the natural connections between classes of objects in a unified system of a specific branch of knowledge. The formation of each science is associated with the creation of classifications of the objects and phenomena being studied.
Classification is the process of organizing information. In the process of studying new objects, a conclusion is made in relation to each such object: whether it belongs to already established classification groups. In some cases, this reveals the need to rebuild the classification system. There is a special theory of classification - taxonomy. It examines the principles of classification and systematization of complexly organized areas of reality, which usually have a hierarchical structure (organic world, objects of geography, geology, etc.).
One of the first classifications in natural science was the classification of flora and fauna by the outstanding Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778). For representatives of living nature, he established a certain gradation: class, order, genus, species, variation.
Observation is a purposeful, organized perception of objects and phenomena. Scientific observations are carried out to collect facts that strengthen or refute a particular hypothesis and form the basis for certain theoretical generalizations.
An experiment is a method of research that differs from observation by its active nature. This is observation under special controlled conditions. The experiment allows, firstly, to isolate the object under study from the influence of side phenomena that are not significant for it. Secondly, during the experiment the course of the process is repeated many times. Thirdly, the experiment allows you to systematically change the very course of the process being studied and the state of the object of study.
Measurement is the material process of comparing a quantity with a standard, a unit of measurement. The number expressing the ratio of the measured quantity to the standard is called the numerical value of this quantity.
Modern science takes into account the principle of the relativity of the properties of an object to the means of observation, experiment and measurement. So, for example, if you study the properties of light by studying its passage through a grating, it will exhibit its wave properties. If the experiment and measurements are aimed at studying the photoelectric effect, the corpuscular nature of light will manifest itself (as a stream of particles - photons).
A scientific hypothesis is such conjectural knowledge, the truth or falsity of which has not yet been proven, but which is not put forward arbitrarily, but subject to a number of requirements, which include the following.
1. No contradictions. The main provisions of the proposed hypothesis should not contradict known and verified facts. (It should be borne in mind that there are also false facts that themselves need to be verified).
2. Compliance of the new hypothesis with well-established theories. Thus, after the discovery of the law of conservation and transformation of energy, all new proposals for the creation of a “perpetual motion machine” are no longer considered.
3. Availability of the proposed hypothesis to experimental verification, at least in principle
4. Maximum simplicity of the hypothesis.
A model (in science) is a substitute object for the original object, a tool for cognition that the researcher places between himself and the object and with the help of which he studies some of the properties of the original. (id. gas, ..)
A scientific theory is systematized knowledge in its totality. Scientific theories explain many accumulated scientific facts and describe a certain fragment of reality (for example, electrical phenomena, mechanical motion, transformation of substances, evolution of species, etc.) through a system of laws.
The main difference between a theory and a hypothesis is reliability, evidence.
A scientific theory must perform two important functions, the first of which is the explanation of facts, and the second is the prediction of new, still unknown facts and the patterns that characterize them.
Scientific theory is one of the most stable forms of scientific knowledge, but they also undergo changes following the accumulation of new facts. When changes affect the fundamental principles of a theory, a transition occurs to new principles, and, consequently, to a new theory. Changes in the most general theories lead to qualitative changes in the entire system of theoretical knowledge. As a result, global natural science revolutions occur and the scientific picture of the world changes.
Within the framework of scientific theory, some of the empirical generalizations receive their explanation, while others are transformed into the laws of nature.
A law of nature is a necessary connection expressed verbally or mathematically between the properties of material objects and/or the circumstances of the events occurring with them.
For example, the law of universal gravitation expresses the necessary connection between the masses of bodies and the force of their mutual attraction; Mendeleev's periodic law is the relationship between the atomic mass (more precisely, the charge of the atomic nucleus) of a chemical element and its chemical properties; Mendel's laws - the relationship between the characteristics of parent organisms and their descendants.
In human culture, in addition to science, there is pseudoscience or pseudoscience. Pseudosciences include, for example, astrology, alchemy, ufology, parapsychology. The mass consciousness either does not see the difference between science and pseudoscience, or sees, but perceives with great interest and sympathy pseudoscientists who, in their words, experience persecution and oppression from the ossified “official” science.
3. Interrelation of natural sciences. Reductionism and holism.
All research into nature today can be visually represented as a large network consisting of branches and nodes. This network connects numerous branches of the physical, chemical and biological sciences, including synthetic sciences, which arose at the junction of the main directions (biochemistry, biophysics, etc.).
Even when studying the simplest organism, we must take into account that it is a mechanical unit, a thermodynamic system, and a chemical reactor with multidirectional flows of mass, heat, and electrical impulses; it is, at the same time, a kind of “electric machine” that generates and absorbs electromagnetic radiation. And, at the same time, it is neither one nor the other, it is a single whole.
Modern natural science is characterized by the interpenetration of natural sciences into each other, but it also has a certain orderliness and hierarchy.
