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Question-driven stepwise experimental discoveries in biochemistry: two case studies.

Michael Fry1

  • 1Department of Biochemistry, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, POB 9649, 31096, Haifa, Israel. mickey@technion.ac.il.

History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences
|March 23, 2022
PubMed
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New experimentalism in science emphasizes theory-free exploration. Question-guided experiments in biochemistry, like those discovering cyclic adenosine monophosphate and ubiquitin, demonstrate a distinct subtype of this scientific inquiry.

Area of Science:

  • Philosophy of Science
  • Biochemistry
  • Life Sciences

Background:

  • Traditional view: theories drive scientific knowledge growth, experiments are secondary.
  • New experimentalism challenges this, highlighting theory-free exploratory experimentation.
  • Complex biological systems often necessitate theory-independent experimental approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To challenge the theory-centric view of scientific progress.
  • To identify and describe a distinct subtype of new experimentalism.
  • To illustrate this subtype with two case studies in biochemistry.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of historical scientific discoveries.
  • Case study examination of two biochemical discoveries: cyclic adenosine monophosphate and ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation.
Keywords:
Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)Hormone signalingNew experimentalismProtein degradationUbiquitin

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  • Describing research driven by substantial questions rather than pre-existing theories or techniques.

    • Main Results:

    • Identified two major biochemical discoveries driven solely by substantial questions.
    • Demonstrated that theory-free exploratory experimentation can lead to significant findings.
    • Characterized these discoveries as a distinct subtype of new experimentalism: question-guided, stepwise investigations.

    Conclusions:

    • Theory-free, question-guided experimentation is a viable and effective mode of scientific inquiry.
    • This approach is particularly relevant in complex fields like biochemistry.
    • The described subtype expands our understanding of how scientific knowledge grows.