Science for kids! Let's do science the easy way! - What is science? Part 1

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Have you ever wondered why and how things happen? Do you dream of becoming a scientist one day to explore the unknown world of phenomena? Well, you are not the first person to want that. 

Did you know?

Modern science has been practiced for nearly 250 years.  In the beginning no one had any idea of how things worked, and it was because of the natural curiosity of the human mind, that people started exploring because they want a solution for everything. 

What is science?

The word science, means knowledge in Latin.  A scientist is someone who explores different options behind most in-explainable things, and scientists, find out how it works, and where it came from. Science is a way of collecting knowledge that is used to explain natural phenomena, and is usually confirmed by previously known facts. Scientists uncover new pieces of knowledge by observations and testing whether the information is true and correct or if it is false. 

All scientific research is backed up by proof. Much of science comes from practical problems that needs answers. Let's give a little example.

"Why do ice melt?"

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The answer of course, is that a solid changes state when it is exposed to heat. If there were no evidence about the states of water, then this would have been a very weird observation. 

Backing up knowledge

Most of everything that you learn in school today in science, is because it is true and it has been proven as true. Few scientific breakthroughs are the work on one single person, and most scientists build their research on the work of others. When outlining a discovery, scientists usually refer to work of other scientists that has been working on the same theory, or someone that made the research possible. 

Most ideas are based on theories, and there are always scientists waiting to prove or disprove these theories. Because there is such a vast amount of information in today's world, scientists started to specialize in specific fields that is most interesting to them. Most scientists devote their lives to unlock the secrets of that specific subject. 

How do we apply science?

We are all curious creatures, and scientists help us understand natural phenomena.  Most science today is useful to man, and can be used for practical things. Science is a very powerful tool, and most research today is done to benefit people, just look at engineering and applied science. If the knowledge was not based on the simple findings of previous scientists that discovered or built the simple machines, none of the high technology machines we have today would even work. 

We are all curious by nature. Come with me on this journey to explore the world of science! 

Tomorrow I will write more about the scientific method.  Make sure you don't miss this!