THE EXACT SCIENCES

The exact sciences are those sciences that produce scientific knowledge from applied, empirical, quantifiable, generally
experimental theoretical models, which are based on the steps of the scientific method and objectivity as the mechanisms to
understand their different areas of study.
The exact sciences are also known as pure sciences, hard sciences or fundamental sciences.
They are distinguished from the so-called soft sciences or human sciences, whose axes of study are based on conjecture,
qualitative analysis and experiments that yield uncertain, non-predictive results.
It is not a universal or determining classification of the sciences, but usually these terms - hard, pure, exact - are used somewhat
colloquially to discern certain fields of knowledge. In fact, no contemporary science embraces or claims paradigms of accuracy or
immutable truth, regardless of the methods and approaches on which it is based.
Not even the natural or experimental sciences can be considered truly exact sciences today. Even so, this term is commonly used
to distinguish, often pejoratively, between more formal fields of scientific practice and others that are less strict or less recognized
as such.
Examples of exact sciences
1. Mathematics. Since it operates based on a set of relationships, signs and proportions of a logical and abstract nature,
mathematics as a formal science uses exact and determined, repeatable and deducible, more or less experimental methods. It is
considered the epitome of formal sciences, since many others, such as physics, use it to establish their reading of the world.
2. Physics. Often understood as mathematics applied to the description of the phenomena and forces that occur in the surrounding
reality, it is based on the aspiration of a formal measurement and theoretical description of the universe. To do this, it uses
experimentation, observation and numerous instruments, although in some variants such as quantum physics and even
astrophysics, the degree of uncertainty and conjecture is much greater.
3. Chemistry. It studies the functioning of matter and the atomic relationships in it, chemistry undertakes experimentation as a way
to demonstrate with more or less accuracy a set of its fundamental theoretical principles, replicable in the laboratory and with
numerous demonstrable daily applications.
4. Geology. Interested in the formation and origin of the various elements that make up the Earth, this exact science uses others
such as chemistry and physics to obtain demonstrable, experimental results accompanied by a theoretical formulation regarding
the subsoil layers and the processes by which she experienced. However, it is possible that there is some room for speculation in
the historical recomposition of the substrates that formed the planet.
5. Biology. The study of life is also a field extremely attached to the principles of the scientific method that propose observation,
examination, hypothesis and experimental reproduction to verify the accuracy of the assumptions. In that sense, biology is linked
with other natural sciences in its approach to the living world in its different possible scenarios.
6. Biochemistry. Hand in hand with chemistry and biology, this science focuses on understanding the chemical processes of living
matter, and for this, accuracy is always an important goal. The detailed study of the molecular relationships that allow life entails
the opening of much more complex fields of intervention and experimentation with demonstrable results.
7. Pharmacology. One step ahead of biochemistry and hand in hand with medicine, pharmacology seeks the greatest possible
accuracy in the intervention of the human body with various compounds of natural and artificial origin, in order to generate well-
being and cure illnesses and diseases.
8. Computing. Product of the application of mathematics in the complex elaboration of logical systems, it is an exact science as
long as its results are predictable: systems can be built that carry out tasks in a verifiable and demonstrable way, very close to
accuracy (although many experiences computer systems have an irremediable margin of error in most systems, as any Windows
user knows).
9. Oceanography. The science that investigates the composition of the waters and bottoms of the seas and oceans uses biology
and chemistry to understand the biotic and physicochemical processes that occur in these specific areas. To that extent, their
studies are reproducible in the laboratory and factually verifiable.
10. Medicine. Combination of other exact sciences applied to the logic and functioning of the different organs and tissues of the
human body, with the aim of alleviating their illnesses and diseases, as well as repairing their damages and traumas to the extent
possible, aspires to an important margin of accuracy, since human lives depend on it.
The exact sciences, also known as hard sciences, pure sciences or fundamental sciences , are based entirely on observation and
experimentation as practices to create knowledge based on mathematical language. They are sciences of high precision and rigor,
since the scientific method is used in its purest form to test hypotheses using mathematics as a vehicle to do so.
Precision and rigor are two of the main characteristics of the exact sciences, a branch in which the most rigorous scientific method
is used to test hypotheses. These sciences seek the irrefutability of their postulates using quantifiable and objective predictions.
In the case of the exact sciences, the aim is to ensure that the hypotheses and postulates are irrefutable through quantifiable and
objective mathematical equations and operations . These fundamental principles are known as axioms.
Currently, as established by Rudolf Carnap , the exact sciences are divided into formal (non-experimental) and natural
(experimental) sciences. Among the formal sciences, we find mathematics, logic and formal logic. In the natural sciences they are
astronomy, biology and physics .
The exact sciences have laid the foundations for scientific knowledge since their origins . While it is now clear that not all
knowledge can be quantified, from this premise many of the fundamental laws, principles and theories that govern the basic
principles that have been assumed for centuries, such as gravity .
