CHEM 1124Q Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Mercury(Ii) Oxide, Human Eye, Scientific Method
Document Summary
Chemistry is the study of the composition, properties, and interactions of matter. Chemistry occurs whenever someone is involved in changes in matter or, in conditions that may lead to such changes. The path of discovery that leads from question and observation to law or hypothesis to theory, combined with experimental verification of the hypothesis and any necessary modification of the theory, is called the scientific method. The beginning of the scientific method starts with a hypothesis, an explanation of observations that acts as a guide for gathering and checking information. We test a hypothesis by experimentation, calculation, and/or comparison with the experiments of others and then refine it as needed. Some hypotheses are attempts to explain the behavior that is summarized in laws. The laws of science summarize a vast number of experimental observations, and describe or predict something of the natural world.
