Fun Facts About Snowflakes

What is a Snowflake?

Snowflakes are a super interesting form of precipitation that usually occur in the cold, wintry months of the year. But contrary to what you might think, snowflakes don’t always have six sides. And similar to the human fingerprint, it is thought that no two snowflakes are ever exactly the same! Also, both the form and shape of a snowflake depends on the temperature and moisture content of the cloud they come from. Snowflakes can be categorized into six main types – plate (flat), column, stars, dendrite (lacy), needle, and capped column. When it is extremely cold the snow is very fine and powdery and snowflakes become quite simple in design, usually needle or rod shaped. When the temperature is near to the freezing point (32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius), snowflakes become much larger and a lot more complex in design, for example, an intricate star pattern. Sounds “cool”, huh? Want to know more fun facts about snowflakes? Read on…

Did You Know These Fun Snowflake Facts?

• The world’s largest ever snowflake found to date was 38 centimeters wide and 20 centimeters thick! This snowflake occurred at Fort Keogh, Montana, USA on 28 January 1887.
• Snow is a form of precipitation like rain and sleet.
• To snow the temperature must be below 32 (0) degrees.
• Snowflakes actually start as tiny ice crystals that form from water vapor that freezes in the atmosphere.
• The size of a snowflake depends on how many ice crystals connect together.
• Each snowflake is made up of about 200 ice crystals.
• Snowflakes always have six sides.
• There is no scientific proof that no two snowflakes aren’t exactly alike.
• On average snowflakes fall from the sky at 3-4 miles per hour.
• Close to 80% of the world’s fresh water supply comes from snow and ice.
• Snow didn’t always look white. When coal was used widespread in factories and homes a lot of coal dust traveled through the air. The coal dust was absorbed in the clouds and when it snowed it often looked gray from the air pollution.
• Snow is not actually white but clear. It looks white because of the way the light reflects off of the ice crystals.
• Thundersnow is when it snows while there is thunder and lightning.
• Watermelon snow is snow with algae growing on it. The algae is a reddish color. It is mostly found in the Canadian Rockies.
• On average there are around 105 snowstorms a year that hit the US.
• Snow at the North and South Poles reflect heat into space. The snow acts like a mirror from the sun. The light bounces off of the snow and travels into space.
• Heavy snowfalls are called snowstorms.
• Heavy snowfalls with high winds over 35 miles per hour with limited visibility are called blizzards.
• Billions of snowflakes fall in every snowstorm.
• When the weatherperson predicts a blizzard is coming people buy more cakes, candy and cookies than any other food.
• The most snowfall over a year was on Mount Rainier in the state of Washington, USA. It snowed 1,224 inches from February 19th 1971 – February 19th 1972!
• The most snow to fall in a 24 hour period was 76 inches in Silver Lake, Colorado in 1921.
• The largest snowman was 122 feet tall. It was built-in Maine in 2008.
• The largest snow sculpture ever built was in Heilongjiang Province, China in 2008.  It was 656 feet long and 115 feet tall.  It took 600 sculptors from 40 countries to build it.
• The snowiest place in the U.S. is Stampede Pass in Washington State. On average it snows 430 inches a year!
• The Wapusk Trail holds the Guinness Book of World Record for the longest seasonal winter road (only functional during winter months). It is 467 miles long and connects Gillam, Monitoba to Peawanuk, Ontario in Canada.  The road closes in late March when the weather gets warmer.
• The most popular activity for kids to do in the snow is building a snowman!

Who Is Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley?

“Of all the forms of water the tiny six-pointed crystals of ice called snow are incomparably the most beautiful and varied.”

– Wilson Bentley (1865-1931)

Wilson Bentley was the father of snowflake photography and the main reason we all believe that snowflakes are all six-sided but also uniquely different in shape.

“In 1885, at the age of twenty, Wilson Alwyn Bentley, a farmer who would live all his life in the small town of Jericho in Vermont, gave the world its first ever photograph of a snowflake. Throughout the following winters, until his death in 1931, Bentley would go on to capture over 5000 snowflakes, or more correctly, snow crystals, on film. Despite the fact that he rarely left Jericho, thousands of Americans knew him as The Snowflake Man or simply Snowflake Bentley. Our belief that “no two snowflakes are alike” stems from a line in a 1925 report in which he remarked: “Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated. When a snowflake melted, that design was forever lost.”” -i

“From the time he was a small boy in Vermont, Wilson Bentley saw snowflakes as small miracles. And he determined that one day his camera would capture for others the wonder of the tiny crystal. Bentley’s enthusiasm for photographing snowflakes was often misunderstood in his time, but his patience and determination revealed two important truths: no two snowflakes are alike; and each one is startlingly beautiful. His story is gracefully told and brought to life in lovely woodcuts, giving children insight into a soul who had not only a scientist’s vision and perseverance but a clear passion for the wonders of nature. Snowflake Bentley won the 1999 Caldecott Medal.” – ii

Here are some great books on the amazing snowflake photographer Wilson Bentley.

