Observation
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
Observation is an activity of an intelligent living being (e.g. human), which senses and assimilates the knowledge of a phenomenon in its framework of previous knowledge and ideas.[1]
Observation is more than the bare act of observing: To perform observation, a being must observe and seek to add to its knowledge.
Observations that come from self-defining instruments are often unreliable ¹. Such observations are hard to reproduce because they may vary even with respect to the same stimuli. Therefore they are not of much use in exact sciences like physics which require instruments which do not define themselves. It is therefore often necessary to use various engineered instruments like: spectrometers, oscilloscopes, cameras, telescopes, interferometers, tape recorders, thermometers etc. and tools like clocks, scale that help in improving the accuracy, quality and utility of the information obtained from an observation.
The accuracy and tremendous success of science is primarily attributed to the accuracy and objectivity (i.e. repeatability) of observation of the reality that science explores.
[change] The role of observation in the scientific method
The scientific method includes the following steps:
- 'observe' a phenomenon,
- 'Hypothesize' an explanation for the phenomenon,
- 'predict' a logical consequence of the guess,
- 'Test' the prediction, and
- 'review' for any mistakes.
Observation plays a role in the first and fourth steps in the above list. Reliance is placed upon the five physical senses: visual perception, hearing, taste, feeling, and olfaction, and upon measurement techniques. Therefore there are always certain limitations in making observations.
