IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH FOR SOCIETY AND HUMANITY - SCIENCE - 2024

The importance of scientific research is that it is key to obtain new knowledge and to solve problems that allow the advancement of society and the survival of the human being. Without research, there would be no very important advances for human beings, such as medicines, telescopes, means of transport, the media or travel to space.

Scientific research is one of the most important elements of our culture, and without a doubt the one that has advanced the world the most over the past centuries. Thanks to the invention of the scientific method and its applications, our daily life has completely changed, thus increasing our well-being and ending all kinds of problems that previously affected the entire world.

Without research space travel would not be possible

However, today many people still do not know why scientific research is so necessary. At the state level, many countries do not invest enough in this area; and some individuals even go so far as to reject science outright.

In this article we will see the importance of scientific research in several different areas, so that we can understand a little better what this way of collecting data is used for and what impact it has on different areas of our lives.

What is scientific research for?

The best way to understand the importance of scientific research is by remembering some of its most important applications. In this section we will see some of the most impactful areas of science and how they affect our lives in a direct way.

- Acquisition of new knowledge

Scientific research is essential to acquire new knowledge; in fact it is the most reliable way to do it. This knowledge can be obtained in the different branches of science; medicine, physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, etc.

For example, in biology a new type of cell could be discovered and what its functions are in the human body. In chemistry, a new chemical element could be discovered, its properties and what its applications may be.

- Fight against diseases

Sandia National Laboratories, United States.

One of the first areas that come to mind when we think about the impact of science is that of medicine. Thanks to research, we have been able to completely eradicate diseases that once caused millions of deaths around the world; and we have reduced the impact of others that we have not yet been able to completely eliminate.

For example, the discovery of penicillin and antibiotics helped us reduce deaths from infections with bacteria, which were once among the leading causes of annual death.

Today, research is more focused on ending problems such as cancer or neurodegenerative diseases, having reduced its scope significantly in recent decades.

- Fight against climate change

Climate change is caused by greenhouse gases products of human activity

One of the main arguments against science is that its advances have largely caused climate change. However, what many people do not understand is that it is also our main tool to solve this problem.

Thus, the development and improvement of renewable energies, studies on nuclear fusion or the creation of mechanisms to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere could completely solve climate change in the coming decades.

- Improved quality of life

The importance of scientific research is seen as clearly as possible in its impact on our daily lives. Discoveries made in recent centuries have completely changed the way we understand the world, and have eliminated many of the problems that our ancestors had to face.

For example, hydroponic crops have allowed the production of quantities of food unthinkable only a few decades ago; and the creation of refrigerators and freezers has helped us have unlimited access to food at any time of the year. Something similar happens with running and clean water, an element that we take for granted but that a few centuries ago was a very rare good.

- Creation of new opportunities

Sandia National Laboratories, United States.

In the old days, most people's life plan was very simple: work from dawn to dusk in the fields to get enough food to survive one more season. Today, however, scientific research has allowed us much greater freedom to choose what we want to do.

Easy access to food, an increase in the quality of life and the creation of technologies such as the Internet or modern means of transport have played a fundamental role in creating the lifestyle that the inhabitants of the countries enjoy today. developed.

- Increase in life expectancy

Another of the areas in which the importance of scientific research can be seen most is in the increase in average life expectancy; that is, the statistically years that a person born in a developed country can live.

Life expectancy has been increasing little by little since the Industrial Revolution. Formerly, it was around 35 years of life; while in some parts of the world, today it is approaching 80 years.

- A help for the

Research plays a vital role in business. Many successful companies, such as those that produce consumer goods or mass merchandise, invest in research and development (known as R&D).

R&D also makes it possible to offer new products and services that solve new problems. For example, pharmaceutical companies have to invest in research to discover new drugs that treat diseases for which there is still no cure.

Another example is technology companies, such as Apple or Samsung, which invest in R&D in order to offer new products that differentiate them from their competitors.

