PWS 614

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PWS 614 Principals of Science Biological
Science Prof. Johan U. Grobbelaar What is
knowledge? Knowledge is the culmination of
thousands of years of human determination to
comprehend the world in which we live. We
observe the collective effort of every man and
women who ever confronted nature and wondered how
it worked, whenever we watch e.g. the space
shuttle ascend or DNA unravelled we see this
joint effort. What is Science? Science is not
a thing conducted by white coat nerds, it is
not a recent development and it is by no means
limited to scientists. Science is the systematic
describing and often also explaining how and
why events happen.
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What is a HYPOTHESIS? When a pattern is observed
in the environment a hypothesis can be
formulated If I do A, then B could result.
The hypothesis could be revised based on
experiments. This is the method used by children
to explore and learn Throughout our lives we use
this method of inferring and making
decisions. But, the more scientific the process,
the more rational will our decisions be!
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• So we have The Scientific Method, what is it?
• broad accepted set of rules used for
  ascertaining a claim about nature.
• So we define Science as
• Forming an idea of the way in which something
  works.
• Making careful measurements, experiments or
  observations to test the hypothesis.
• If evidence keeps agreeing, the hypothesis
  becomes more believable (proven).
• Refinement of the hypothesis leads to the
  development of a theory.
• A theory is a hypothesis (or hypotheses) that
  has(ve) stood the test of time.
• A law is a fact, such as Newtons 2nd law of
  motion, or Boyles law of gasses, or Mendels law
  of heredity. They always continue to fit the
  evidence.

(in everyday life when we say something is only
a theory, it means it is unproved, in science it
is the opposite)
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Why continue? Why become a scientist? Because
science is the most rigorous and self-sceptical
of all human institutions. No claim, theory or
law is regarded as irrevocable or ultimately
true. Science never progresses to
TRUTHS. Science is a continuous, ongoing process
in which each generation of researchers improve
upon the previous insights. Science is an
unending journey to understand how things work!
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• The human endeavour
• 2 million years, man developed wood and stone
  tools
• this culminated in the hunter-gatherers
• 8000 B.C. humans started planting and raising
  crops, also managing wild animals, which they
  bred into domesticated strains
• 6000 B.C. new strains were bred especially of
  barley and wheat
• this led to food security and modern man emerged.
• In the classical era (600 B.C. 500 A.D.) the
  understanding was that the objects and actions of
  nature worked according to certain fundamental,
  orderly and systematic principals.
• This entailed the elements, visions of the
  planet, cosmic spheres, logic and geometry, time,
  power, life and health.
• The Middle Ages (500 1500 A.D.) saw significant
  contributions to mathematics (abacus), medicine
  (especially anatomy), time machines and the
  science of war.

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• The revolution (1500 1650) saw religion in
  conflict with science, but the spirit of
  discovery could not be subdued. Authority was
  questioned and the skies and heavens became the
  focus. Antoni van Leeuwenhoek discovered the
  small word. The rules of motion, magnetism and
  anatomy were studied.
• The age of Newton (1650 1700) saw the first
  laws
• of science being laid down.
• The 18th century is known as the age of reason
  and it was believed that by understanding the
  Earth and heavens could uncover the rules that
  govern the cosmos. Electricity, flight and even
  categorising creatures were part of the
  unravelling of nature.
• The 19th century marked the beginning of modern
  science, physics, mathematics, life-sciences,
  medicine, etc. In biology the 19th century
  marked a particular turning point, i.e. each
  creature is not permanent placed in an unchanging
  hierarchy, but that creatures can progress
  words of Charles Darwin.

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• Where are we now?
• Concepts of relativity
• Rigid chemistry
• Fission and the bomb
• The chip and computers
• Light
• Space exploration
• The mind
• Radioactivity
• Disease and microbes
• Cracking the genetic code
• Rewriting the cellular script
• Neurology

• What the future holds?
• Understanding the solar system
• Tracking cellular processes down to the motion of
  individual electrons
• GM
• Process of aging
• Functioning of the brain
• Conditions of matter
• Complex interactions of land, oceans and the
  atmosphere
• Only a fraction of chemical combinations have
  been studied

The challenges are as many as ever and there is
no end to solving them. Scientists will always
be in demand!
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Why Conduct Research? Any research, if correctly
designed and undertaken, will build knowledge
because it represents an objective investigation
of facts about a certain subject. Whereas basic
or pure research attempts to expand the limits of
knowledge, applied research attempts to find the
solution to a specific problem. Werner von Braun
said If I know what I am doing it is applied
research, if I do not know what I am doing, it is
basic research. In doing research consider that
there are many different kinds, i.e. single or
multidisciplinary, quantitative versus
qualitative research, basic or applied,
etc. Quantitative research is most common
encountered as part of formal or conclusive
research, but is also sometimes used when
conducting exploratory research. Quantitative
research techniques are part of primary research.
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• Quantitative research differs from qualitative
  research in the following ways
• The data is usually gathered using more
  structured research instruments
• The results provide less detail on behaviour,
  attitudes and motivation
• The results are based on larger sample sizes that
  are representative of the population,
• The research can usually be replicated or
  repeated, given it high reliability and
• The analysis of the results is more objective.
• The most common quantitative research techniques
  include
• Observation technique
• Experimentation
• Survey technique

