Organization and planning of scientific research Lectures 2 -3

Science The science is the sphere of human activity in which knowledge of reality (the nature, society, thinking) allowing proofs and empirical check is systematized and generalized. It is the whole diverse world of human knowledge which allows the person to transform the nature, and to adapt it for satisfaction of the escalating material and spiritual needs. It is the difficult system of research activity directed on production of new knowledge. It is the social institute organizing efforts of hundred thousand scientists and researchers, giving the knowledge, experience, creative energy to comprehension of laws of the nature, society and the person.

What are the specific characteristics of science? 1.The science is UNIVERSAL it means that it reports knowledge, true for all universum under those conditions under which they are got by the person. 2. The science is FRAGMENTARY it means that studies not life as a whole, and various fragments of reality or its parameters, and itself shares on separate disciplines.. Each science is a certain projection to the world, as shown a highlighting areas, of interest to scientists at present. 3. The science has GENEREL VALUE it means that knowledge received by it is suitable for all people, and its language unambiguous as the science seeks to fix as much as possible accurately the terms that promotes association of the people living in the most different corners of a planet.

What are the specific characteristics of science? 4. The science doesn't depend on a certain person it means that not specific features of the scientist, not his nationality or the place of residence aren't defining for the end results of scientific knowledge. 5. The science is SYSTEMATIC it means that it has a certain structure, instead of is an incoherent set of parts. 6. The science represents incomplete process it means that the scientific knowledge infinitely grows, however it can't reach absolute truth after which there will be already nothing to investigate. 7. The science keeps continuity it means that new knowledge definitely and by certain rules corresponds to old knowledge.

What are the specific characteristics of science? 8. The science is subject to criticism it means that is always ready to call into question and to reconsider the even the most fundamental results. 9. The science is RELIABLE it means that its conclusions demand, allow and check by the defined rules formulated in it. 10. The science doesn't depend on morals it means that scientific truth is neutral in the moral and ethic, but moral estimates promote receiving knowledge (ethics of the scientist demand from it intellectual honesty and courage in the course of truth search), or lead to activity improvement on its application.

What are the specific characteristics of science? 11.The science is RATIONAL it means that receives knowledge on the basis of rational procedures and laws of logic and reaches a formulation of theories and their provisions which are beyond empirical level. 12. The science is SENSUAL it means that its results demand empirical check with perception use, and only after that admit reliable. Besides, for science the special methods and structure of researches, language, the equipment are characteristic. Specifics of scientific research and value of science also is defined by all pointed above.

Fundamental (Basic) and Applied researches Modern science difficult and diverse system of separate scientific disciplines. The scientists studying development of science, total them some thousands which can be united in two following spheres: Fundamental (Basic) and Applied sciences. Basic sciences have the purpose to study (to get knowledge about ) the laws of the world regardless of interests and needs of the person. Applied sciences are aimed at development of methods of application of the knowledge of objective laws of the world received by fundamental (basic) science for satisfaction of requirements and interests of people.

Science Each science is characterized by own features of knowledge activity. Sciences differ with knowledge subject, means and knowledge methods, forms of result of the knowledge, those systems of values, ideals, methodological installations, styles of thinking which function in this science and define the relation of scientists and to knowledge process, and to a welfare background of science. Depending on an object of research distinguish natural, technical and the humanities. In the historical development there are processes of differentiation and integration of the scientific directions and disciplines.

Methodology and Specifics of scientific knowledge in environmental science The important role in scientific knowledge is played by a scientific method. For understanding - what is a scientific method, we will consider that such a method in general. In general, the method is a way of the organization of tools (resources, receptions, operations and other) theoretical and practical activities. Any reasonable action submits to particular regulatory principles on which option the result of activity significantly depends. The method optimizes activity of human (person), give him the most rational ways of the activity organization. The concept of method is closely connect with concept of methodology.

The methodology The methodology is a science about regularities of the activity method, about an origin submits, essence (to substance) of methods, their effectiveness. The methodology is aimed to develop the principles of creation of the most perfect methods in each form of activity.

Scientific knowledge The scientific knowledge is a special form of human activity. As each activity, knowledge also leans on a particular set of means of activity, learning tools. The scientific method is a way of the organization of learning tools (apparatuses, tools, receptions, object and theoretical and operations other) for achievement of scientific truth, system of the regulatory principles of cognitive activity. The scientific method rationalizes and optimizes scientific knowledge.

F. Bacon The founder of methodology of natural sciences of the XVII century F. Bacon spoke: " A scientific method remind a lamp which shines the road to the traveller in the dark". Explaining value of a scientific method F. Bacon liked to give one more aphorism: even lame, going on the road, advances the one who runs without the road. Francis Bacon. On January 22, 1561 on April 9, 1626 the English philosopher, the historian, the politician, the founder of empiricism. In 1584 at the age of 23 years it was chosen in parliament.

