Comprehensive and systematic collection and analysis of data. Also promulgation of a related hypothesis or theory and its demonstration or proof by publication or by implementation of practical applications.
Research is synonymous with scientific method. It is the mental activity preceding and leading to discovery.
We may or may not be majestic as a species, but if one considers an astronomer sitting alone on a cold night at a telescope on a mountain top, one must conclude we are certainly obsessed with knowing what and where we are.
Research projects have not the capacity to deal with non-recurring phenomena.