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Innovative Research
Research is defined as human activity based on intellectual application in the investigation of matter. The primary aim for applied research is discovering, interpreting, and the development of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge on a wide variety of scientific matters of our world and the universe. Research can use the scientific method, but need not do so.
Scientific research relies on the application of the scientific method, a harnessing of curiosity. This research provides scientific information and theories for the explanation of the nature and the properties of the world around us. It makes practical applications possible. Scientific research is funded by public authorities, by charitable organisations and by private groups, including many companies. Scientific research can be subdivided into different classifications according to their academic and application disciplines.
Historical research is embodied in the historical method.
The term research is also used to describe an entire collection of information about a particular subject.
Basic research
Basic research (also called fundamental or pure research) has as its primary objective the advancement of knowledge and the theoretical understanding of the relations among variables (see statistics). It is exploratory and often driven by the researcher’s curiosity, interest, and intuition. It is conducted without any practical end in mind, although it may have unexpected results pointing to practical applications. The terms “basic” or “fundamental” indicate that, through theory generation, basic research provides the foundation for further, sometimes applied research. As there is no guarantee of short-term practical gain, researchers may find it difficult to obtain funding for basic research. Research is a subset of invention.
Examples of questions asked in basic research:
Does string theory provide physics with a grand unification theory?
Which aspects of genomes explain organismal complexity?
Is it possible to prove or disprove Goldbach's conjecture? (i.e. that every even integer greater than 2 can be written as the sum of two, not necessarily distinct primes)
Traditionally, basic research was considered as an activity that preceded applied research, which in turn preceded development into practical applications. Recently, these distinctions have become much less clear-cut, and it is sometimes the case that all stages will intermix. This is particularly the case in fields such as biotechnology and electronics, where fundamental discoveries may be made alongside work intended to develop new products, and in areas where public and private sector partners collaborate in order to develop greater insight into key areas of interest. For this reason, some now prefer the term frontier research. ...
Research processes
Scientific research
Scientific method:
Generally, research is understood to follow a certain structural process. Though step order may vary depending on the subject matter and researcher, the following steps are usually part of most formal research, both basic and applied:
Formation of the topic
Hypothesis, Conceptual definitions, Operational definitions, Gathering of data, Analysis of data, Test, revising of hypothesis,
Conclusion, iteration if necessary:
A common misunderstanding is that by this method a hypothesis can be proven. Generally a hypothesis is used to make predictions that can be tested by observing the outcome of an experiment. If the outcome is inconsistent with the hypothesis, then the hypothesis is rejected. However, if the outcome is consistent with the hypothesis, the experiment is said to support the hypothesis. This careful language is used because researchers recognize that alternative hypotheses may also be consistent with the observations. In this sense, a hypothesis can never be proven, but rather only supported by surviving rounds of scientific testing and, eventually, becoming widely thought of as true (or better, predictive), but this is not the same as it having been proven. A useful hypothesis allows prediction and within the accuracy of observation of the time, the prediction will be verified. As the accuracy of observation improves with time, the hypothesis may no longer provide an accurate prediction. In this case a new hypothesis will arise to challenge the old, and to the extent that the new hypothesis makes more accurate predictions than the old, the new will supplant it.
Historical
Historical method:
The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use historical sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. There are various history guidelines commonly used by historians in their work, under the headings of external criticism, internal criticism, and synthesis. This includes higher criticism and textual criticism. Though items may vary depending on the subject matter and researcher, the following concepts are usually part of most formal historical research:
Identification of origin date
Evidence of localization
Recognition of authorship
Analysis of data
Identification of integrity
Attribution of credibility
Research methods
The goal of the research process is to produce new knowledge, which takes three main forms (although, as previously discussed, the boundaries between them may be fuzzy):
Exploratory research, which structures and identifies new problems
Constructive research, which develops solutions to a problem
Empirical research, which tests the feasibility of a solution using empirical evidence
Research can also fall into two distinct types:
Primary research
Secondary research.
Research methods used by scholars include:
Action research
Cartography
Case study
Classification
Citation Analysis
Consumer ethnocentrism and CETSCALE
Content or Textual Analysis
Delphi method
Ethnography
Experience and intuition
Experiments
Interviews
Mathematical models
Participant observation
Simulation
Statistical analysis
Statistical surveys
Q methodology
Research is often conducted using the hourglass model. The hourglass model starts with a broad spectrum for research, focusing in on the required
information through the methodology of the project (like the neck of the hourglass), then expands the research in the form of discussion and results.
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