Scientific method Only the sure method can lead to receiving the true knowledge, an original picture of a cognizable subject. The scientific method acts as a form of knowledge as well as practice. The method unites the theory and practice as accumulates the historical experience of knowledge of the world generalized by practice. Such experience also allows a method to direct knowledge process, creation of scientific theories.

Empirical methods Usually methods subdivide on empirical and theoretical according to two ground levels of scientific knowledge. Empirical methods include: supervision – targeted perception of the phenomena of an objective reality; description - fixing by means of natural or artificial language of data (information) on objects; measurement - comparison of objects on any similar properties or the parties; experiment - supervision in expressly created and/or controlled conditions that allows to restore a phenomenon at repetition of conditions.

Theoretical methods Theoretical methods include: formalization – creation of the abstract and mathematical models opening substance of studied processes of a real; axiomatization – creation of theories on the basis of axioms – the statements which proofs of a truth it is not required; hypothetico-deductive method – creation of system of the hypotheses deductive and connected among themselves from which statements about the empirical facts are output.

The differentiation on methods, according to their applicability In a different way divisions there will be differentiation on methods, according to their applicability: the general (universal) - applied not only in science, but also in other branches of human activity; the general scientific – sciences applied in all areas; the special scientific – the methods specific to separate divisions of science.

General (universal) methods Among general (universal) it is possible to allocate such methods, as: analysis – a partition of complete object on constituents (the parties, signs, properties or the relations) for the purpose of their comprehensive study; synthesis – connection of earlier allocated parts of object in a whole; abstraction – derivation from a number of nonexistent properties for this research and the relations of the studied phenomenon with simultaneous selection of properties interesting us and the relations; generalization – reception of thinking as a result of which common properties and signs of objects are established;

General (universal) methods induction – a research technique and a way of a reasoning in which the common conclusion is under construction on the basis of private parcels; deduction – a way of a reasoning by means of which of common parcels with need the conclusion of private character follows; analogy – reception of knowledge at which on the basis of similarity of objects in one signs conclude about their similarity and in other signs; model operation – studying of object (original) by creation and research of its copy (model) replacing the original from the particular parties, interesting the researcher; classification – division of all studied objects into separate groups according to any important sign for the researcher (it is especially often used for the description of a variety of properties and forms in biology, geology, geography, etc.).

General scientific method The great value in the modern science was got by methods of the mathematical statistics, allowing to define the mean values characterizing all set of studied subjects. They can be carried to the general scientific methods. Do you know any type of general scientific methods? (field researches ….)

Special scientific methods In modern period special scientific methods in connection with deep integrative processes in science are in particular area of interdisciplinary sciences. For example, methods of a X-ray diffraction analysis are used in physics, chemistry, biology, ecology and etc. Methods of a spectroscopic analysis are widely applied in biology, medicine, chemistry, ecology, etc. Today methods of cultivation in vivo and in vitro actively use in various biotechnological laboratories. In biological sciences and ecological researches many scientific methods of knowledge are applied: supervision, experiment, induction, deduction, analysis, synthesis, formalization, measurement, comparison, model operation, hypothetic-deductive method, method of a mathematical hypothesis, mapping, genetic method, etc.

The structure of natural - scientific knowledge In structure of natural - scientific biological knowledge and ecology are allocated two levels of cognitive activity empirical and theoretical, each of them is characterized by the singular forms of the organization of scientific knowledge and its methods. It is historically proved that in the most common form structure natural - scientific knowledge is as follows:

The structure of natural - scientific knowledge THE EMPIRICAL FACT THE SCIENTIFIC FACT SUPERVISION ACTUAL EXPERIMENT MODEL EXPERIMENT THE IMAGINARY EXPERIMENT FIXING OF RESULTS OF EMPIRICAL LEVEL OF RESEARCHES EMPIRICAL GENERALIZATION USE OF AVAILABLE THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE THE IMAGE THE HYPOTHESIS FORMULATION ITS CHECK ON EXPERIENCE THE FORMULATION OF NEW CONCEPTS INTRODUCTION OF TERMS AND SIGNS, DETERMINATION OF THEIR VALUES LAW DEDUCTION THEORY CREATION ITS CHECK ON EXPERIENCE APPLICATION IN CASE OF NEED ADDITIONAL HYPOTHESES

Homework task Please, apply the structure of natural -scientific knowledge mentioned above to a particular example from area of science studied by you, your scientific direction, characteristic own researches…