In a previous article we discussed who invented the scientific method. That article acknowledges that the development of the scientific method has actually continued throughout history. Therefore here we are considering ‘who developed the scientific method.’ This process is really a tale of collaboration and evolution rather than being attributable to one specific individual or another. However there are some individuals and cultures that have had a significant hand in the developmental process and we shall look at some of these here.
It is possible to say that it was the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384 – 322 BC) who invented the scientific method, but this in no way tells the whole story. The modern scientific method has come to the fore as the result of the accumulative works of a number of great thinkers throughout history.
Key to Aristotle’s place at the origin of this journey is his encouragement of the ancient Greeks to adopt observation and measurement as a method for learning more about the world around them. However, whilst this element was perhaps the seminal moment for the development of the scientific process, Aristotle’s use of syllogisms lacked the evidential rigor we have come to associate with scientific inquiry today.
It was the explosion of intellectual, artistic and cultural endeavor during the Islamic Golden Age that saw the development of what we can now recognise as a more modern scientific method. Inspired by the Qur’anic injunctions and hadith, the Islamic Golden Age was peppered with intellectual giants who made immense contributions to science. However, of all of these, it is undoubtedly Ibn al-Haytham (965 – 1040 A.D,) often called Alhazan, who developed the scientific method most significantly. Ibn al-Haythem formulated a process for investigating phenomena which closely resembles what we now call the scientific method. Building upon the work of the Greek philosophers, such as Aristotle, and ancient Greek mathematicians, like Euclid, Ibn al Haytham extolled the following method:
-
Record your observations of the world around you
-
Clearly define a problem.
-
Construct a hypothesis that addresses the identified problem.
-
Formulate and execute experiments to test the validity of your hypothesis.
-
Analyze and evaluate the results of your experimentation.
-
From the data gathered, derive a conclusion.
-
Publish your conclusion.
In essence this is very close to the modern scientific method. However subsequent thinkers further enhanced it.
Whilst the Islamic world was developing a growing understanding of the natural world, Western Europe was languishing in the so called dark ages. However, following the Mongol siege of Baghdad in 1258 AD, which effectively ended the rule of the Caliphates, Islamic scientific development slowed considerably.
Contemporaneously in England another religious scholar Roger Bacon (1214 – 1284) was working on “inductive reasoning.” Bacon was well aware of the work of Aristotle, Euclid, Ibr al-Hatham and others. Based upon their work Bacon developed ideas concerning probability that still inform experimental methodology today.
At the dawn of the Enlightenment, Bacon’s namesake Frances Bacon (1561-1626) continued to work on the theory of inductive reasoning. In Particular Frances Bacon was instrumental in developing the concept of cause and effect. Meanwhile Bacons French counterpart, philosopher Rene Descartes (1596 – 1650,) was further developing the concept of deductive reasoning, leading to an ideological clash between the two schools of empiricism and rationalism.
However it was Isaac Newton (1642 – 1727) who brought both inductive and deductive reasoning together, within what is now widely accepted as the modern scientific method.
Subsequent scholars have continued to add more to the methodology. Indeed many different scientific disciplines have slightly adapted the scientific method to best suit there own spheres of interest. Similarly, in more modern times, technological advances in computing have impacted upon methodology. In particular research using cloud computing and the aptly named “big data” have brought further adaptations.
So it is possible to see that, rather than any one individual, it was the evolution of reason and the accumulation of knowledge, across numerous cultures and civilisations around the world, which developed the scientific method.
Please consider supporting my work. I really need your help if I am going to continue to provide the research and analysis that you value on a full-time basis. You can support my work for less than the price of a cup of coffee via my donor page or alternative become a paid subscriber to my Substack.
I extend my gratitude to my editor, who has provided invaluable contributions to my articles since October 2021 (but who, for personal reasons, prefers to remain anonymous).
Please feel free to share anything from iaindavis[.]com excluding any and all third party content. I use a Creative Commons License. All I ask is that you give credit to the author and clearly mark any changes you make. Please share my work widely. Censorship is increasing and we need to get this information out there. If you value what I do then please consider supporting my work. Many thanks.
Be the first to comment on "Who Developed The Scientific Method?"