Scientific thinking is characterized by the level of abstraction and depth.
Science is a set of techniques and methods that allow us to organize knowledge about the structure of objective facts accessible to different observers. Thought , for its part, is the product of the mind, that which is brought into existence through intellectual activity.
It is evident that human beings think to carry out any type of activity, from the simplest and most mundane (such as choosing which shoes to wear during the day) to the most complex and abstract (programming a computer system, for example). The difference between everyday thinking and scientific thinking lies in the depth and levels of abstraction .
Both types of thinking are complementary : science arises when everyday thinking stops making statements or providing the necessary answers to people's problems.
Characteristics of scientific thinking
Among the main characteristics of scientific thinking are objectivity (facts are taken as they are presented in reality), rationality (based on scientific principles and laws ) and systematicity (knowledge is ordered and hierarchical).
Scientific thinking is also phatic (the facts it analyzes are given in reality), transcendent (it goes beyond the facts), analytical (it decomposes and recomposes the whole), precise (it avoids vagueness), symbolic (in order to better explain itself). ), verifiable (it is the object of observation and experimentation), methodical (it is planned and organized), predictive (from the present, you can go to the past or the future), open (it is in permanent evolution) and useful (it tries to contribute to the improvement of society).
Scientific thinking is rational, systematic and objective.
Steps for its development
The origin of science is related to human needs back in prehistory. The lack of shelter made it necessary to think and make decisions that led to the subsequent conquest of fire.
Later, it was also out of necessity that the wheel was invented to conceive a better form of transportation. These two facts are considered to be the foundation of science as such , a way of solving problems of everyday life through different methods. These were followed by various inventions and steps that improved people's lives, such as obtaining objects from various materials, such as metal, ceramics and fabrics.
In the 6th century BC, one of the most powerful intellectual movements of all time took place in Greece, which generated a resounding change in the world and established the foundations of scientific thought.
During the Egyptian Empire, great knowledge was developed in different fields such as medicine, mathematics and biology and this allowed us to get even closer to science as we know it today.
Then, in the Middle Ages , the advances made by the ancient Egyptians merged with the theories expressed by the Greeks and a greater knowledge of reality, the elements and the way in which they could be combined and studied was achieved.
Renaissance and scientific thought
But surely a period that marked a before and after in terms of scientific discoveries was the Renaissance , where the foundations were definitely laid for the study of truth through science and what the method consisted of was put into words. scientist ; which is based on a series of steps, which are: collection of facts, understanding of the facts through laws, formulation of hypotheses in order to explain what happened, comparison of the experimental results with those expected in the developed hypothesis and the prediction of new events .
Through reasoning and contrasting evidence we build our environment , we learn to relate and put into practice what we know, therefore scientific thinking is one of the most necessary tools to live in society.