How Biology is Done

I. Introduction
   
     A. Curiosity, etc.
   
     B. THE Scientific Method
   
          1. Observation
   
          2. Experimentation
   
          3. Thought and Synthesis



II. Observation
   
     A. Introduction
   
          1. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson
   
          2. Albert Szent-Gyorgi:
   
               "Discovery consists in seeing what
               everyone else has seen and thinking
               what nobody else has thought."
   
     B. Example: Evolution
   
          1. Charles Darwin
   
          2. Galápagos Islands
   
          3. Darwin's Finches
   
          4. Evolution
   
          5. Natural Selection
   
     C. Example: Serendipity
   
          1. Serendipity
   
               a. Horace Walpole (1717-1797)
   
                    i. Letter to Horace Mann, January 1754
   
          2. Alexander Fleming (1881-1955)
   
               a. Penicillin
   
          3. Some Quotations
   
               "In the field of observation, chance
               favors only the prepared mind."
                                        -- Louis Pasteur
   
               "The seeds of great discoveries are
               constantly floating around us, but
               they only take root in minds well
               prepared to receive them."
                                        -- Joseph Henry
   
III. Experimentation
   
     A. Introduction
   
          1. Question
   
          2. Hypothesis
   
          3. Experiment
   
     B. Example: Drug Development
   
          1. Question
   
               "Does it work in humans?"
   
          2. Hypothesis
   
               "Yes"
   
          3. Experiment
   
               Groups: Experimental & Control
   
               Drugs: Drug & Placebo
   
               Procedure: Blind & Double Blind
   
               Results: Publication
   
IV. Putting It All Together
   
     A. Law
   
          1. "Gravity"; "Evolution"
   
     B. Theory
   
          1. "Relativity"; "Natural Selection"
   
V. Summary

Page obtained from link at URL: http://www.ric.edu/faculty/jmontvilo/109.htm Prepared by Jerome A. Montvilo, Ph.D. for the use of his students. Copyright © by Jerome A. Montvilo. All rights reserved. Please send questions, comments, or suggestions to jmontvilo@ric.edu. Last updated 15 January, 2008