Page 24 - Becoming Metric Wise

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Scientific Research and Communication

by performing the actual experiments or trying to observe the expected
phenomena (see further on when we discuss the work of Popper). Yet,
there are exceptions such as large parts of cosmology or elementary parti-
cle physics (e.g., string theory) (Woit, 2006) for which there do not (yet)
exist experiments. One may say that such theories belong to a region that
is part of the formal sciences, but are geared towards becoming empirical
theories.
Disciplines that use science, like engineering and medicine, are
referred to as applied sciences. Different engineering fields apply physics
and chemistry (and possibly other fields), while medicine applies biology.
Some applied fields use basic knowledge from different fields, including
the formal sciences, such as genetic epidemiology which uses both bio-
logical and statistical methods, or synthetic biology which applies, among
others, biotechnology and computer engineering.
Another way of describing science is through Stokes’ classification
which involves Pasteur’s quadrant (Stokes, 1997). Pasteur’s quadrant is a
label given to a class of scientific research methods that seek fundamental
understanding of scientific problems, and, at the same time, seek to be
eventually beneficial to society. Louis Pasteur’s research is thought to
exemplify this type of method, which bridges the gap between “basic”
and “applied” research. The term Pasteur’s quadrant was introduced by
Donald Stokes in his book with the same title (Stokes, 1997). As shown
in Table 2.1, scientific research can be classified according to whether it
advances human knowledge by seeking a fundamental understanding of
nature (basic research), or whether it is primarily motivated by the need
to solve immediate problems (applied research).
The result is three distinct classes of research. Pure basic research
(exemplified by the work of the atomic physicist Niels Bohr), pure
applied research (exemplified by the work of the inventor Thomas

Table 2.1 Pasteur’s quadrant
Considerations of use?
No Yes
Pure basic Use-inspired basic
Quest for fundamental Yes
research research Pasteur
understanding
Bohr
Pure applied research
No
Edison