Science is the process of gaining knowledge through scientific inquiry, which involves posing questions, developing hypotheses, designing experiments, collecting and analyzing data, drawing conclusions, and communicating results. A hypothesis is a proposed explanation that can be tested, while a scientific theory is a well-supported explanation that has withstood repeated testing but may later be modified or abandoned if evidence does not support it. Scientific laws describe observable patterns or relationships but do not explain why something occurs.

1. I. SCIENCE The process of having or gaining knowledge.