Friday, August 24, 2018

Getting The Right Pilot Study Equipment

By Daniel Peterson


By pretty much every objective measure, the world used to be empty. But it was not empty. There was plenty of nature around it. Were the world truly empty, then humankind would not have survived even a single generation. But because that nature was there, humanity got to wander around in it without any kind of permanent home. In fact, this nomadic lifestyle was exactly how humanity loved for upwards of ninety percent of its time in the world. Eventually though, it settled down. Instead of hunting and gathering to survive, it cultivated resources to thrive. Now, they learned through trial and error. But that was early humanity. Nowadays, modern humans have a little bit more trial in order to avoid the error, and they do it with pilot study equipment.

First off, a pilot study needs to be elaborated on. In essence, it is similar to a real experiment. But it is done on a scale that is significantly smaller. It will use fewer resources and involve far fewer test subjects.

Its purpose is simple. To find the flaws in the methodology before a larger scale experiment is put into motion. This helps prevent any waste in terms of time and money.

The fact of the matter is that the equipment needed will vary based on the needs of the various experiments. Specialized lab gear might also be needed for the natural sciences. But for the most part, there will have to be computers to record and monitor data. Not to mention software to run those computers. The thing is that there really is no concrete guideline for what kind of tools should and should not be used. In fact, a study can be done with a pen and paper.

The single most important factor is and always will be the people. It is the scientists themselves who will be driving the experiment forward. The tools they are equipped with can be nothing more than a pen and paper. But a experiment can still get done even with just that.

A lot of basic equipment should not be all that hard to find. Anyone can walk into a big box store and buy a bunch of laptops and pens and pads of paper. But certain items like high powered telescopes capable of seeing light years away may prove to be much harder to come by than an average microscope.

The thing to be done in a pilot study is to be objective. To record and analyze data at a small pool of participants. In effect, it is a dry run for the much bigger show that is to take place later, if the pilot program proves to be successful.

Now, the main reasons that pilot experiments even happens is simple. Because everyone needs to practice. If a mistake is made at this phase, then it can be corrected. Athletes, after all, do not go to the big game without first logging in hundreds of hours of practice beforehand. They test out their strategies. A scientist is very similar in that regard.

The world is hard. But humanity is nothing if not innovative. So it found ways to make it easier.




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