Each science has its own dimension . Therefore, there are social sciences, health sciences, those that are based on probability (for
example, meteorology) or those that deal with some aspect of nature (biology, zoology , etc.). One of the most relevant sciences is
mathematics, which is also called the exact sciences. The term is used in plural because mathematics is made up of differentiated
branches such as algebra, arithmetic, geometry or probability. On the other hand, the word exact is used because the different
areas of mathematics have something in common : their demonstrations are unequivocal and indisputable, that is, exact.
What are the exact sciences
The exact sciences are those that produce knowledge through methods of observation and experimentation. This investigation is of
an orderly and rigorous nature. This branch of knowledge is also known as pure sciences, hard sciences or fundamental sciences.
To study reality, they usually follow flexible and constantly improving theoretical models. They do this with the purpose of obtaining
results that can be measured. This study is also characterized by following rules that can guarantee objectivity during the research
processes.
As its name indicates, an exact science seeks precise results. The conclusions reached must be able to be validated in physical
reality. It must also be possible to order them based on the language of mathematics. In general, the exact sciences propose the
use of methods that make irrefutable both the impartial nature of the studies and the results achieved. Likewise, scientists resort to
a methodology that prevents their own personal ideas from intervening. Doing this allows them to make predictions that will then, in
practice, be invalidated or validated.
In other words, the hard sciences only admit facts and principles that are susceptible to demonstration. This can be achieved
through mathematical systems and models applied in experimentation processes. This quality distinguishes them from the so-
called soft sciences, also known as human or social sciences. The latter use qualitative study methods, and their study axes are
based on theories and conjectures with more or less authority, although generally accepted to carry out the investigations. Unlike
“pure disciplines”, their results are marked by uncertainty and imprecision.
The origin of pure sciences
Despite what it may seem to us, the statement “exact science” is an expression that is derived from a classification of sciences
made at the beginning of the 20th century. This classification is still valid in academic settings. In fact, the Royal Academy
dictionary equates it to mathematics. It should be noted that since the origin and development of the new scientific paradigms,
some thinkers think that this has changed. For example, they defend the opinion according to which the so-called pure or exact
sciences have stopped responding to what defined them since their birth: their ability to provide exact results, free of uncertainty.
Likewise, it is possible to distinguish between disciplines that propose two types of accuracy: experimental and non-experimental.
The first are those capable of demonstrating their hypotheses in the experimentation process. On the other hand, the latter focus
on ideal objects. Scientists in this area use axioms (propositions that do not need to be proven) to drive logical deductions. These
conclusions are not necessarily supported by concrete reality. Thus, these disciplines can be developed from logical deduction
processes (going from the general to the particular) that use statements based on axioms.
Brief history of the exact sciences
The journey from knowledge to the accuracy postulated by the hard sciences was long and complex. Before the scientist Isaac
Newton published his work Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica , the sciences were a set of disciplines that were
confused with the arts. Thus, during the Middle Ages this knowledge was grouped into the so-called “seven liberal arts.” Among
them two groups could be found: the Trivium or arts of eloquence: dialectic, rhetoric and grammar; and the Quadrivium made up of
music, geography, arithmetic and astronomy.
As you can see, it is the latter that gave rise to the expression “pure sciences”, given that the object of study of each of them was
considered to be in its pure state. In this way, arithmetic studied numbers in a state of purity, and so on in other cases.
The Greek influence on the exact sciences
However, classical Greece had set an important precedent in logic and numbers. For example, the philosopher Aristotle codified
and ordered the steps that reasoning follows when trying to make a demonstration. Today we can find this information in the
Órganon, which is a compilation of his works on logic. Likewise, mathematics, as a pure science, also has important antecedents in
the various Greek schools such as the Athenian, Ionian or Pythagorean. In this sense, one of the most significant advances in logic
was due to Euclid. This Greek mathematician managed to integrate all existing theorems into a single diagram based on five
axioms.
With the arrival of the Middle Ages, starting in the 6th century, higher studies began to be governed by the aforementioned Trivium
and Quadrivium . This happened until the arrival of the Renaissance era. From this, thinkers such as Bacon, Galileo and later
Descartes laid the foundations of the current scientific method. Later, it was consolidated by Newton and his Mathematical
Principles of Natural Philosophy, a work that marked a milestone in the history of science.
The pure sciences in the modern era
Already in the 20th century, the well-known scientists Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell published three works that
emulated the name of Newton's book (Principia Mathematica). This occurred starting in 1910 and represented an effort similar to
that made by Euclid in his time. Why can we say this? Because it was an attempt to compile all the mathematical knowledge of the
time from a series of axioms. Based on the study of the work of Whitehead and Russell, the German philosopher Rudolf Carnap
proposed a new classification. This classification of sciences is the one we still use today: formal, non-experimental, natural and
social sciences.
Professionals in the exact sciences
Among the so-called pure or exact disciplines are mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, geology, biochemistry, computing,
pharmacology, oceanography or medicine. Each of them has various branches or applications. Of all these, mathematics is
considered a reference among the formal sciences. This is because other disciplines such as physics resort to it to support their
own research.
