The progress of molecular genetics

GREAT SCIENCE is characterised by discovery and by finding solutions to real problems. Unlike physics, where a prediction based in theory leads to a search for supporting evidence, progress in biology depends more on systematic experimentation and observation than on any grand hypothesis. This is because biological systems have sequentially and adaptively evolved via mutations in the designer code of our genes. Without an overarching theory, researchers are required to tease out the molecular details of how life works.