This is in sharp contrast to current beliefs that scientific discoveries must be falsifiable. The steps described below are one of many ways to outline the methods employed by scientists. Note, however, that all of the steps are rarely applied by any one individual or group of individuals. The complete process requires communication among many groups, especially in the publication of results of experiments. The first step of modern scientific investigation is still observation.
Observation can be indirect, as evidenced by the use of tools and equipment.
Advancements in technology has dramatically broadened our ability to observe. The microscope, invented around the early 1600s, increased our powers of observation of the diminutive. Whereas the telescope, also invented in the early 1600s, increased our powers of observation of the universe beyond our world. Advances in technology include the use of electron microscope, with abilities to distinguish features in the billionth of a meter range and the Hubble telescope, that is still providing the most clear images ever seen of bodies billions of miles from earth. Whereas these tools have enhanced the limits of the human senses, other instruments measure outside humans senses.