While empirical investigations of the natural world have been described since antiquity (for example, by Aristotle, Theophrastus and Pliny the Elder), and scientific methods have been employed since the Middle Ages (for example, by Ibn al-Haytham, Abu Rayhan Biruni and Roger Bacon), the dawn of modern science is generally traced back to the early modern period, during what is known as the Scientific Revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries. The Greek word for science is 'επιστήμη', deriving from the verb 'επίσταμαι', which literally means 'to know'.
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I disagree with your comment that the methods used by Ibn al-Haytham somehow falls short of the true scientific method. He conducted many experiments that include all the step of the modern scientific method with the same objective: to test the validity of a hypothesis. For example, Ibn al-Haytham devised a camera obscura to test a hypothesis about light rays. Having established that light travels in rays in all directions from illuminating and reflective surfaces, Ibn al-Haytham wanted to test his hypothesis that light rays do not interfere with each other when they intersect. To prove this he set three lamps on a table and created a screen with an aperture with a wall beyond. Light rays from the lamp on the right passed through the aperture and created an image on the left side of the wall. Light rays from the left created an image on the right. This showed that the light rays were intersecting at the aperture. Since the image on the wall was clear, Ibn al-Haytham concluded that the light rays did not interfere with each other. Ibn al-Haytham was the first person to test hypotheses with concrete, verifiable experiments, earning him the distinction of being the first true scientist. Anyone interested in learning more about this great man is invited to read my book, Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist.
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