Maths and science both have profound value in our everyday lives and while they are connected in many ways there are also significant differences between them. Although maths encompasses many aspects of science such as physics or calculations, many of us often forget it because of the differences in their method and their deemed value in everyday life.
Maths is a system revolving around numbers, or truly any values since numbers are a system created by humans which have given us consistency and ease. The mathematical method is based on axiomatic truths which essentially have 100% certainty. Maths uses these axioms and established theories as the starting point and there must be fixed rules (previous theories) to get to an end goal of solving a problem. This is why mathematical theories, unlike scientific ones, have stayed the same for a significant period of time. In maths we have learnt pythagoras’ theorem about triangles every year in maths and it has been consistently true since BC. However due to the nature of the scientific method there have been many changes in what is considered ‘true’. There are many instances in Biology and our syllabus even includes knowing about the falsification of ideas which were once considered true such as the structure of a phospholipid bilayer, or the different models for the atom in chemistry. Maths, on the other hand doesn’t change as it is based on axiomatic theories.
The scientific method is based on observations, hypotheses and then physical experimentation and replication which may disprove theories and give us a better understanding of our world. The mathematical method looks for proofs for axiomatic theories rather than trying to disprove them. Maths is theoretical so it often seems like there isn’t ‘experimentation’ done but there is.
The scientific method tries to find explanations for our human world but since it is based on observations it is prone to biases which arise since science cannot completely prove anything. There are also controversies over issues such as lack of evidence. The debate over the extinction of the dinosaurs involves many factors, such as the lack of concrete evidence as the event happened so many years ago. Maths on the other hand is a devised system so there isn’t ‘observable’ evidence especially none that will deteriorate over time. However since the mathematical method is based on axioms and proven theories it is not as expanding and innovative as the scientific method. It allows us to answer the specific questions about things humans have created (such as what is the sum of the angles in a triangle) but may not be as useful in exploring things which were/are unknown to us (e.g. how was the universe created or what are the contents of a cell.
