The Logic of Scientific Discovery (German: Logik der Forschung, which, however, literally means "The Logic of Research") is a 1934 book by Karl Popper. Popper rewrote his book in English and republished it in 1959. It argues that science should adopt a methodology based on falsifiability, because no number of experiments can ever prove a theory, but a single experiment can contradict one. Popper holds that empirical theories are characterized by falsifiability.
The German version is currently in print by Mohr Siebeck (ISBN 3-16-148410-X), the English one by Routledge publishers (ISBN 0-415-27844-9).
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