Reasons for the importance of scientific research

But why is science so important, and how can it affect so many different fields in such a significant way? In this section we will see the main reasons that explain the importance of research.

- It allows us to adapt to the world

Scientist examining the result of a plaque analysis, a test that allows for how many flu virus particles are in a mixture.

One of the most important functions of science is to help us understand our environment. Thus, the more the natural sciences (such as physics, biology or chemistry) advance, the more we know about the world around us and how it works.

Thanks to this knowledge derived from scientific research, we are able to create solutions to fight the most common problems in our environment.

For example, understanding the immune system and viruses helped us create vaccines, which have been used to eradicate many very dangerous diseases.

- Helps us think logically

In its most essential form, the scientific method is nothing more than a tool that allows us to use our intelligence to solve problems in a methodical and rational way. This has helped us face increasingly complicated challenges, which we would not have been able to solve if it were not for this way of working.

For example, the application of the scientific method and research on new building materials, the effects of gravity and fossil fuels allowed us to send rockets into space, with all the changes this has brought about in our daily lives.

- Develops our mental capacities

The application of the scientific method implies thinking in a very unusual way in other areas of life. Among other things, research requires keeping an open mind, exploring all options, using creativity to seek new explanations and solutions, and being able to maintain objectivity at all times.

In this way, scientific research becomes in many cases a tool to improve the mental capacities of the people who are dedicated to it. Thanks to science, geniuses like Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein were able to change the world using only their thinking.

- Open up new opportunities

Within the world of science, it is said that the development of research is exponential. This means that when a new discovery is made, it opens the doors to many others that may occur in the future.

Thus, the steam engine was initially used to create automatic sewing machines; but later it allowed us to make new discoveries that have led us to build cars, airplanes and even space shuttles.

- It allows to join the efforts of many people

The final benefit of using the scientific method is that, as it is an organized set of steps and techniques, it can be followed by anyone, and its results are understandable to anyone who is familiar with it.

In this way, the investigations are based on previous work, thus achieving much greater advances in a faster way.

Importance of research in everyday life

Despite the fact that many times we think of science as something very distant, which only occurs in universities and laboratories, the truth is that it is an essential element in our day to day life. Virtually everything we do in our daily lives is influenced by the scientific method and its achievements.

From modern means of transportation, to mobile phones, computers, and the Internet, to the way we get our food, clothing, and shelter, almost none of the elements of our daily lives would have come into existence had it not been for scientific research.

Importance of research for the development of knowledge

Science is not only responsible for improving people's lives directly. In other areas, it also focuses on the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the world around us.

In this sense, the pure and natural sciences have the greatest impact on our understanding of the universe. Thanks to physics, for example, today we understand fairly roughly the way our environment works; and sciences such as biology and psychology help us understand living beings and ourselves.

Social impact

Despite the fact that social movements have had great importance in areas such as obtaining rights and improving our quality of life, science has had an impact at least as great as they in this regard.

For example, the creation of new agricultural techniques allowed a large part of the population to stop working in the fields, with the consequent increase in the quality of life and the creation of the 40-hour work week. Something similar happens with the creation of wealth, which grows more and more as new scientific discoveries are made.

Themes of interest

Importance of market research.

Kind of investigation.

Exploratory investigation.

Basic investigation.

Field research.

Applied research.

Pure research.

Explanatory research.

Descriptive research.

References

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2. 'The “Times” on the Importance of Scientific Research'. Nature 11, 102-104 (1874). doi.org/10.1038/011102a0.
3. "7 Reasons Why Research Is Important" in: Owlcation. Retrieved on: January 29, 2020 from Owlcation: owlcation.com.
4. “Science and technology as social processes. What science education should not forget." in: Organization of Ibero-American States. Retrieved on: January 29, 2020 from Organization of Ibero-American States: oei.es.
5. "Why is science necessary?" in: Madrid Más. Retrieved on: January 29, 2020 from Madrid Más: madridmas.org.