Why the Arts Need Science
By Sam
I never enjoyed science classes in high school. They were always something I had to do, but never something that I wanted to do. I looked at science as knowledge that’s cool to have but really, really boring to do. Now that I’m in university and have had the opportunity to take some research courses, I’ve completely changed my view.
As part of my Honours Arts degree, I’m in a Research Design and Methods Class which emphasizes the scientific method. Learning to write and communicate well is considered essential for all University students, and understanding the principles of science is just as vital.
After all science is a method of attaining knowledge, not knowledge itself (high school Sam wasn’t terribly bright because he didn’t get this). Second of all, if you understand how to use the scientific method, “doing science” is actually fun. Let’s dig in shall we?
Science Matters!
In high school, I totally missed this point, but the scientific method is not reserved for those studying natural phenomena alone. We tend to discredit the scientific method by thinking it is that limited in scope. Science is simply a method for gaining knowledge.
The scientific method is about developing theories about a cause and effect relationship between two variables and testing those theories with evidence. Science is also meant to be independent of the individual(s) who conduct the scientific method. If done right, any number of observers will make the same observations. While this is review for most of you, it’s important to establish that the scientific method isn’t really that intimidating when it comes down to it. Anyone can be a scientist. The coolest part is that the scientific method just happens to be the most powerful tool we have for understanding how the universe works.
When we embrace being scientists, we expand our toolboxes as academics, problem solvers, and people. Scientists are established through their use of the scientific method, not by what they observe. Someone who claims that all cats are girls and all dogs are boys simply because they feel that way is not a scientist just because they’re concerned with biological phenomena.
By contrast, a person studying how media coverage of female politicians affects rates of threatened violence toward those politicians is a scientist. What they’re studying is “social” and not “natural” in character, but their method is what counts. That’s what I find so empowering about science above all else — it is a way of looking at the world and solving problems.
Science in Arts
Of course, there are real differences between the natural and social sciences. Social sciences have far more confounding variables and operate with many different and sometimes clashing paradigms. In the natural sciences, pretty much everyone can agree on a common paradigm, for example, physicists agree on a definition for a concept like gravity and how to measure that concept. It’s also possible to be deterministic in science, i.e. when given enough information you can predict a given outcome, whereas human behaviour just doesn’t work like that.
Why We Need Both
Embracing the scientific mindset and method are important for making us better students and better people, whether at work or at home. Yet, the communication skills that an Arts degree provides in ample supply are also important. We shouldn’t focus on science or communication as being removed from one another. A brilliant scientist with no way of communicating their work simply and effectively won’t be that successful. Similarly, most jobs worth doing don’t require great communication alone, they also necessitate great analytical skills. That’s why I plan to keep both in mind in all that I do.
