Importance of Studying Nature of Science

Study Notes

Develops scientific literacy and understanding of how technology impacts society.
Increases interest in science and technology.
Helps understand science and technology's distinct nature and limitations.

Science as a Way of Knowing (Scientific Inquiry): Focuses on the knowledge generated by science, including facts, concepts, theories, and laws.
Science as a Way of Doing (Scientific Enterprise): Emphasizes the methods and processes used to generate scientific knowledge.
Science as a Way of Looking (Scientific World View): Examines the characteristics and values of the scientific community and their pursuit of knowledge.

Tentativeness: Scientific knowledge is constantly evolving and subject to change based on new evidence.
Empirical Evidence: Scientific knowledge relies on observations and experiments for validation.
Logic and Imagination: Scientific reasoning relies on logic, while imagination plays a role in formulating hypotheses.
Explains and Predicts: Science aims to understand observations and make predictions about future occurrences.
Objectivity: Scientists strive to base their findings on facts and avoid personal biases.
Non-authoritarian: No individual holds the authority to dictate scientific truth.

Social Activity: Scientific research involves collaborations between individuals, communities, and nations, reflecting diverse viewpoints.
Branches of Science: Numerous scientific disciplines exist with unique areas of focus.
Process Skills: Scientists use a range of skills to investigate and understand the world, including observing, inferring, measuring, classifying, predicting, hypothesizing, investigating, concluding, and communicating.
Methods of Science: Multiple approaches exist to conducting scientific research, and there is no single "scientific method."

Understandable World: Science assumes the universe is comprehensible through systematic study.
Preliminary and Progressive: Scientific discoveries are seen as stepping stones toward deeper understanding.
Scientific Attitudes: Scientists possess attitudes such as curiosity, skepticism, and objectivity.
Durable Knowledge: While science cannot provide absolute proof, it generates valuable and lasting insights through the rigorous testing and acceptance process.
Benefits and Limitations: Science offers significant benefits, but it also has limitations, such as its inability to address moral questions.

Benefits:
- Knowledge Building: Science generates new knowledge that leads to practical applications.
- Satisfying Curiosity: Science provides explanations that satisfy human inquisitiveness.
Limitations:
- Moral Judgments: Science informs our understanding of the world but cannot determine right from wrong or good from bad.