Sunday, August 26, 2018

Getting The Right Pilot Study Equipment

By Daniel Peterson


In terms of physical abilities, there should have been no way that human beings should be the undisputed dominant species on the planet. Pretty much every single animal of similar mass is physically superior. Even when the comparison is whittled down to just the great apes, humanity is still at a massive disadvantage. An athlete with the strictest training, best genetics, and the finest pharmaceutical enhancement is still going to be at a massive disadvantage when compared to a gorilla or even just a chimp. But if humanity does have one thing going for it, it is its brain. Unlike other animals, human beings are more than capable of abstract thought. They can think. They can learn at a much quicker pace. And one method by which they do that requires a bit of trial and error using pilot study equipment.

A pilot study is very similar to an experiment. Except that its purpose is not find some grand scientific conclusion or confirm some theory. No, its purpose is to work out the kinks in the system. In effect, it is a dress rehearsal for the real thing.

The purpose of such an experiment is fairly simple. Whereas most experiments seek to unravel some grand, hitherto undiscovered truth about the universe, a pilot experiment just wants to work out kinks before they go about attempting to discover that grant, hitherto undiscovered truth regarding the universe. In short, it is a rehearsal.

The equipment needed will vary. This is because science itself varies. There are numerous disciplines, like sociology, geology, chemistry, and physics and so on. And even those disciplines branch off into different specialties. A theoretical physicist is not the same as a quantum physicist. Given how diverse science is, the equipment needed not be set in stone. Different disciplines and specialties will require different gear.

The most important factor will be the scientists, the people carrying out the experiment. They are the ones who are going to observe and then record those observations. It is vital that they then be objective. The last thing the world needs are experiments being tainted with confirmation bias.

In some cases, gear should be too difficult to come by. Things like computers and tablets are widely available, as pens and pads of paper. But there will be some stuff that may be a little bit harder to get hands on, such as machines that read and sequence DNA and all that other stuff.

The thing to be done in a pilot study is to be objective. To record and analyze data at a small pool of participants. In effect, it is a dry run for the much bigger show that is to take place later, if the pilot program proves to be successful.

They are needed for one simple reason. A lot of time and money goes into research. Sometimes, the methods which a team will come up with will simply not be feasible. So they need to practice first.

Trial and error. That has been the way of people for centuries. That is unlikely to change now. After all, one must crawl before they can walk.




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