In the modern form of science began to distinguish after the XVII century. Before that, how only they were not called - craft, writing, being, hagiography and other near-scientific terms.

Science - a special kind of human cognitive activity aimed at developing objective, systematically organized and substantiated knowledge about the world. This activity has its own signs, types and levels of scientific knowledge, as well as solves certain problems in society. In the broad sense of the word science is any way of building a rational picture of the world. In a narrower sense, science involves direct or indirect study of the subject in order to cognize it, which is expressed primarily in the experiment as a method of scientific cognition. On the other hand, science is not the only way of obtaining knowledge (way of cognition) available to man; besides science, there are at least religious (based on faith) and empirical (based on personal practical experience) types of knowledge, as well as philosophy.

    This activity is carried out through the collection of facts, their regular updating, systematization and critical analysis. On this basis, generalization or synthesis of new knowledge is performed, which describes the observed natural or social phenomena and indicates cause-and-effect relationships, which allows for forecasting.

There have been many attempts to classify sciences. Aristotle, if not the first, then one of the first, divided the sciences into theoretical knowledge, practical knowledge and creative. The modern classification of sciences also divides them into three types:

Natural sciences, that is, sciences of natural phenomena, objects and processes (biology, geography, astronomy, physics, chemistry, mathematics, geology, etc.). For the most part, the natural sciences are responsible for accumulating experience and knowledge about nature and humans. Scientists who collected primary data were called natural scientists.

Technical sciences - sciences responsible for the development of engineering and technology, as well as for the practical application of knowledge accumulated by natural sciences (agronomy, computer science, architecture, mechanics, electrical engineering).

Social sciences and humanities - sciences about man, society (psychology, philology, sociology, sociology, political science, history, culturology, linguistics, as well as social studies, etc.).

Researchers distinguish four social functions of science:

1.     Cognitive. It consists in cognition of the world, its laws and phenomena.

2. educational. Concludes not only in learning, but also in social motivation, development of values.

3.     Cultural. Science is a public asset and a key element of human culture.

4.     Practical. The function of production of material and social goods, as well as the application of knowledge in practice.

Science is a fascinatingly interesting endeavor, with its beauty, the rise of the human spirit, and the light of truth. Only this truth, as a rule, does not come by itself, as an epiphany, and is obtained by hard and persistent labor. But its price is very high. Science is one of those wonderful spheres of human activity, where the creative potential of individuals and the whole of humanity is most clearly manifested. Practically any person who devoted himself to science and honestly served her, can be sure: he lived his life not in vain.

Isroilova Z.S.-assistant of the department of public health and medical statistics with a course of history of medicine

translated Ismoilov R.