experimentation

Etymology

From Latin ex- + -periri (akin to periculum), "attempt". Morphologically experiment + -ation

noun

1. The act of experimenting; practice by experiment.
2. (sciences) A set of actions and observations, performed to verify or falsify a hypothesis or to research a causal relationship between phenomena.
   As in much of biology, the most satisfying truths in ecology derive from manipulative experimentation. Tinker with nature and quantify how it responds. 2012-01, Robert M. Pringle, “How to Be Manipulative”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 1, archived from the original on 2013-10-03, page 31