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Observation in the natural sciences [1] is an act or instance of noticing or perceiving [2] and the acquisition of information from a primary source. In living beings, observation employs the senses. In science, observation can also involve the perception and recording of data via the use of scientific instruments. The term may also refer to ...
In addition to scientific theories, the language also included observation sentences ("the sun rises in the east"), definitions, and mathematical statements. The phenomena explained by the theories, if they could not be directly observed by the senses (for example, atoms and radio waves ), were treated as theoretical concepts.
Arago spot (1819): Observation of circular diffraction by François Arago, validated a new wave theory of light by Augustin-Jean Fresnel disproving skeptics like Siméon Denis Poisson. Ørsted experiment (1820): Hans Christian Ørsted demonstrates the connection of electricity and magnetism by experiments involving a compass and electric circuits.
In physics, the observer effect is the disturbance of an observed system by the act of observation. [1] [2] This is often the result of utilising instruments that, by necessity, alter the state of what they measure in some manner. A common example is checking the pressure in an automobile tire, which causes some of the air to escape, thereby ...
For example, Newton's laws explained thousands of years of scientific observations of the planets almost perfectly. However, these laws were then determined to be special cases of a more general theory ( relativity ), which explained both the (previously unexplained) exceptions to Newton's laws and predicted and explained other observations ...
Lastly, disguised observation raises some ethical issues regarding obtaining information without respondents' knowledge. For example, the observations collected by an observer participating in an internet chat room discussing how racists advocate racial violence may be seen as incriminating evidence collected without the respondents' knowledge.
Anthropological survey paper from 1961 by Juhan Aul from University of Tartu who measured about 50 000 people. In fields such as epidemiology, social sciences, psychology and statistics, an observational study draws inferences from a sample to a population where the independent variable is not under the control of the researcher because of ethical concerns or logistical constraints.
Common examples of this type of activity are bird watching and whale watching. The process of scientific wildlife observation includes the reporting of what (diagnosis of the species), where (geographical location), when (date and time), who (details about observer), and why (reason for observation, or explanations for occurrence). Wildlife ...