What Are Snowflakes Made Of?

Snowflakes are really just conglomerations of frozen ice crystals which fall through the Earth’s atmosphere. They begin as snow crystals which develop when microscopic supercooled cloud droplets freeze.

Amazingly, snowflakes appear white in color despite being made of clear ice. This is due to diffuse reflection of the whole spectrum of light by the small crystal facets. The individual ice crystals often have hexagonal symmetry so although the ice is clear, scattering of light by the crystal facets and hollows/imperfections mean that the crystals often appear white in color due to diffuse reflection of the whole spectrum of light by the small ice particles.

Want to know more about snowflakes and how they are actually formed?

This is a great video to learn more about the chemistry of snowflakes…

How Do Temperature and Humidity Determine Snowflake Shape?

Did you know that snowflakes come in a variety of sizes and shapes? Complex shapes emerge as the flake moves through differing temperature and humidity regimes, such that individual snowflakes are nearly unique in structure.

“At -2 °C, simple hexagons and star shapes form. Between -5 and -10 °C, it’s columns. Then below -15 °C, the six-siders appear again. What’s more, each tiny snow crystal experiences a gamut of temperatures and humidities as it falls, and often collides with other crystals. A snowflake can consist of a single crystal, or it can be many thousands of these crystals joined together. “Every snowflake that falls to earth has its own unique history,” says ice physicist John Hallett of the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nevada.” – iii

So the classic image of a perfectly symmetrical snowflake is rare. The flat, six-sided crystal with delicate filigree patterns of sharp branches occurs in only around one in every 1000 flakes. And when seen in 3D a snowflake is another thing altogether! Researchers have developed a camera system that shoots untouched flakes as they fall from the sky. By grabbing a series of images of the tumbling crystals (its exposure time is 1/40,000th of a second, compared with about 1/200th in normal photography) the camera reveals the true shape diversity of snowflakes.

Have You Ever Heard of Graupel?

Graupel is a snowflake coated with ice. It begins as snow high up in the clouds. The snow then falls into a layer of supercooled water droplets that exist as a liquid even though the air around them is below freezing. When those droplets make contact with the snowflake, they immediately freeze or rime. This results in tiny, white pellets that resemble BBs or little snowballs and are sometimes referred to as small hail or ice pellets. But unlike hail, they are soft, crushable and cause no threat of damage or injury.

Graupel is often confused with sleet because both tend to bounce when they make contact with the ground. You can tell the difference between the two by their color. Graupel is milky white while sleet is usually clear. Graupel usually occurs when temperatures are near or below freezing, but can occasionally occur when surface temperatures are in the 40s.

Our Snowflake Conclusion

Through all of this we hope you learned some cool stuff about snowflakes and how they are formed. You discovered that the most common snow particles are actual visibly irregular. And although the images of near-perfect snowflakes may be more common in pictures (because they are obviously more visually appealing) they are not the norm. You also got a bit of history on Wilson Bentley and his amazing snowflake photography. Plus you found out how temperature and humidity effect the shape of snowflakes and what some of those shapes are called.

With all this cool information we think you can all agree that these little flakes of snow and ice are more than just beautiful to look at. They are also an almost universal symbol of winter used on such things as sweaters, shirts, greeting cards and holiday decorations and make us all think of things like Frosty the Snowman, snowball fights and sledding!

We hope you liked our fun facts about snowflakes and really enjoy your next time out in the snow now that you know how those beloved snowflakes are created!

i – The Snowflake Man of Vermont by Keith C. Heidorn

ii – Snowflake Bentley, Excerpt from Amazon

iii – The great white lie: What snowflakes really look like by Helen Pilcher

Fun Facts About Snowflakes

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Fun Facts About Halloween

We are at the end of the month of October and we all know what that means…It’s Halloween!!

So without further ado, here are some fun facts about Halloween – your favorite fall holiday!

