Reflection 5: What is science?

Upon the entering of this course, we were asked what is science. In my first reflection, I attempted to answer this question by setting rules and boundaries by confining science in this small category of things that can and cannot uphold it. For Umbrellaology, I originally argued that it is not a science since it is not necessarily a field in science like Physics. I argued that Umbrellaology was an experiment: an experiment that created a model for when it is to rain and the nature of our sociology. I still stand that Umbrellaology is not deserving of a specific subject like physics or biology. After this class, I will say that it is a science. What Umbrellaology attempts to do is make assumptions and observations of the world around us. It does so using scientific method. The childlike whimsicality of being curious about the world is one thing that defines science. Whether that curiosity is done through a telescope or by categorizing umbrellas on a rainy day, we all as scientists strive for understanding this crazy, chaotic, and beautiful world we live in. 

From Dennis's presentation the doubling theory really stuck with me. A series of number multiplied and divided by increments somehow correlated with the the AU of our solar system's planets. A numerical model is able to predict Uranus and Neptune and so on. The number in the series on the surface do not represent anything. However, just because we don't know what we do not know does not mean that there is nothing worth investigating. This presentation has opened up my perspective on science a lot and made me rethink what is science. As a child, I viewed science as everything around me. Whether that was a spider wrapping an ant in its web, or the color of the green lizards I used to catch and scare my friends with -- or even the broken glass that covered the streets almost like gravel in my hometown. Everything has a reason to it. When we are admitted into school, we are taught that science is Physics, Biology, Chemistry and any other subject that school offers. 

In this class, we have done numerous experiments where we tested several phenomenas. We learned how to think about every aspect of the experiments: things we can control, change, take into account, measure, and think of all the possible scenarios. Another thing we learned was community. Different people have different perspective. In science that is crucial. Bouncing ideas off of each other is a sure way of making some form of progress in an experiment. For example, at NASA they had a talk about ways they can build a rocket differently. Usually, NASA always made their rockets out of metal. Someone goes what if we don't use metal. All the other scientists said nah we always use metal. Then they all realized, wait why don't we use other materials as well. From there on out, NASA has been working on making rockets with different materials. Even in our experiments, everyone contributed ideas on how to control the experiment whether that was the release point or taking into consideration the tiny volume of a syringe. This collaboration is what builds science, progresses it, and makes it fun.  STP was really a fun class. It made me once again believe that science is doable by anyone and everyone. Through the pandemic I had hit a lot of tough bumps along the road where it was hard for me to see the light at the end of the tunnel when it came to studying physics. Slowly I have started to heal myself and restore my relationship with science. I had felt alone and a huge burden studying physics remotely. From STP, I have met other people like me and amazing professors to guide us through the experiment. Although the experiments seemed very simple, all the skills and the thinking we learned are applicable to all the research we will be doing over the summer and lifelong. It feels bittersweet that STP is ending so soon. It feels like just yesterday when I first met all my peers and instructors. I will take what I learned from these sessions lifelong towards my future as a researcher.