Science Defined

Science is a way to understand the laws of the world using experimentation, data, and precision. Scientist conduct experiments for the purpose of answering a question. When the experiment is done the question may not be fully answered but it leads to other discoveries and questions for things that couldn't be defined before.  From http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/1122science2.html there are reasons for science that help us understand what it is and why we do it.

"Societies support science because of simple curiosity and because of the satisfaction and enlightenment that come from knowledge of the world around us. Few of us will ever derive any economic benefit from knowing that the starlight we see in a clear night sky left those stars thousands and even millions of years ago, so that we observe such light as messengers of a very distant past. However, the awe, perspective, and perhaps even serenity derived from that knowledge is very valuable to many of us. Likewise, few of us will derive greater physical well-being from watching a flowing stream and from reflecting on the hydrologic cycle through which that stream's water has passed, from the distant ocean to the floating clouds of our skies to the rains and storms upstream and now to the river channel at which we stand. However, the sense of interconnectedness that comes from such knowledge enriches our understanding of our world, and of our lives, in a very valuable way. In recognizing that the light of the sun and the water of a well are not here solely because we profit from their presence, we additionally gain an analogy from which we can recognize that the people in the world around us are not here solely to conform to our wishes and needs. When intangible benefits like these are combined with the more tangible ones outlined above, it's no wonder that most modern societies support scientific research for the improvement of our understanding of the world around us."

In our Integrated Earth and Science Class we conducted an experiment where we flew airplanes to see which type of airplane went the farthest. This experiment was clearly science because it focused on something we would like to know about the world which was what type of airplane was more aerodynamic. We tested using measureable data which was how far it went. Thorough the experiment we satified curiousity and discovered something new about our world. And that is what science is.