User:JackTheSecond/A new lead 'scientific method'

Lead section
The scientific method is a scholarly method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of the sciences since at least the 17th century. It is often characterized by systematic observation coupled with rigorous scepticism; the formulation of hypotheses via inductive reasoning; as well as deductively reasoned testing through experimental and statistical analysis.

In the iterative process of scientific inquiry, the standing hypotheses are then either confirmed, refined, or eliminated based on the experimental findings. And, though these are often presented as a fixed sequence of steps, they represent rather a set of general principles. Not all steps take place in every scientific inquiry (nor to the same degree), and they are not always in the same order.

Discussion on the method of science first regained prominence during the scientific revolution with the advancement of early empiricism, as argued for by Francis Bacon, rationalism, especially as advocated by René Descartes and inductivism, rising to particular prominence with Isaac Newton and his followers.

Current, and recent, discussion includes falsificationism, an early proponent of which was Frank Popper; postpositivism replacing neopositivism, a sometimes heated debate influenced by Thomas Kuhn; the post-modern refutations of formalised method, proposed by Paul Feyerabend; and the continuing discussion on the imagined universality of scientific method in science education,, as advocated by John Dewey and Karl Pearson, which is built on hypothetico-deductivism developed on the ideas of C. S. Peirce.

2nd
Scientific method is the systematic approach used by scientists to investigate phenomena, formulate hypotheses, and draw conclusions. It involves careful characterizations, coupled with rigorous scepticism because cognitive assumptions can distort initial perceptions and compromise the integrity of inferences.

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The discussion on how to best advance knowledge has defined the sciences since at least the 17th century,(insert previous note on the scientific revolution) and has at all points in time been subject to debate and disagreement.

[Current (and recent) discussion]