• Halloween is always celebrated on 31 October.
• Halloween is one of the oldest celebrations in the world, dating back over 2000 years to the time of the Celts who lived in Britain.
• Halloween is also know by other names:  All Hallows Eve, Samhain, All Hallowtide, The Feast of the Dead, The Day of the Dead.
• Halloween in Welsh is ‘Nos Calan Gaeaf’.
• Halloween is correctly spelled as Hallowe’en.
• When Christianity came to England and the rest of Europe, 1 November became “All Saints Day” – a day dedicated to all those saints who didn’t have a special day of their own.  They performed a mass called ‘All hallows mass’ and the night before became known as All Hallows E’en and eventually Hallowe’en or Halloween.
• When the Romans conquered England, they merged Samhain with their own festivals, a harvest festival called Poloma, and a celebration for the dead called Feralia.
• In Mexico, they celebrate El Dia de los Muertos or the Day of the Dead starting the evening of October 31.
• The celebration of Halloween started in the United States as an autumn harvest festival.  In pioneer days, some Americans celebrated Halloween with corn-popping parties, taffy pulls and hayrides.
• It is thought that the colors orange and black became Halloween colors because orange is associated with harvests (Halloween marks the end of harvest) and black is associated with death.
  
• Jack-o-lanterns are an Irish tradition.  In Ireland, oversized rutabagas, turnips and potatoes were hollowed-out, carved into faces and illuminated with candles to be used as lanterns during Halloween celebrations.
• The pumpkin originated in Mexico about 9,000 years ago.  It is one of America’s oldest known vegetables.  Pumpkins generally weigh from 15-to-30 pounds, although some weigh as much as 200 pounds.  The majority of pumpkins are orange, but they also can be white or yellow.  They are rich in vitamin A, beta-carotene and potassium, and their seeds provide protein and iron.
• According to legend, the jack-o’-lantern began with a fellow named Jack, who was too stingy to be allowed into Heaven and too mischievous to join the Devil in hell.  As consolation, the Devil threw Jack a lighted coal, which Jack placed inside a turnip he was eating.  It is said that Jack continues to use the coal to light his path as he searches for a final resting place.
• A pumpkin is really a squash, and comes from the same family as the cucumber.
• About 99% of pumpkins sold are used as Jack O’ Lanterns at Halloween.
• In the late nineteenth century, with the large influx of Irish immigrants into the U.S., Halloween became associated with ghosts, goblins and witches.
• The word “witch” comes from the Old Saxon word “wica”, meaning “wise one.”  The earliest witches were respected dealers in charms and medicinal herbs and tellers of fortunes.
• To meet a witch, put your clothes on inside out and walk backwards on Halloween night.

Have fun out there!!

Fun Facts About Halloween

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The Most Interesting Careers In Science

Have you ever wondered what cool STEM jobs are out there?

We’ve been asked a lot about what interesting careers in science are out there so we thought we’d put up a post to help you figure it out. There are so many to choose from it can be a bit overwhelming but that also gives you a lot to choose from! Whatever you like – animals, chemistry, biology, astronomy, geology – there is bound to be a cool science career to go along with it. The Super Science Team at HTMSPFK has compiled a short list of what we thought were helpful sites in your quest for more information on the most interesting careers in science.

US News

US News makes big lists every year on all sorts of fun and informative stuff. Each year they make a few that relate to our quest for science careers such as – Best Science Jobs and Best STEM Jobs. Both of these lists have really good information and are great for getting background statistics on some interesting jobs for you to think about!

Business Insider

Business Insider made their own list. It’s got a cooler name – 12 Awesome Jobs For People Who Love Science – but not quite as much detail on each job as the US News list. Also, it’s from 2015, but the information is good and it’s well worth a look!

Balance

Balance, another business/money mag, has put out a good list as well – 9 Careers in Science. It was updated in 2019 and has some good detail to it with links off to even more explanations and in-depth information. If you’re looking for some inspiration in the science fields we think you’ll find it useful!

Science Buddies

The folks over at Science Buddies have a whole tab on their website dedicated to interesting careers in science. It’s broken down into fields (Earth and Physical Sciences, Life Science, Engineering, Math and Computer Science, Health) and then links off to some pretty detailed pages for lots of ideas and info on your future science career. Go check it out!

Science

Science magazine also has a big section of their site focusing on science careers. It’s very informative and has links to tons of cool stuff about science jobs & careers and STEM education but it’s a little harder to navigate. Never-the-less it’s a great resource and should definitely be on your radar when you’re looking for a new science gig!

