experiment
Sign in to savethumb|Apollo 15 astronaut [[David Scott performs a gravity test on the Moon with a hammer and feather (1971).]] thumb|right|160px|Even very young children perform rudimentary experiments to learn about the world and how things work.
AI overview
An experiment is a test or procedure designed to discover something new or check whether an idea is true by observing what happens under controlled conditions. Experiments matter because they help us understand how the world works, from how objects behave under gravity to how young children learn about their surroundings.
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Article
12 sectionsContents
- Overview
- History
- Types {{anchor|Types of experiments}}
- Controlled experiments
- Natural experiments
- Field experiments
- Observational studies {{anchor|Contrast with observational study}}
- Ethics
- See also
- Notes
- Further reading
- External links
thumb|Apollo 15 astronaut [[David Scott performs a gravity test on the Moon with a hammer and feather (1971).]] thumb|right|160px|Even very young children perform rudimentary experiments to learn about the world and how things work.
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a particular factor is manipulated. Experiments vary greatly in goal and scale but always rely on repeatable procedure and logical analysis of the results. There also exist natural experimental studies.