Examples of Formal Sciences

The formal science are those in which analytic propositions take the statements of mathematics and logic. In this way, his area of ​​study is not the real world but rather the ideal world, empty forms of content than in many cases may not be fully observable, but they are valid analytical tools to understand the reality. For example: statistics, logic, mathematics.

The formal sciences are characterized by not coming into conflict with reality, since they do not have the responsibility of being verifiable. On the contrary, the formal sciences need to use propositions that they are demonstrable in a logical sense, and that they can happen: otherwise, these sciences make use of ‘axioms’ which are self-evident propositions that are accepted without requiring prior proof.

The use of axioms is related to the usual method of this type of science, which is the Deductive method: taking the axioms as a starting point and then proceeding in a derivative way, arriving at the propositions as necessary logical consequences of the previous propositions. It is said, then, that a formal system is composed of the following:

It can serve you:

They oppose the Factual Sciences

Usually the notion of formal sciences comes in contradistinction to factual science, which are the ones who study the facts. Both one and the other are very important in today's world, as they are a complement between the two: the contributions of some fundamental sciences in what is technological advance (such as the chemistry or computing) are supported by formal systems such as mathematics.

Examples of Formal Sciences

1. Theoretical Computer Science. Division within computer science, which focuses on the most abstract and mathematical aspects of the area. It includes the analysis of algorithms and especially the formal semantics of programming languages.
2. Statistics. Science that is responsible for collecting, organizing, processing, analyzing and interpreting data in order to deduce the characteristics of a population objective.
3. Logic. Discipline that studies the formal procedures of reason, trying to know what type of procedures are used by the human brain through formal propositions.
4. Math. Deductive science that is dedicated to the study of the properties of abstract entities and their relationships. Works with numbers, symbols, and geometric figures.
5. Systems theory. Interdisciplinary study of systems in general, in order to study the principles applicable to systems at any level in all fields of research.

Follow with: