FRANCIS BACON (1561-1626)

Said Bacon, “In science, induction

Is better than boring deduction.

Don’t start with some hunches,

Get data in bunches,

Then work on some theory construction."

Note: Francis Bacon was not the first to use something approaching inductive methods (rather than the Scholastic deductive method, grounded in syllogisms based on universal truths about essences), but he was the first to attempt a systematization of the method and a defense of its promise as a way of discovering the causes of natural phenomena.  Generations of philosophers and scientists were deeply influenced by Bacon’s rejection of a significant portion of Scholastic scientific methodology, and much of what we now take for granted as ways of supporting scientific hypotheses are outgrowths, modifications, or sophisticated versions of his various proposals.