Our universe is a closed system of natural laws and forces; nothing exists beyond this universe that affects it. This premise leads to questions and tests to discover the hypothesis that most closely describes observable reality. An example of the Scientific Method might go like this:
Question – What happens when hands are dunked into liquid nitrogen?
Hypothesis – The hands will freeze and then shatter.
Experiment – Dip a room-temperature hand replica into liquid nitrogen for 1/10th of a second.
Observation – Temperature differences caused the liquid to boil, forming a flesh-protecting air barrier.
Conclusion – It is possible to rapidly dip a hand into liquid nitrogen without it freezing. But don't: it's dangerous.
Scientists avoid bias by trying to prove their theories incorrect. If they cannot show that the hypothesis is incorrect, then they have demonstrated that their idea is most likely true. The experiments must be repeatable so that scientists can test each others’ claims. This helps ensure no mistakes (deliberate or otherwise) are made.