Lastly, for quick reference you can check out a previous post of ours with some basic info on the Fields of Science to get you started in the right direction. Enjoy!

The Most Interesting Careers In Science

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Pink Fairy Armadillo | The Little Pichiciego

The Pink Fairy Armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus), which is also referred to as the Pichiciego, is believed to be the tiniest type of armadillo (mammals of the family Dasypodidae, mostly known for having a bony armor shell) on Earth. This species of armadillo typically grows to be between 90-115 mm in length (3.5-4.5 inches), not including its tail, is less than a pound in weight, and is pale rose to pink in color. And to top it all off, this Crazy Creature is the only species of armadillo that has its dorsal shell almost entirely separate from its body!

Where They Live:

This special animal resides in the dry grasslands and sandy plains of central Argentina. The sandy environment works well for the pink fairy armadillo considering they are excellent diggers. In truth, they have the ability to completely bury themselves in a few seconds if threatened.

Unfortunately, due to habitat destruction (particularly due to cattle farming), the population of the pink fairy armadillo has been declining since 1970 when they were listed as “threatened”. In 1996, the species was classed as “endangered” by the IUCN, then upgraded to “near threatened” in 2006, and in 2008 changed to “data deficient”.

What They Eat:

Pink fairy armadillos use their excellent excavating abilities to burrow in locations beside big ant colonies. It’s a great location to live as the ants offer a consistent food source (good move, huh?). They will also seek out worms, snails, other insects and larvae, or various plant and root material, but they always fall back on ants as their primary food choice.

How They Live:

This little armadillo often lives a solitary life where it stays secure underground only to come out and feed during the night. It is believed that the pink fairy armadillo is polygamous when it comes to mating. Generally the female will give birth to one young, whose shell will not end up being entirely hardened until it is totally grown. Overall, the pink fairy armadillos will spend most of their time underground much like a mole.

Interesting Facts:

The large front claws allow them to effortlessly move the sand as they burrow underground almost as if they were swimming through the water. They are sometimes referred to as “sand swimmers” similar to the golden mole or the marsupial mole. The torpedo shape of the armadillo as well as the shielded head and back makes this kind of movement possible. A recent study has found that the “butt plate” (shown above) may be used to compact or pat down dirt and sand behind the armadillo as it makes its way underground.

Check out this video for more info on this cute little Crazy Creature!

Looking for more?

Are you interested in all sorts of interesting animals and life forms? Do you want to know more about some of the most amazing and outrageous critters on the planet? Do you love zoology, entomology, ornithology, or ichthyology? Then make sure to check out every one of our posts on more exciting Crazy Creatures!

Pink Fairy Armadillo | The Little Pichiciego

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Fun Physics – How Amusement Park Rides Are Designed

Do you love going to the amusement park?

Many of us enjoy the thrill of a roller coaster, the smash-and-crash of the bumper cars, the weightlessness of free fall and pendulum rides, and the loping gallop of the carousel. But did you know the amount of science and engineering that go into designing one these classics? Find out how amusement park rides are designed with this fun online experience!

Annenberg Learner

The folks at Annenberg Learner have produced an awesome interactive learning guide to help you understand the complexities of amusement park ride design. You can choose a flash version with a fun, Einstein-like robot as a narrator. Or go for the classic version with nicely illustrated pages full of interesting information on your favorite rides. Both versions go into the history and science behind the different rides’ designs complete with a roller coaster maker, a weightless water experiment and bumper car collision predictions.

This is a fun and educational interactive exhibit that’s sure to keep your children (and you) entertained. It can be a bit much to take in for the younger ones (you might have to pause and further explain a few things) but overall it’s a great physics learning tool!

Amusement Park Physics:

“You’ve bought your ticket and boarded the roller coaster. Now you’re barreling down the track at 60 miles per hour, taking hairpin turns and completing death-defying loops. Your heart is in your throat and your stomach is somewhere near your shoes. The only thing separating you from total disaster is a safety harness…but are you really in danger?

The designers of the roller coaster carefully crafted this thrilling ride to be just that, but you’re actually in less danger than you think. You face a greater threat of injury playing sports or riding a bike than you do on a park ride. Amusement park rides use physics laws to simulate danger, while the rides themselves are typically very safe.

How do physics laws affect amusement park ride design? In this exhibit, you’ll have a chance to find out by designing your own roller coaster. Plan it carefully–it has to pass a safety inspection.You can also experiment with bumper car collisions.

