The Baconian Method (Cultural Knowledge: History of Science)

THE BACONIAN METHOD (Cultural Knowledge: History of Science)

The Elizabethan philosopher Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626) has been called one of the founders of modern science, based partly on his description of a process sometimes called the Baconian method, one of the first formulations of a modern method of scientific investigation. It was put forward in his 1620 book Novum Organum ("New Method"), a replacement for an outdated system attributed to Aristotle called the Organon. Today the process is described like this:

• Observe and question: Decide what it is you want to understand.
• Research the topic area: See what others have done with this topic.
• Make a hypothesis: "Guess" what the answer might be.
• Test the hypothesis using experiments: Find ways (that can be repeated by others) to see if your "guess" is true.
• Analyze the data gained by experimentation: Follow the data to a result or results.
• Report the conclusions: Let others know what you have done.
• Your conclusions will become the basis for further research by you or others.

Although it's not always this straightforward, the "scientific method" is how we've gathered much of today's understanding of the world.

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