empirics
/ɪmˈpɪrɪks/
noun
- Methods or practices based on observation and experience rather than theory; also, people who rely on such methods (often used in a historical or technical context).
- Ancient Greek empirics relied on direct observation of patients rather than on traditional medical theories.
- The empirics of early chemistry involved a lot of trial and error with different substances.
- Some historians distinguish between rationalist doctors and empirics who trusted only what they could see and touch.