What is Science?

Posted on 03/09/2006 by peggy
I thought it would be useful to start a Chief Scientist blog. Although I am writing this, you will see that I will have help from others here at GLOBE and also from students who read it. To start, I’ll write for a few days about what science is.    

Bill Bryson, starts his book “A Short History of Nearly Everything” by describing why he got turned on and then off by science. In the beginning, he was awed by the cover of a textbook that showed the layers of the Earth. He even took the book home and started reading it before supper. But quickly he lost interest, because the book talked about a lot of facts and never answered what he really wanted to know… “How did they find out about that stuff?” He had just described what science is.

Without knowing how scientists find out about nature is like reading a murder mystery and immediately knowing who did it, without the fun plot twists and turns – and suspense – as clues are revealed to the reader. Being a scientist is like being a detective except with far less danger of being shot.

And the other big difference is that the detective knows the mystery that needs to be solved. The scientist doesn’t. Next I’ll talk more about how scientists actually do science.

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6 Responses to What is Science?

  1. detlef_kaack says:
    03/25/2006 at

    Dear Peggy, I am happy to see that you and GLOBE are using the new blog technology. One step into future.
    Is there a RSS feed as well?
    Best greetings from Germany, Detlef Kaack (Hamburg)

  2. wordpressadmin says:
    03/25/2006 at

    There is an RSS feed available at:
    http://www.globe.gov/fsl/wordpress/?feed=rss

    This is also syndicated on livejournal.com as “GLOBEscience”.

    We would prefer if people come directly to the blog, however. We’d like to start student discussions in the comments if we can!

    Thanks!
    Ali, GLOBE Systems

  3. Maria Lorraine de Ruiz-Alma says:
    03/26/2006 at

    This is such a great idea! It will be a great plus for the GLOBE community.

  4. Peggy LeMone says:
    04/03/2006 at

    Hi Detlef,

    Thanks for the encouraging words. I am having fun doing this, and look forward to starting some discussion. We started slowly and quietly (i.e., no official announcement yet) to allow me to get used to the software. We should announce this soon.

    Best regards,

    Peggy

  5. Leslie NJUME says:
    04/09/2006 at

    Such wonderful step forward in itself is science and thus we can define science as the use of local ideas for great discoveries and global implementation. GLOBE in cameroon is faring well and as Leader of GLOBE in the university of Buea in Cameroon, I dare to say the moving train has just touched the first trigger. If there is any way to enhance and implement this global endeavour at our own local level with the highest impact then we are ready and waiting for a push from you and the entire coordinating office.

    With warmth from cameroon, Chaoo to the GLOBE community.

  6. peggy says:
    05/08/2006 at

    Very nice to hear from you, and am glad to hear that you are faring well in Camaroon. You will see from the newest post that my summer in Senegal is mentioned. (I fell in love with Africa then — it was a wonderful summer, if very busy).

    As for the GLOBE Office we are looking forward to having some new science groups to work with this summer — since they are selected by competition, we don’t know who they are yet. We will all learn much about this at the Annual meeting.

    Best regards,

    Peggy