"Science books" vs. "Scientific books"

Question

Sometimes I get puzzled whether to use a noun "science" or an adjective "scientific" to modify the following noun. >

So, how could you determine, in general,which one is true? >

Look at these examples

• I would love to read science books.
• I would love to read scientific books.

>

• nervous cells
• nerve cells

Answer 1

Looking at your two examples:

• The book itself is not scientific, but its subject is science.
• The cells are not nervous, but are the type occurring in a nerve.

Some more examples which make the use of an adjective absurd:

• A goat living in the mountains is not a mountainous goat, it is a mountain goat.
• A clasp for the hair is not a hairy grip, it is a hair grip.

Here are some which defeat the above observations:

• A drum containing oil is an oil drum, and is also oily.
• A bag made of leather is a leather bag, and is also leathery.

In the last two examples the adjective is applicable, but only as a property of the object. It does not truly describe the object.

Answer 2

Regarding your first example:

Science is the name of a subject.

Scientific is an adjective that describes something based on or characterised by the methods and principles of science.

So a "science book" would be a book about science.

A "scientific book", if such a book existed, would be a book that in itself follows the principles of science.

Now you might think they are the same thing, but although a book may be about science, it isn't actually the product of science. The book wasn't created in a laboratory under scientific conditions. So I would say that calling a book about science a "scientific book" is not strictly correct, although may well be used idiomatically.

That said, the word scientific may be used to describe something that was not obviously so if it contained some elements that were based upon science. For example a novel or film that features a fictional story but is based upon real science may be described as "scientifically accurate".

Regarding your second example:

This is more problematic because while nervous is indeed related to the nerves, there are also multiple meanings of both.

I do not believe "nervous cells" is correct at all. A single neuron is called a "nerve cell". It is not merely related to nerves, it is a nerve. Nerve cells collectively make up the nervous system.