The Crossroads between Biology and Mathematics: The Scientific Method as the Basics of Scientific Literacy

Biology is changing and becoming more quantitative. Research is creating new challenges that need to be addressed in education as well. New educational initiatives focus on combining laboratory procedures with mathematical skills, yet it seems that most curricula center on a single relationship between scientific knowledge and scientific method: that of the validity of knowledge claims, judged in terms of their consistency with data. Collecting data and obtaining results (however quantitative) are commonly part of science, but are not science itself. We envision that the operative use of the complete scientific method will play a critical role in providing the necessary underpinning for the integration of math and biology at various professional levels.