Applied sciences are those that, rather than being limited to theoretical reflection and the development of theories, focus on solving practical problems or specific challenges through the use of various scientific knowledge . In this sense, they are opposed to basic sciences, whose purpose is solely to increase human knowledge. For example: biotechnology, photography, medicine, engineering.
Applied science gave rise to the notion of technology , which is nothing other than the ability to transform reality through tools capable of carrying out practical tasks that humans cannot perform on their own. It is estimated that technology, both during the Industrial Revolution and during the technological revolution of the late 20th century, has changed the way humankind lives more rapidly and profoundly than ever before.
- It may be useful to you: Hard and soft sciences
Examples of applied sciences
- Agronomy. Also known as agricultural engineering, it encompasses a range of scientific knowledge applicable to agriculture ( physics , chemistry, biology, economics , etc.) with the aim of improving the quality of food and agricultural products obtained and processed .
- Astronautics. The science that explores the theory and practice of navigation beyond the confines of our planet, whether by manned or unmanned vehicles. This includes the manufacture of spacecraft, the design of mechanisms for launching them into orbit, the sustainability of life in space, and so on. It is a complex and varied field of research that leverages various other branches of science.
- Biotechnology. Biotechnology, a product of the application of medicine, biochemistry, and other sciences to human food and nutrition, emerges from the latest techniques in genetic manipulation and biological experimentation to meet the needs of an ever-growing global population . How to make foods more nutritious, how to protect them during planting, how to eliminate their side effects, and more are the questions to which biotechnology seeks practical answers.
- Health sciences. This common term refers to a set of disciplines linked to human health and public health preservation, using tools from chemistry and biology to produce medicines (pharmacology and pharmacy), prophylactic procedures (preventive medicine), and other types of specialties that aim to protect and prolong human life.
- Electricity. One of the applied sciences that most revolutionized the world during the Industrial Revolution was electricity, capable of producing motion, work, light, and heat through the manipulation of electrons and their flow. It is considered an applied branch of physics, although many other disciplines also contribute to it.
- Photography. Although it may not seem like it, photography is a good example of a science applied to a unique purpose: preserving images on paper or in other formats that allow them to be viewed again in the future. In this sense, one of humanity’s greatest desires is fulfilled: preserving things over time, thanks to the work of chemistry, physics (especially optics), and, more recently, computing.
- Livestock farming. The livestock sector also encompasses applied sciences, which study how to improve the nutrition and breeding of domesticated animal species, how to prevent their diseases, and, in conjunction with veterinary science and biochemistry , how to obtain a more efficient food source for humans.
- Computer science. From the complex development of applied mathematics, such as mathematical models and simulations, computer science or computing emerged in the late 20th century as one of the leading applied human sciences in terms of industrial and commercial importance. This includes computer systems engineering, the study of data processing, and artificial intelligence models, to name a few examples.
- Lexicography. If linguistics is the study of languages and human-made languages, lexicography is a branch of that science applied to the technique of dictionary creation. It draws on the sciences of language, as well as library science and publishing, but always with the same goal of producing books that allow us to verify the meaning of words.
- Metallurgy. The science of metals focuses on the techniques for obtaining and processing metals from their source minerals. This includes various quality controls, possible alloys , and the production and handling of byproducts.
- Medicine. Medicine is the first of humankind’s applied sciences. Drawing on tools from biology, chemistry, physics, and even mathematics, medicine aims to study the human body and human life from the perspective of improving health, curing disease, and prolonging life. It is, if you will, the engineering of the human body.
- Telecommunications. It’s often said that telecommunications revolutionized the world at the end of the 20th century, and it’s true. This discipline applies knowledge from physics, chemistry, and numerous engineering disciplines to enable the miracle of overcoming distances and communicating at almost instant speeds using a telephone or computer.
- Psychology. The study of the human psyche allows for numerous applications in the professional and economic fields of human life, such as clinical psychology (treating mental disorders), social psychology (addressing sociological problems), industrial psychology (focusing on the workplace), and a vast array of other fields, making psychology a useful tool for humankind to understand themselves.
- Nanotechnology. This technology draws on chemical and physical knowledge of matter , as well as on biology and medicine, to create industrial, medical, or biological solutions to numerous everyday problems at the atomic or molecular level (nanometer scale). Its ideal is the production of remotely controlled microscopic machines capable of producing or dissolving matter according to specific desired patterns.
- Engineering. Engineering is a set of scientific and technological techniques and knowledge that, organized into various branches of interest, allows humans to innovate, produce, and invent tools that facilitate, protect, and improve their quality of life. Mathematics, physics, chemistry, and other sciences find practical transformation in engineering.