Check the physics glossary to find out more about the terms used in this exhibit. Just click on the glossary icon wherever you see it.”

Sounds fun right?! We promise you won’t be disappointed. The folks at Annenberg Learner have put together a terrific bit of interactive learning for you. So head on over to Amusement Park Physics and have a great time checking out the science behind the thrills…

Want more? Be sure to check out our Physics archive!

Fun Physics – How Amusement Park Rides Are Designed

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101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments | What a Great Book!

We had an awesome time with 101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments!

It’s filled with lots of really fun science experiments that you are sure to enjoy just as much as we did. With this book you will have a great time performing all sorts of crazy science projects and fun activities that are easy to do and don’t require much more than everyday household items. We really liked the layout of the experiments and the bright, colorful pictures. And the it’s written in a clear, easily understandable way. 101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments is sure to be a hit with your young STEMsters like it was with our eager crew!

The Amazon description hits it right on the head:

“The Quirky Mommas from the wildly popular Kids Activities Blog and authors of the bestselling 101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever! have done it again with this book of ridiculously amazing, simple science experiments. You can do things both indoors and outdoors. The handy mess meter, preparation times and notes on the level of supervision will keep your parents happy, and you safe. Experimenting is really fun, and you will have a blast being a scientist! You will be so entertained, you might not notice you’re also learning important things about the world around you.”

Inventors of Tomorrow gave it 5 stars and a great review:

“A great collection of STEM activities for a child (age 8 – 12) or for a parent/teacher to use with younger kids. I really appreciate the consistent format and clarity of activity descriptions – each contains a “mess meter”, level of supervision required, predicted times for prep and experiment, concise and easy-to-follow instructions, description of outcome, and an explanation of the science. The graphic design is appealing. The tone of the book would get adults and kids excited about working on science together. Includes many activities that aren’t standard fare found in all the other books. Most activities have great overview photos, instructional photos detailing the steps of the experiments, and/or helpful diagrams, but some are completely lacking illustration and that can make those experiments harder to figure out. Overall, an excellent resource. “

Our Marshmallow Molecules science experiment video from the book:

Here’s the experiment page we followed in the video:

What a great book!

As you can see we totally loved the book as well! With so many fun and interesting activities inside how can you go wrong?! Plus the wonderful writing and awesome imagery really engaged our testers. And it comes in paperback or Kindle edition so you can pick which format works best for you and your family. Overall, it gets a hearty “Heck yeah!” from the talented reviewers of the Super Science Team. So make sure to take your edutainment to the next level and pick up your own copy of 101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments today!

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Don’t miss the Regeneron Science Talent Search!

This is such an awesome opportunity for your high school age STEMsters (and just about anyone that’s interested in science). Please take a look at this really amazing talent search from Regeneron. It could be the coolest thing in science going on this summer!

The last virtual event Regeneron held was awesome! Our kids loved it. There were so many talented students with interesting STEM projects and models to learn about and wonderful workshops full of very learned individuals. It was an amazing amount of science information and education all easily accessible from your computer, phone or living room.

Be sure to sign up soon so you don’t miss out on all the incredible science going on right from the comfort of your own home!

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Virtual Science and Engineering Fair

Hey there Science Fans!

We’re always on the lookout for fun & educational ways to spread the science with our besties like you.

So we want to let you know about this Virtual Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair that will definitely be worth checking out! You won’t want to miss hearing from top scientists, Nobel laureates and influential entrepreneurs. It all starts this Monday the 18th and runs through the 22nd. They’ll be talking about topics ranging from COVID-19 to entrepreneurship to being a woman in STEM.

The Society for Science & the Public and Regeneron have officially announced the Virtual Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair. It is free for everyone – students and families are encouraged to join. Just click HERE to watch the video and to register.

Enjoy the Fair!

About the Society for Science & the Public

Society for Science & the Public is a champion for science, dedicated to expanding scientific literacy, effective STEM education and scientific research. We are a nonprofit 501(c)(3) membership organization focused on promoting the understanding and appreciation of science and the vital role it plays in human advancement: to inform, educate, and inspire.

Since 1921, the Society (originally known as Science Service) has conveyed the excitement of science and research directly to the public through our award-winning publications and since 1942, through our world-class science education competitions.

Today, the Society provides concise, accurate, and inspirational science news and opportunities to our nearly 100,000 subscribing members, the 70,000 alumni of our competitions worldwide, and millions of unique online visitors and social media followers.

Looking for more super Science News?