In the mid-19th century, the German chemist Kekule compiled a hierarchical sequence of sciences according to the degree of increasing their complexity (or rather, according to the degree of complexity of the objects and phenomena that they study).
This hierarchy of natural sciences made it possible to “deduce” one science from another. So physics (it would be more correct - part of physics, molecular-kinetic theory) was called the mechanics of molecules, chemistry, physics of atoms, biology - the chemistry of proteins or protein bodies. This scheme is quite conventional. But it allows us to explain one of the problems of science – the problem of reductionism.
Reductionism (<лат. reductio уменьшение). Редукционизм в науке – это стремление описать более сложные явления языком науки, описывающей менее сложные явления
A type of reductionism is physicalism – an attempt to explain the entire diversity of the world in the language of physics.
Reductionism is inevitable when analyzing complex objects and phenomena. However, here we must be well aware of the following. You cannot consider the vital functions of an organism by reducing everything to physics or chemistry. But it is important to know that the laws of physics and chemistry are valid and must also be fulfilled for biological objects. Human behavior in society cannot be viewed only as a biological being, but it is important to know that the roots of many human actions lie in the deep prehistoric past and are the result of the work of genetic programs inherited from animal ancestors.
Currently, there has been an understanding of the need for a holistic, holistic (<англ. whole целый) взгляда на мир. Холизм , или интегратизм можно рассматривать как противоположность редукционизма, как присущее современной науке стремление создать действительно обобщенное, интегрированное знание о природе
3. Fundamental and applied sciences. Technologies
The established understanding of basic and applied science is as follows.
Problems that are posed to scientists from outside are called applied ones. Applied sciences, therefore, have as their goal the practical application of acquired knowledge.
Problems that arise within science itself are called fundamental. Thus, fundamental science is aimed at obtaining knowledge about the world as such. Actually, it is fundamental research that is aimed, to one degree or another, at solving world mysteries.
The word “fundamental” should not be confused here with the word “big”, “important”. Applied research can be very important both for practical activities and for science itself, while basic research can be trivial. It is very important here to anticipate what significance the results of basic research may have in the future. So, back in the mid-19th century, research on electromagnetism (fundamental research) was considered very interesting, but had no practical significance. (When allocating funds for scientific research, managers and economists must, undoubtedly, be guided to a certain extent by modern natural science in order to make the right decision).
Technology. Applied science is closely related to technology. There are two definitions of technology: in a narrow and broad sense. “Technology is a body of knowledge about the methods and means of carrying out production processes, for example, metal technology, chemical technology, construction technology, biotechnology, etc., as well as the technological processes themselves, in which a qualitative change in the processed object occurs.”
In a broad, philosophical sense, technology is a means of achieving the goals set by society, conditioned by the state of knowledge and social efficiency." This definition is quite capacious, it allows us to cover both bioconstruction, and education (educational technologies), etc. These "methods" may vary from civilization to civilization, from era to era. (It must be borne in mind that in foreign literature “technology” is often understood as a synonym for “technology” in general).
4. The thesis about two cultures.
As a result of its activities, it creates a set of material and spiritual values, i.e. culture. The world of material values (technique, technology) forms material culture. Science, art, literature, religion, morality, mythology belong to spiritual culture. In the process of understanding the surrounding world and man himself, various sciences are formed.
Natural sciences - sciences about nature - form natural science culture, humanities - artistic (humanitarian culture).
At the initial stages of knowledge (mythology, natural philosophy), these two types of sciences and cultures were not separated. However, gradually each of them developed its own principles and approaches. The separation of these cultures was also facilitated by different goals: natural sciences sought to study nature and conquer it; Humanities set their goal to study man and his world.
It is believed that the methods of the natural and human sciences are also predominantly different: rational in the natural sciences and emotional (intuitive, imaginative) in the humanities. To be fair, it should be noted that there is no sharp boundary here, since elements of intuition and imaginative thinking are integral elements of natural science comprehension of the world, and in the humanities, especially in history, economics, and sociology, one cannot do without a rational, logical method. In ancient times, a single, undivided knowledge of the world (natural philosophy) prevailed. There was no problem of separating the natural and human sciences in the Middle Ages (although at that time the process of differentiation of scientific knowledge and the identification of independent sciences had already begun). However, for medieval man, Nature represented a world of things behind which one should strive to see the symbols of God, i.e. knowledge of the world was, first of all, knowledge of divine wisdom. Cognition was aimed not so much at identifying the objective properties of phenomena in the surrounding world, but at understanding their symbolic meanings, i.e. their relationship to the deity.
In the era of modern times (17-18 centuries), the extremely rapid development of natural science began, accompanied by the process of differentiation of sciences. The successes of natural science were so great that the idea of their omnipotence arose in society. The opinions and objections of representatives of the humanitarian movement were often ignored. The rational, logical method of understanding the world has become decisive. Later, a kind of split emerged between the humanitarian and natural science cultures.
