Elegant Science
ABSTRACT Elegance is a prized quality in science that is associated with simplicity and explanatory power. This essay considers the qualities that make a scientific model, experiment, method, or theory “elegant,” with a focus on the life sciences. We propose a definition of elegance that includes cl...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Society for Microbiology
2018-03-01
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| Series: | mBio |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mBio.00043-18 |
| _version_ | 1818345522679775232 |
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| author | Arturo Casadevall Ferric C. Fang |
| author_facet | Arturo Casadevall Ferric C. Fang |
| author_sort | Arturo Casadevall |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Elegance is a prized quality in science that is associated with simplicity and explanatory power. This essay considers the qualities that make a scientific model, experiment, method, or theory “elegant,” with a focus on the life sciences. We propose a definition of elegance that includes clarity, cleverness, correctness, explanatory power, parsimony, and beauty. The pursuit of elegance can improve the quality of science, but elegance must be pursued with caution, as the truth is sometimes inelegant. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T17:03:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c64930b6a7c34a81a7709ff58e17b49c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2150-7511 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T17:03:43Z |
| publishDate | 2018-03-01 |
| publisher | American Society for Microbiology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | mBio |
| spelling | doaj.art-c64930b6a7c34a81a7709ff58e17b49c2022-12-21T23:37:45ZengAmerican Society for MicrobiologymBio2150-75112018-03-019110.1128/mBio.00043-18Elegant ScienceArturo Casadevall0Ferric C. Fang1Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USADepartments of Laboratory Medicine and Microbiology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USAABSTRACT Elegance is a prized quality in science that is associated with simplicity and explanatory power. This essay considers the qualities that make a scientific model, experiment, method, or theory “elegant,” with a focus on the life sciences. We propose a definition of elegance that includes clarity, cleverness, correctness, explanatory power, parsimony, and beauty. The pursuit of elegance can improve the quality of science, but elegance must be pursued with caution, as the truth is sometimes inelegant.https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mBio.00043-18elegantreproducibilityrigor |
| spellingShingle | Arturo Casadevall Ferric C. Fang Elegant Science mBio elegant reproducibility rigor |
| title | Elegant Science |
| title_full | Elegant Science |
| title_fullStr | Elegant Science |
| title_full_unstemmed | Elegant Science |
| title_short | Elegant Science |
| title_sort | elegant science |
| topic | elegant reproducibility rigor |
| url | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mBio.00043-18 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT arturocasadevall elegantscience AT ferriccfang elegantscience |