Science

[31] The practical impact of their work has led to the emergence of science policies that seek to influence the scientific enterprise by prioritising the ethical and moral development of commercial products, armaments, health care, public infrastructure, and environmental protection.

[34] In 1834, William Whewell introduced the term scientist in a review of Mary Somerville's book On the Connexion of the Physical Sciences,[35] crediting it to "some ingenious gentleman" (possibly himself).

Rather, scientific thinking emerged gradually over the course of tens of thousands of years,[37][38] taking different forms around the world, and few details are known about the very earliest developments.

[45] Direct evidence for scientific processes becomes clearer with the advent of writing systems in the Bronze Age civilisations of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia (c. 3000–1200 BCE), creating the earliest written records in the history of science.

[13]: 9 The ancient Mesopotamians used knowledge about the properties of various natural chemicals for manufacturing pottery, faience, glass, soap, metals, lime plaster, and waterproofing.

[55] The early Greek philosophers of the Milesian school, which was founded by Thales of Miletus and later continued by his successors Anaximander and Anaximenes, were the first to attempt to explain natural phenomena without relying on the supernatural.

[66] In the 3rd century BCE, Greek astronomer Aristarchus of Samos was the first to propose a heliocentric model of the universe, with the Sun at the centre and all the planets orbiting it.

[67] Aristarchus's model was widely rejected because it was believed to violate the laws of physics,[67] while Ptolemy's Almagest, which contains a geocentric description of the Solar System, was accepted through the early Renaissance instead.

At the start of the Renaissance, Roger Bacon, Vitello, and John Peckham each built up a scholastic ontology upon a causal chain beginning with sensation, perception, and finally apperception of the individual and universal forms of Aristotle.

This was based on a theorem that the orbital periods of the planets are longer as their orbs are farther from the centre of motion, which he found not to agree with Ptolemy's model.

Bacon emphasised the importance of experiment over contemplation, questioned the Aristotelian concepts of formal and final cause, promoted the idea that science should study the laws of nature and the improvement of all human life.

[96] At the start of the Age of Enlightenment, Isaac Newton formed the foundation of classical mechanics by his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, greatly influencing future physicists.

Leibniz assumed that different types of things all work according to the same general laws of nature, with no special formal or final causes.

[98] During this time the declared purpose and value of science became producing wealth and inventions that would improve human lives, in the materialistic sense of having more food, clothing, and other things.

[101] Enlightenment philosophers turned to a few of their scientific predecessors – Galileo, Kepler, Boyle, and Newton principally – as the guides to every physical and social field of the day.

[102][103] The 18th century saw significant advancements in the practice of medicine[104] and physics;[105] the development of biological taxonomy by Carl Linnaeus;[106] a new understanding of magnetism and electricity;[107] and the maturation of chemistry as a discipline.

[113] During the mid-19th century Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace independently proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection in 1858, which explained how different plants and animals originated and evolved.

[114] Separately, Gregor Mendel presented his paper, "Experiments on Plant Hybridisation" in 1865,[115] which outlined the principles of biological inheritance, serving as the basis for modern genetics.

[b] The electromagnetic theory was established in the 19th century by the works of Hans Christian Ørsted, André-Marie Ampère, Michael Faraday, James Clerk Maxwell, Oliver Heaviside, and Heinrich Hertz.

[131] The discovery of the cosmic microwave background in 1964[132] led to a rejection of the steady-state model of the universe in favour of the Big Bang theory of Georges Lemaître.

[135][136] Widespread use of integrated circuits in the last quarter of the 20th century combined with communications satellites led to a revolution in information technology and the rise of the global internet and mobile computing, including smartphones.

The need for mass systematisation of long, intertwined causal chains and large amounts of data led to the rise of the fields of systems theory and computer-assisted scientific modelling.

[147] Systematic data collection, including discovery science, succeeded natural history, which emerged in the 16th century by describing and classifying plants, animals, minerals, and other biotic beings.

[162] Applied science is the use of the scientific method and knowledge to attain practical goals and includes a broad range of disciplines such as engineering and medicine.

The term "scientific misconduct" refers to situations such as where researchers have intentionally misrepresented their published data or have purposely given credit for a discovery to the wrong person.

[202][201] Empiricism has stood in contrast to rationalism, the position originally associated with Descartes, which holds that knowledge is created by the human intellect, not by observation.

By having peer review, through discussion and debate within journals and conferences, scientists maintain the quality of research methodology and objectivity when interpreting results.

[214][215] Scientists may exhibit a strong curiosity about reality and a desire to apply scientific knowledge for the benefit of public health, nations, the environment, or industries; other motivations include recognition by peers and prestige.

[citation needed] In modern times, many scientists study within specific areas of science in academic institutions, often obtaining advanced degrees in the process.

Their activities typically include holding regular conferences for the presentation and discussion of new research results and publishing or sponsoring academic journals in their discipline.