Want to get the latest and greatest in STEM news and articles? Make sure to check out the Science News section of our site to stay up to date on the best in STEM!

Virtual Science and Engineering Fair

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How To Make An Egg Float In Water

Have you ever tried putting an egg in a glass full of ordinary drinking water?

What happened? Did it float?

We are pretty sure it sank to the bottom.

But what would happen if you added some salt to the mix?

The results are very interesting and can teach you some fun facts about density!

What you need:

• One egg (or more!)
• Water
• Salt
• A tall drinking glass or jar

How to do it:

1. Pour regular drinking water into a glass until it is about half full.
2. Stir in lots of salt (about 6 tablespoons).
3. Carefully pour in more plain water until the glass is nearly full (be careful to not disturb or mix the salty water with the plain water).
4. Gently lower the egg into the water and watch what happens.

Why it works:

The salt water is more dense than ordinary tap water…and the denser the liquid the easier it is for an object to float in it.  So when you lower the egg into the liquid it drops through the normal tap water until it reaches the salty water.  At that point, due to the extra salt in the water, it is dense enough for the egg to float.  If you were careful when you added the regular water to the salt water they will not have mixed, making the egg to seem like it’s floating in the middle of the glass!

For some extra fun:

• Add some food coloring to the different types of water to make your project a bit more flashy! Use one color for the regular tap water and one color for the salt water. It makes it easier to see the two layers and watch how their densities effect their placement in the glass.
• Try the project over a few more times but use a different amount of salt in your salty water solution for each experiment. Write down the results to see what the optimal amount of salt to water is. You could use different color markers for each version of the experiment to help make it easier to keep track of your findings.

For more info watch our How To Make An Egg Float In Water video:

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more fun science videos!

How To Make An Egg Float In Water

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How Do You Define Science?

It’s a question often asked, but not so easily answered. Science is all around us and is part of everything we see and do. From the moment you wake up in the morning to the second you close your eyes at night science is a part of your life (in fact, it’s still working away while you sleep!). Millions of scientific processes are going on without you even noticing. And most of them will continue on forever (or at least for a very long time). To help us explain this complex question we decided to bring in a few different examples of how other people have attempted to define science.

One of the definitions we found goes like this:

“Science is a systematic and logical approach to discovering how things in the universe work. It is derived from the Latin word “scientia,” which translates to knowledge. Unlike the arts, science aims for measurable results through testing and analysis. Science is based on fact, not opinion or preferences. The process of science is designed to challenge ideas through research. It is not meant to prove theories, but rule out alternative explanations until a likely conclusion is reached.” –1

This is further explained here:

“Science relies on testing ideas with evidence gathered from the natural world…Science is complex and multi-faceted, but the most important characteristics of science are straightforward:

• Science focuses exclusively on the natural world, and does not deal with supernatural explanations.
• Science is a way of learning about what is in the natural world, how the natural world works, and how the natural world got to be the way it is. It is not simply a collection of facts; rather it is a path to understanding.
• Scientists work in many different ways, but all science relies on testing ideas by figuring out what expectations are generated by an idea and making observations to find out whether those expectations hold true.
• Accepted scientific ideas are reliable because they have been subjected to rigorous testing, but as new evidence is acquired and new perspectives emerge these ideas can be revised.
• Science is a community endeavor. It relies on a system of checks and balances, which helps ensure that science moves in the direction of greater accuracy and understanding. This system is facilitated by diversity within the scientific community, which offers a broad range of perspectives on scientific ideas.” -2

And here’s one more:

“Science is the concerted human effort to understand, or to understand better, the history of the natural world and how the natural world works, with observable physical evidence as the basis of that understanding. It is done through observation of natural phenomena, and/or through experimentation that tries to simulate natural processes under controlled conditions.” -3

The conclusion:

So you see, there is no quick and easy answer to the question “How do you define science?”. In fact, we probably just brought up more questions! But we’ll try to help you all to get your own understanding of what science is, and what scientists do, in some of our upcoming posts!

And don’t forget… If you’ve got your own definition or want to ask more questions on this topic please leave a comment below. We’ll try to answer everyone as best (and as fast) as we can.

 
 -1 “What is Science? The Scientific Method” by Live Science; http://www.livescience.com/20896-science-scientific-method.html

-2 “Understanding Science: An Overview” by Understanding Science; http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/0_0_0/intro_01

-3 “What is Science?” by University of Georgia – Department of Geology; http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/1122science2.html

How Do You Define Science?

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