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The Research Process In order to make a decision
on a given course of action and choose between
several alternatives, the decision-maker must
clearly recognize the problem to be solved or
opportunity to be seized. S/he will then have to
determine the information that is already
available and what further information is
required as well as the best approach for
obtaining it. Finally, the information obtained
must be assessed objectively to help inform the
decision. This systematic approach to
decision-making is referred to as the research
process. The research process involves six
distinct phases (often cited as only four),
although they are not always completely linear,
since research is iterative (earlier phases
influence later ones, while later ones can
influence the early phases). Perhaps one of the
most important characteristics of a good
researcher is the unwillingness to take
shortcuts, to rush through the research. It is
important to keep an open mind to recognize
changes that must be accommodated to ensure the
reliability and validity of the research.
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The possible steps or phases of research 1.
Problem definition (asking questions) 2.
Literature review 3. Selection of research
design, subjects and data collection (what tools
do we have?) 4. Data gathering (90 sweat) 5.
Data processing and analyses 6. Implications and
outcomes (publish or perish)
1. Asking questions Where do questions come
from? Curiosity, observation, previous studies,
hunch, etc. Be realistic!!!! 2. Gathering
information Supervisor, library, journals,
internet, conferences, brainstorming, etc.
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3. Research equipment Investigate all relevant
methods, equipment, techniques and possibilities.
Own initiative very important n boer maak n
plan. 4. Data gathering The procedure by which
a few subjects are chosen from the universe to be
studied in such as way that the sample can be
used to estimate the same characteristics in the
total is referred to as sampling. The advantages
of using samples rather than surveying the
population are that it is much less costly,
quicker and, if selected properly, gives results
with known accuracy that can be calculated
mathematically. Even for relatively small
samples, accuracy does not suffer even though
precision or the amount of detailed information
obtained, might. These are important
considerations, since most research projects have
both budget and time constraints. Critical is to
consider scaling! The four basic types of scales
are nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio.
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5. Data analyses Raw data needs to be refined
and prepared for proper analyses (statistics,
graphics, descriptive, etc.). Precision and
critical evaluation is the essence. Statistic is
for support, not for light! (as the lamp post is
to the drunkard). 6. End Product While your
data analysis will need to analyze every
questions asked, discussing such things as
statistical significance and correlations, when
you are ready to draw conclusions, you will have
to determine what the main findings of your
report really are. Not everything is worthy of
being re-discussed when drawing conclusions. It
is quite likely that the reader or readers of the
final report/paper have not spent much time
thinking about the research, but want to
understand quickly without having to read every
last bit of analysis and data manipulation. The
final conclusion(s) must provide an
interpretation of the results, written in
language that is commonly understood even by
those not well versed in the subject. But
Beware!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Plagiarism Never copy and paste!! The internet
will tempt you many time, never but never copy
and paste! Plagiarism is a criminal offence and
you will not only be stripped of all your
qualifications, but you will also be fined. You
have to interpret other researchers work into
your own and always refer to the other persons
work.

• Research locked away in a filing cabinet should
  never have been done!
• Publish or perish
• Present papers at learned meetings
• Prepare popular reports/presentations
• Market your findings
• Patents

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Doing a successful research study
Select and meet with supervisor
In-depth literature study
Preliminary scan of field and literature review
Formulate hypothesis
Develop research proposal
Start Project
Select relevant methods
Keep notes
Be critical
Get results and analyze
Submit
Write report (thesis)
Synthesize and ask new questions
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The following was taken from a seminar for young
researchers
A new paradigm of the function of higher
education in society has emerged over the past 20
years.

• Not any more pursuit of knowledge for its own
  sake
• Universities are meant to serve society,
  primarily by supporting the economy and promoting
  the quality of life of its citizens
• Universities are still the conscience of
  society, BUT they play a more pragmatic role
  provision of specific human resources and
  production of knowledge that can solve
  multi-dimensional problems
• This should have a direct practical impact on
  the behavior and functioning of higher education
  institutions
• There is a new culture of accountability, with a
  focus on good management and value for money

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Essential issues for the young researcher

• Critical and open debate is encouraged and
  exercised includes individuals from all levels
  in the hierarchy constructive criticism is not
  seen or treated as a personal attack
• A focus on quality research is a primary
  objective, and mechanisms are found and
  implemented to encourage this
• Scholarship is encouraged, valued and recognized
  and deemed critical in the leadership
• Exposure to excellence (locally and
  internationally) is encouraged and promoted
  through systematic initiatives
• True mentorship is automatically exercised by
  experienced researchers, and the development of
  young people as researchers is a major
  institutional focus
• Development / applied research is not regarded as
  inferior quality work and achievements are
  recognized irrespective of area
• Team work, partnerships and alliances - internal
  and external - are valued as much as, or more
  than, individual achievement

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What do you see?
Plant Blindness

• What is influencing out thoughts?
• Discovery of DNA
• Space exploration
• Urbanization
• Digital World

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To be a scientist and a researcher is the Prince
of all occupations Prof. EM van Zinderen
Bakker