I've got it down to a...

So, recently I've been wondering, there are these two phrases "Got it down to a science." and "Got it down to an art." Both phrases seem to imply extreme competency at a certain task... but is there a difference between them?

It's been bugging me, so I figured I'd try to stir up a bit of discussion about it.

THE ART OF SCIENCE

THE SCIENCE OF ART

Hm. If I had to hazard, based purely on how I'd interpret the phrases, "down to a science" implies precision and technical accomplishment, while "down to an art" implies elegance and maybe a kind of classiness.

Not a lot in it, as far as I'm aware.

^ The Philosophy of All

The Faith of Nothing

I think Bobby's description sounds right. :3

edited 26th Jan '12 8:07:55 PM by Zersk

I dunno how relevant this is, but medieval swordmasters referred to their martial arts as sciences as well as arts. This isn't uncommon for late medieval and Renaissance practise — many different skills were considered both. I suppose the split in terminology wouldn't have come until later.

Basically, we're looking at a common conceptual root between the two terms. They're more similar than they are different, despite "science" conjuring thoughts of chemistry and its ilk while "art" makes us think of visual arts.

I use both phases, and I tend to make the distinction Bobby gave. "Down to a science" means that I can do it efficiently and precisely the same way every time. "Down to an art" means that I can do it with flair or style every time.

But what about "down to a T"? That one doesn't even make sense.

This guy explains it pretty well, so I'm not gonna try to copy that and pretend I knew it.

I assume "down to a science" means that it's been thoroughly analyzed, and "down to an art" means that's it's good enough that it can be used as a form of self-expression.