The purpose of science is to generate objective, valid and reliable knowledge, both to increase the knowledge of the human species and to apply them for the welfare and development of the species.
Traditionally, it has been accepted that the primary purpose of science has been the construction of knowledge and understanding, regardless of its possible applications.
When we take the floor science , which comes from the Latin"scientia"and means"knowledge", by analogy it can be said that wondering what the purpose of science is the same as asking: what is the purpose of knowledge?.
On the basis of this analogy, the question becomes less abstract and therefore a little easier to answer.
Interpretations of the purpose of science
If we consider that there are infinite criteria or ideas about the concept or definition of what science is, so it is with the answer to the question of the purpose or objective of science.
Many interpretations have been given in this respect, although they are different from each other, yet none of them are no longer valid.
Karl Pearson
The prominent British scientist, mathematician and thinker Karl Pearson (1857-1936), recognized for introducing mathematical statistics as a scientific discipline, in his book Grammar of Science ("Grammar of Science", 1892) states that"the aim of science is no less than the complete interpretation of the Universe."
It also states in this paper that,"the purpose of science is not to explain the facts, but only to classify and describe them."
L.W.H Hull
For the academic L.W.H Hull , historian and recognized expert in philosophy of science, in his essay entitled History and Philosophy of Science (" History and Philosophy of Science , An Introduction", 1959), the purpose of science is to show us the connection between phenomena that astonish or even terrify the human being, with others who, being accustomed to them, do not produce surprise or fear.
In his essay he explains that the purpose of science is to see regular patterns and similarities in which at first it seemed that only incomprehensible things or phenomena existed.
He also states that the purpose of science may be to teach us that seemingly different events are actually of the same type, although it is never their intention to give us a final or definitive explanation of anything.
Science can aim to make our interpretations of the world more understandable and accurate, or help us control events by teaching us the dependence and interrelation of one another.
Mario Bunge
Other authors, such as the Argentine physicist, philosopher, epistemologist and humanist Mario Bunge (1919-), in his book" Science, its method and its philosophy "(1960) gives an explanation of the purpose or purpose of science in terms of the classification it makes of it.
According to him, there are two main categories of"science": pure and applied factual science.
Pure science is one whose main purpose is to perfect the knowledge that humanity has about the facts.
Describes and analyzes the processes and phenomena of the world with the aim of increasing knowledge. An example of this is the biology .
On the other hand, applied or formal science has a very practical purpose, for example, the economy .
Its purpose is to develop knowledge bases and procedures to enable the procurement of the most desirable objects and services of life.
References
- Undsci.berkeley.edu. (without date). Translation of excerpts from the article"What is science? - Science aims to explain and understand". Retrieved from undsci.berkeley.edu.
- Pearson, K. (1857-1936) (Taken from the book"Grammar of Science", 1892). Translated from the article by Varadaraja V. Raman, (June 6, 2008)"The Goal of Science". Retrieved from metanexus.net.
- Ecured.cu. (without date). Karl Pearson, article. Retrieved from ecured.cu .
- Hull, L.. " History and Philosophy of Science , An Introduction", (1959 ). Extract from the article by Hernadez, L. (December 9, 2011)"Does science explain the ultimate reason for things?" Recovered from scienceonline.com .
- Bunge, M.. Taken from extracts from the book"Science its method and its philosophy"(1960). Recovered from unsj.edu.ar.
- Bunge, M. Taken from the chapter"What is science?"Of the book"Science, its method and its philosophy", (PP 6-23).