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Observatio N Beyond Our Eyes: Observations Science

Scientific observations can be made directly with our senses or indirectly through tools. Direct observations involve seeing, feeling, hearing, or smelling, while indirect observations rely on tools like thermometers, microscopes, and satellites. Whether direct or indirect, all observations yield data that scientists analyze to test ideas and develop theories. Analysis of data often involves organizing it visually or quantitatively to identify patterns that support or refute scientific explanations. Observation is essential to science but does not on its own reveal how things work; building scientific knowledge requires developing hypotheses, testing them, and refining explanations based on new observations and ideas.

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29 views4 pages

Observatio N Beyond Our Eyes: Observations Science

Scientific observations can be made directly with our senses or indirectly through tools. Direct observations involve seeing, feeling, hearing, or smelling, while indirect observations rely on tools like thermometers, microscopes, and satellites. Whether direct or indirect, all observations yield data that scientists analyze to test ideas and develop theories. Analysis of data often involves organizing it visually or quantitatively to identify patterns that support or refute scientific explanations. Observation is essential to science but does not on its own reveal how things work; building scientific knowledge requires developing hypotheses, testing them, and refining explanations based on new observations and ideas.

Uploaded by

VLad2385
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Observatio

n beyond
our eyes

We typically think of observations as having been seen "with our own eyes," but in science,
observations can take many forms. Of course, we can make observations directly by
seeing, feeling, hearing, and smelling, but we can also extend and refine our basic senses
with tools: thermometers, microscopes, telescopes, radar, radiation sensors, X-ray
crystallography, mass spectroscopy, etc. And these tools do a better job of observing than
we can! Further, humans cannot directly sense many of the phenomena that science
investigates (no amount of staring at this computer screen will ever let you see the atoms
that make it up or the UV radiation that it emits), and in such cases, we must rely on
indirect observations facilitated by tools. Through these tools, we can make many more
observations much more precisely than those our basic senses are equipped to handle.
Observations yield what scientists call data. Whether the observation is
anexperimental result, radiation measurements taken from an orbiting satellite, an infrared
recording of a volcanic eruption, or just noticing that a certain bird species always thumps
the ground with its foot while foraging they're all data. Scientists analyze and interpret
data in order to figure out how those data inform their hypotheses and theories. Do they
support one idea over others, help refute an idea, or suggest an entirely new explanation?
Though data may seem complex and be represented by detailed graphs or complex
statistical analyses, it's important to remember that, at the most basic level, they are
simply observations.
Observations inspire, lend support to, and help refute scientific hypotheses and theories.
However, theories and hypotheses (the fundamental structures of scientific knowledge)
cannot be directly read off of nature. A falling ball (no matter how detailed our observations
of it may be) does not directly tell us how gravity works, and collecting observations of all
the different finch species of the Galapagos Islands does not directly tell us how their beaks
evolved. Scientific knowledge is built as people come up with hypotheses and theories,
repeatedlytest them against observations of the natural world, and continue to refine those
explanations based on new ideas and observations. Observation is essential to the process
of science, but it is only half the picture.
Scientists observe, explore, discover, and communicate with one another.
The process of science involves observation, exploration, testing, communication, and application.
Scientific observations can be made directly with our own senses or may be made indirectly through the
use of tools.
Scientists look for patterns in what they observe. (P1, P4, P5, NOS2)
Scientists look for patterns in their observations and data. (P4, P5)
Raw data must be analyzed and interpreted before we can tell whether a scientific idea is likely to be accurate or
inaccurate. (P4, P5)
Raw data must be analyzed and interpreted before we can tell whether a scientific idea is likely to be accurate or
inaccurate. (P4, P5)
Analysis of data usually involves putting data into a more easily accessible format (visualization, tabulation, or
quantification of qualitative data). (P4, P5)
Raw data must be analyzed and interpreted before we can tell whether a scientific idea is likely to be accurate or
inaccurate.
Analysis of data usually involves putting data into a more easily accessible format (visualization, tabulation, or
quantification of qualitative data).

MISCONCEPTION: Scientists' observations directly tell them how things


work (i.e., knowledge is "read off" nature, not built).
CORRECTION: Because science relies on observation and because the process of
science is unfamiliar to many, it may seem as though scientists build knowledge
directly through observation. Observation is critical in science, but scientists often
make inferences about what those observations mean. Observations are part of a
complex process that involves coming up with ideas about how the natural world
works and seeing if observations back those explanations up. Learning about the
inner workings of the natural world is less like reading a book and more like writing
a non-fiction book trying out different ideas, rephrasing, running drafts by other
people, and modifying text in order to present the clearest and most accurate
explanations for what we observe in the natural world. To learn more about how
scientific knowledge is built, visit our section How science works.

Observation: In everyday language, the word observation generally means


something that we've seen with our own eyes. In science, the term is used more
broadly. Scientific observations can be made directly with our own senses or may be
made indirectly through the use of tools like thermometers, pH test kits, Geiger
counters, etc. We can't actually seebeta particles, but we can observe them using a
Geiger counter. To learn more about the role of observation in science,
visit Observation beyond our eyes in our section on how science works.

Fact Statement that is known to be true through direct observation. Since scientific ideas
are inherently tentative, the term fact is more meaningful in everyday language than in the
language of science.
Data Information gleaned from observations usually observations that are made in a
standardized way. The term data generally refers to raw data information that has not
yet been analyzed. Data (multiple pieces of information) is the plural form of datum (a
single piece of information).

Question what you observe. How does bleach lighten your clothes? How do bees
find their way back to the hive? What causes the phases of the moon?

Accin de observar o mirar algo o a alguien con mucha atencin y


detenimiento para adquirir algn conocimiento sobre su comportamiento o
sus caractersticas.

Qu es la observacin?
La siguiente etapa del mtodo cientfico es la observacin. Observar cientficamente
no equivale a percibir algo con los ojos o mirar detenidamente. Es algo ms. La
observacin cientfica difiere de la observacin espontnea en que: 1) sirve a un objetivo de
investigacin; 2) es planificada sistemticamente 3) es controlada y relacionada con
proposiciones ms generales (en vez de ser presentada como una serie de curiosidades); y
4) est sujeta a comprobaciones de validez y fiabilidad (debe ser replicable).
La observacin cientfica registra los fenmenos tal y como se presentan, pero esto
no significa que el observador sea un simple espectador. El investigador debe disear una
estrategia para descubrir un aspecto profundo del objeto que est estudiando. Por eso debe
organizar su estrategia en cinco fases: Primero, tiene que identificar un problema. Segundo,
debe formular una hiptesis sobre el problema. Tercero, con la hiptesis formulada, debe
hacer el levantamiento y registro de datos. Cuatro, debe realizar un anlisis de lo observado
y, finalmente, comunicar los resultados.
Durante el proceso de observacin es importante no alterar los resultados obtenidos
con prejuicios o ideas previas que pongan en riesgo la validez de las observaciones. Para
hacer un registro fidedigno de la realidad, se puede hace uso de un gran nmero de
instrumentos como microscopios, cmara fotogrficas, termmetros, aceleradores de
partculas, rayos x, etc. Estas herramientas permiten ampliar el alcance de los sentidos y

realizar un registro ms fidedigno del objeto estudiado. En conjunto, estos requisitos


permiten al investigador indagar sobre las caractersticas o comportamientos de los
fenmenos del mundo.

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