The Types of science Which are currently distinguished are four: Factual sciences , social Sciences , Natural sciences and formal sciences.
The word science (From Latin"scientia", meaning knowledge) refers to the system of rational knowledge that man has obtained through reason and experience in a systematized, methodical and verifiable way.
Science has replaced myth as a way of seeking the explanation of the phenomena of nature and social phenomena.
Thanks to it, the laws and Deductive principles Which derive from reasoning and observation as human activities that were always present, but without a systematic and verifiable form.
It is the result of an activity based on the application of the scientific method To an object or situation. To do this, it follows the steps of formulation, hypothesis, contrast and return to the theory.
In this way, science is understood as rational, systematic, testable and reliable knowledge that has given a turn to history and human thought.
The application of reasoned knowledge and the scientific method led to the acquisition of new paradigms that predicted concrete and quantitative present and future actions.
These can be formulated by reasoning and structured through rules or general laws that account for the behavior of phenomena.
Different ways of classifying and classifying the sciences have been proposed throughout history. One of the first attempts was made by Auguste Comte . Today, however, they are classified on a broader and more general scale.
Types of science
Factual sciences
Also known as empirical sciences, they are those that aim to understand a fact or phenomenon. These sciences create mental or artificial representations of the facts of reality. In this way he makes use of logic.
Scholars of science and the scientific method are based on observable natural facts and from there, they develop knowledge.
Some authors suggest that the factual sciences are divided into two groups. The first are social sciences; sociology , economy And politics. The second is the natural sciences: biology , physical , chemistry ...
However, these fields are often separated from the factual sciences by being considered as autonomous types.
Social Sciences
The social sciences claim that human behavior is not adjusted to scientific laws, as if it were natural phenomena.
The social sciences are often limited to deducing probabilities derived from investigation and the quantitative analysis Of the frequency with which social events happen.
Social scientists argue that natural phenomena do little to interfere with human behavior. For excellence, the fields of study of the social sciences are usually: sociology, psychology , Politics and history, among others.
The social sciences delve into societal variables such as freedom, oppression, rules, political system and beliefs. In this way, they analyze the types of organization and probabilities of future events.
One of the most significant tasks of the social sciences is the self-reflection and criticism of scientific activity. Which contributes to the development of the same, since it questions and imposes Ethical limits Which could undermine human integrity.
Natural Sciences
These use the hypothetical deductive method. The natural sciences are nourished by rational reflection and observation of reality. Unlike the social sciences, in these sciences events are determined by laws.
The applicable laws or laws of the natural sciences obey the principle of cause and effect. What they allow to be totally predictable.
The application of the hypothetical-deductive method is elemental, since part of the observation to formulate a hypothesis, then deduces its consequences and, finally, checks with the experience.
Within the natural sciences are framed the chemistry, veterinary and physics, among others. The natural sciences have universal validity, so they are often used to predict and anticipate the phenomena that occur in nature.
Formal sciences
They are the sciences that start from the ideas formulated by the minds of humans. They employ par excellence in axiomatic-inductive method. It alludes to the fact that its axioms or statements do not prove and can not contrast reality.
Its validity is situated in the field of the abstract, unlike the natural sciences that are located in the field of the concrete. These sciences appeal for their validation to the rational analysis of knowledge.
They are also called self-sufficient sciences, by virtue of which they can attain truth from their own content and test methods. Within the formal sciences are mathematics and logic.
The formal sciences are based on the study of ideas and analytical formulas that are validated by rational analysis.
Other attempts to typify: Comte's classification
Auguste Comte is considered one of the parents of positivism and sociology, To which he actually called "Social physics" .
Comte made a classification that was later improved by Antoine Augustin in 1852 and by Pierre Naville in 1920.
For Comte, the sciences had entered a"positive"state and this required a hierarchical and generalized classification. In this way he ordered the sciences in:
- Mathematics
- Astronomy
- Physical
- Chemistry
- biology
- Sociology
By the time of classification, sociology was not seen as a scientific discipline, however, Comte justifies it by stating the following:
"We now have a celestial physics, a terrestrial physics already mechanical or chemical, a plant physics and an animal physics; We still need one more and the last, social physics, to complete the system of our knowledge of nature"
Although the model of classification of Comte was valid for a long time, today the model used is the one exposed previously.
References
- Bunge, M. (2007) Scientific research: its strategy and its philosophy . Editorial Ariel. Mexico.
- Ernest, N. (2006) The structure of science. Editorial: Paidos Ibérica. Spain.
- Encyclopedia of Classifications. (2016) Types of sciences . Recovered from: typesde.org.
- Page 1 Science . Recovered from: monografias.com.
- LosTipos.com, writing team. (2016) Types of sciences . Educational Gazette. Recovered from: lostipos.com.
- Sánchez, J. (2012) The science . Editorial: Diaz de Santos. Mexico.