In this way, professionals from pure disciplines are in charge of planning, coordinating and directing research and activities. They
develop these activities in the aforementioned fields of physics and mathematics, biological sciences, research and statistics,
development of chemical plants, preparation of financial reports, assistance in a multitude of projects related to production or the
environment, among others. As you can see, there are many subjects they cover.
In conclusion, the so-called pure sciences offer a diversity of professions. Do you know others? Do you know of other applications
of exact sciences? Well, we are waiting for your comment!
 1. What are the formal sciences?
Formal sciences or ideal sciences are those sciences whose object of study is not the world and nature , nor the physical or
chemical laws that govern it, but rather formal systems, that is, systems of relationships that are, in principle, empty of content.
own, but that can be applied to the analysis of any segment of reality .
Formal sciences do not study real objects, but forms : abstractions, relationships, ideal objects created in the human mind. It could
be said that they are not so much interested in the what, but in the how: the forms and not the contents.
This type of science is analytical or non-empirical, that is, it does not validate its theories and knowledge through experimentation
or observation of the real world, but rather through the study of the rules of thought that are specific to the system, such as
propositions, axioms, definitions and inferences. Its method, therefore, is normally deductive.
They are distinguished from the factual sciences , whose objective is the understanding of the real and tangible world through the
scientific method , and which includes the natural sciences and the social sciences .
What are formal and factual sciences?
Formal sciences are those sciences with a systematic basis that analyze coherent and rational knowledge through logical
processes applied in a physical-natural reality ( mathematics , logic, statistics, computer sciences ).
Factual sciences seek coherence between facts and their representation : they analyze the physical-natural reality of the real world
through observation and empirical experimentation ( chemistry , physics, biology , etc.).
Formal and factual sciences, on the other hand, analyze real and ideal elements alike . For example: the human being is a 'real'
object whose environment is no longer 'natural' but one of its creations, something that is neither natural nor unequivocal or
permanent.
See also: Qualitative research .
Characteristics of formal and factual sciences :
1. Study object
The formal sciences have as their object of study the forms empty of content , the objects created by man in his mind, his forms.
Facts have as their object the physical and natural reality, the real world: it studies the facts and their correlations.
Formal and factual sciences analyze real objects in ideal environments , and ideal objects in formal environments (such as
emotions in the human mind).
2. The truth"
Formal sciences seek to demonstrate theorems , taking as “truth” that which is necessary and formal, that which has logical
coherence within a system.
Factual sciences consider as “truth” that which approves the contrast of the analysis, the results, and verifies or refutes the initial
hypothesis.
The result of the analyzes is considered a “provisional truth” , since in this analysis the reality and the framework of the analysis
can be modified.
3. Methodology
In the formal sciences, the application methodology is the deductive method: induction, deduction and logic . In the factual
sciences, the method is observation and experimentation: the scientific method . The methodology of both will also depend on the
object of study and its environment and environment, sometimes real, and sometimes ideal.
It may help you: Deductive method .
4. Tools
Formal sciences use definitions, axioms, rules of inference and propositions , always of the analytical type, since it is not possible
to make observations of the real world. Factual sciences use empirical methodologies, observation, study and analysis. In the
formal and factual sciences, the tools will combine both alternatives, according to the object and its medium in the situation
analyzed.
5. Classification
The objects of study of formal and factual sciences can be distinguished, according to their application, into three main branches:
 Natural Sciences. They analyze the environment , the natural environment, climatic adaptations and others.
 Social Sciences. They analyze man as an individual, and more.
 Cultural sciences. The human as part of a time and a place – society .
6. Aim
 Formal sciences. The objective is to find evidence, to demonstrate a notion.
 Factual sciences. The objective is to prove or refute initial hypotheses.
7. Symbols

In the formal sciences, symbols are usually empty and interpretable (for example, a calculation like 'x+5=7' deserves the
interpretation that defines 'x'). In the factual sciences the symbols are determinate, not open to interpretation (in the chemical
composition of water 'H 2 O', 'H' is the element Hydrogen unequivocally).
The symbol used must adapt to the object of the study , and unambiguous symbols can be used in some cases, although analysis
of the symbols is normally required (if a historical period is studied, it will be adapted to the site, the people analyzed, and more).
8. Verification
In formal sciences, the verification method must correspond to logic: the results work in a strict theory, and under all conditions. In
fact, the verification will be demonstrated in practice : the rule is fulfilled whenever it happens under certain conditions. Therefore,
the verification will depend on the analysis or study carried out, taking into consideration the objects.
9. Time
Formal proofs are complete and final, and factual proofs are temporary and incomplete . In this case, the times of the formal and
factual results will also be temporary or provisional, since the elements are both ideal and formal.
10. Examples
They include what are usually called “natural” sciences (biology, geography , climatology, etc.), the “social” ones ( history ,
literature , demography , etc.) , and also the so-called “cultural” ones ( psychology , sociology , anthropology , economics) . ,
politics , etc.).