Modern methods of research in biology

The creation of a system of accurate, proven knowledge based on facts that can be confirmed or, conversely, refuted, is the main task of each science. In biology also: the obtained data is constantly put under doubt and allowed only when there is substantial confirmation.

To date, this science considers all living systems. In order to thoroughly examine their organization and activities, the origin, distribution, and the development and connection with each other, with the aim of learning and selection of certain laws, the following research methods used in biology:

1. Comparative - allows you to study by comparing the similarities and differences of living organisms, as well as their parts. The data obtained make it possible to combine plants and animals into groups. This method was used to create a cellular theory, systematics and to confirm the theory of evolution. At present, it is used practically in all directions of this science.

2. Descriptive methods of research in biology (observation, statistics) - allow you to analyze and describe phenomena occurring in living nature, to compare them, finding certain patterns, and to generalize, discover new species, classes, and so on. These methods began to be used in antiquity, but to date have not lost their relevance and are widely used in botany, ethology, zoology, etc.

3. Historical - makes it possible to identify the patterns of formation and development of living systems, their structures and functions, to compare them with previously known facts. This method was used by Charles Darwin to construct his theory, and promoted the transformation of biology from descriptive to explaining science.

4. Experimental methods of research in biology:

A) modeling - allows you to study any process or phenomenon, as well as the direction of evolution by recreating them in the form of a model using modern technology and equipment;

B) experiment (experiment) - the artificial creation in a controlled environment of a situation that helps to reveal the deeply hidden properties of living objects. This method promotes the study of phenomena in isolation, so that you can achieve a repeat of the results when reproducing these same phenomena under the same conditions.

Experimental methods in biology serve not only for conducting experiments and obtaining answers to questions of interest, but also for determining the correctness of the hypothesis formulated at the beginning of the study of the material, and also for its correction in the course of work.

In the twentieth century, these research methods become leading in this science due to the emergence of modern equipment for conducting experiments, such as, for example, a tomograph, an electron microscope, and so on.

At present, biochemical methods, X-ray diffraction analysis, chromatography, as well as the technique of ultra-thin sections, various cultivation methods, and many others are widely used in experimental biology.

Experimental methods combined with the system approach broadened the cognitive capabilities of biological science and opened new ways for applying knowledge practically in all spheres of human activity.

The above methods of research in biology do not exhaust the whole arsenal of ways of obtaining knowledge in science, so they can not be strictly delineated. Used in combination with each other, they make it possible to discover new phenomena and properties in living systems for a short period of time, and also to establish the patterns of their occurrence, development and functioning.