Ben Burton <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > >FWIW, I would argue that mathematics is not a science -- it does not use > > >the scientific method, there is no hypothesis and experimentation -- it > > >is a more self-contained discipline that, while it seeks to be useful, > > >is not bound to modelling the physical world. > > > > I think of new ways to try and simulate things faster or in a simpler > > way. Then i'll write the simulation and try the ideas and measure its > > performance and accuracy. This applied mathematics is very much like > > a real-world engineering problem with hypothesis and experimentation. > > Hmm, perhaps I didn't express myself properly. Of course, any > discipline can use hypothesis and experimentation, from the arts to > astrology. > > What I mean is: in the physical sciences, hypothesis and experimentation > are fundamental to building "scientific truth". This is because the > basis of science is trying to understand the physical world, formulating > theories that explain what is seen, and then testing and refining these > theories. This is what the "scientific method" is for.
My 8 year-old daughter was learning about "the scientific method" in school and asked me about it. I replied that I'd tell her, but that it's not used by all disciplines. In my experience, it's mostly biologists who start with an hypothesis to test. I certainly don't publish the testing of an hypothesis in my work. -- Peter Galbraith, Ph.D., research scientist <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Ocean and Environmental Science Branch Maurice Lamontagne Institute, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada P.O. Box 1000, Mont-Joli Qc, G5H 3Z4 Canada. 418-775-0852 FAX: 775-0546 6623'rd GNU/Linux user at the Counter - http://counter.li.org/ -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]