502 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



I. The Methodic Principles of Science. 



In testing the scientific status of any process or method of in- 

 vestigation and solution of problems, theoretical or practical, the 

 following four principles are necessary; and for convenient identifi- 

 cation henceforth in this paper they will be designated collectively as 

 the four methodic principles of science, and severally as the first 

 second, third and fourth methodic principle respectively: — 



i. An incorrect process is one in which the operator deviates 



FROM A requirement OF A CORRECT PROCESS, BELIEVING THAT 

 SUCH DEVIATION IS PROPER. 



Illustration: — ^A student who is required to find the sum of the 

 upper three of the following numbers gets as a result the fourth 

 number: 



851 



353 



424 



1,528 



The correct total is 1,628. The student has obtained his total 

 by omitting to carry 1 from the middle column to its proper denomina- 

 tion in the left column according to the requirement of the process of 

 addition in this case, the sum of the middle column being 12. If 

 this omission is unintentional and due only to an oversight on the 

 part of the student, he has merely made an incidental error in the 

 application of the process of addition. If, however, the omission was 

 intentional and he habitually makes such omissions in the belief that 

 it is not necessary to carry forward such numbers from one column to 

 their proper denomination in the next column, the student has a pro- 

 cess of his own for taking the sum of a series of numbers; and this 

 process, because it deviates from a requirement of the correct 

 process, is incorrect. 



ii. Where an operator deviates from a correct process, the 



RESULT, IF correct, IS NEVERTHELESS UNSCIENTIFIC BECAUSE 

 ACCIDENTALLY OBTAINED. 



Illustration: — In the above problem in addition if the student 

 omitted for any reason, i.e., intentionally or otherwise, to carry 1 

 from the middle column to its proper denomination in the next col- 



