4 SCIENCE 



The ultimate outcome of science would be a set of explanatory expres- 

 sions or theories which would very nearly coincide with the "natural 

 laws" that govern the universe. Once such a set of explanations is 

 formulated, it will be easy to predict the results of any set of circum- 

 stances and then to solve any human problems. Of course, this ideal 

 need not be anticipated in the next few years. 



What is research? 



This term, which can be applied to any careful study or search for 

 knowledge, is frequently used to indicate careful Hbrary study to learn 

 what others have thought and known before. There is a certain amount 

 of this type of study in science because progress is a matter of building 

 on what has been learned earlier. Usually, however, the scientist uses 

 "research" in a slightly different way. To him, research is seeking for 

 what was previously unknown. It involves an organized program of 

 observation and study, resulting in new knowledge. A piece of scientific 

 research may be conducted in a laboratory or "in the field" by one per- 

 son or by a group or "team." It may be motivated by pure curiosity or 

 by a human problem that needs a solution. In the text to follow, "re- 

 search" is used almost entirely in this latter sense as a program designed 

 to add to our knowledge facts that were not known before. 



What is a scientist? 



If any one attribute could characterize a scientist, it would be his 

 curiosity. I suspect that all of us have curiosity, but often it is lost 

 somewhere in the process of growing up. A non-scientist may be con- 

 tent to notice an unusual event; the scientist is likely to follow through 

 by asking, "How (or why) did this happen?" 



Scientists, to be sure, have other attributes, such as reasonable intel- 

 ligence, extensive training, the ability to organize ideas and information, 

 an interest in the natural material world, and a little persistence. Fortu- 

 nately for most of us, a scientist does not have to be a genius. 



The personal philosophies of scientists are as individual as the scien- 

 tists themselves. Each must find his own answers to a number of very 

 serious questions. Science is supposed to be completely separated from 

 morals and value judgments. But does this dichotomy mean that scien- 