One of the most famous books on this topic was the journalistically incisive work of the English scientist and writer Charles Percy Snow, “The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution,” which appeared in the 60s. In it, the author states a split between the humanitarian and natural science cultures into two parts, which represent, as it were, two poles, two “galaxies.” Snow writes “...At one pole are the artistic intelligentsia, at the other are scientists, and, as the most prominent representatives of this group, physicists. They are separated by a wall of misunderstanding and sometimes (especially among young people) antipathy and hostility, but the main thing, of course, is misunderstanding. They have a strange, twisted understanding of each other. They have such different attitudes towards the same things that they cannot find a common language even in the area of feelings.” * In our country, this contradiction has never taken on such an antagonistic character, however, in the 60s and 70s it was reflected in numerous discussions between “physicists” and “lyricists” (about the moral side of biomedical research on humans and on animals, about the ideological essence of some discoveries, etc.).
You can often hear that technology and exact sciences have a negative impact on morality. You can hear that the discovery of atomic energy and man's entry into space are premature. It is argued that technology itself leads to the degradation of culture, damages creativity and produces only cultural cheapness. Nowadays, the successes of biology have given rise to heated discussions about the admissibility of research work on the cloning of higher animals and humans, in which the problem of science and technology is considered from the point of view of ethics and religious morality.
The famous writer and philosopher S. Lem in his book “The Sum of Technology” refutes these views, arguing that technology should be recognized as “a tool for achieving various goals, the choice of which depends on the level of development of civilization, the social system and which are subject to moral assessments. Technology provides the means and tools; the good or bad way of using them is our merit or our fault."
Thus, the environmental crisis, which has brought humanity to the brink of disaster, is caused not so much by scientific and technological progress as by the insufficient dissemination of scientific knowledge and culture in society in the general sense of the word. Therefore, now a lot of attention is paid to humanitarian education and the humanization of society. Modern knowledge and the corresponding responsibility and morality are equally important for a person.
On the other hand, the influence of science on all spheres of life is growing rapidly. We must admit that our lives, the destinies of civilization, and ultimately, were influenced by the discoveries of scientists and the technical achievements associated with them much more than all the political figures of the past. At the same time, the level of natural science education of most people remains low. Poorly or incorrectly assimilated scientific information makes people susceptible to anti-scientific ideas, mysticism, and superstitions. But only a “man of culture” can correspond to the modern level of civilization, and here we mean a single culture: both humanitarian and natural science. This explains the introduction of the discipline “Concepts of modern natural science” into the curricula of humanitarian specialties. In the future, we will consider scientific pictures of the world, problems, theories and hypotheses of specific sciences in line with global evolutionism - an idea that permeates modern natural science and is common to the entire material world.
Control questions
1. Subject and tasks of natural science? How and when did it arise? What sciences can be classified as natural science?
2. What “world mysteries” that constitute the subject of research in the natural sciences were discussed by E. Haeckel and E.G. Dubois-Reymond?
3. Explain the expression “two cultures”.
4. What are the similarities and differences between the methods of the humanities and natural sciences?
5. What characterizes the development of natural science in the era of New Time? What period does this era cover?
6. Explain the word “technology”.
7. What is the reason for the negative attitude towards modern science and technology?
8. What are fundamental and applied sciences?
9. What are reductionism and holism in natural science?
Literature
1. Dubnischeva T.Ya. Concepts of modern natural science. - Novosibirsk: YuKEA, 1997. – 834 p.
2. Diaghilev F.M. Concepts of modern natural science. – M.: IMPE, 1998.
3. Concepts of modern natural science / Ed. S.I. Samygin. - Rostov n/d: Phoenix, 1999. – 576 p.
4. Lem S. Sum of technologies. – M. Mir, 1968. – 311 p.
5. Volkov G.N. Three faces of culture. - M.: Young Guard, 1986. – 335 p.
Haeckel, Ernst (1834-1919) – German evolutionary biologist, representative of natural scientific materialism, supporter and propagandist of the teachings of Charles Darwin. He proposed the first “family tree” of the living world.
Dubois-Reymond, Emil Heinrich - German physiologist, founder of a scientific school, philosopher. Founder of electrophysiology; established a number of patterns characterizing electrical phenomena in muscles and nerves. Author of the molecular theory of biopotentials, representative of mechanistic materialism and agnosticism.
Hierarchy (<гр. hierarchia < hieros священный + archē власть) - расположение частей или элементов целого в порядке от высшего к низшему.
Holism (<англ. holism <гр. holos -целое) – философское направление, рассматривающее природу как иерархию «целостностей», понимаемых как духовное единство; в современном естествознании – целостный взгляд на природу, стремление к построению единой научной картины мира.
*quoted in accordance with, p.11.
