Editing S.C.I.E.N.C.E. (section)

===Songs===
About the opening track "Redefine", Boyd said in 1997:
{{cquote|"Redefine" is about the creation of your own reality and your own world. The metaphor I used was humans being like Magic Markers. For so long, they painted black and white pictures in their life because that's all they thought they could do. But they can paint with a different color and make a very vibrant and beautiful picture if they take control.|4=Brandon Boyd (1997)|5=<ref name=ly />}}

On the single "New Skin", he further elaborated:
{{cquote|In "New Skin", I attribute a scab to the present state of society. The way the scab looks in its worst state is gross and chaotic and horrible, that's now, but when it breaks away, there's a brand new piece of skin that's stronger than before. It's like creation out of chaos.|4=Brandon Boyd (1997)|5=<ref name=ly />}}

The song "Favorite Things", according to Boyd, related to the topic of religion:
{{cquote|"My Favorite Things" is my personal beliefs about religion and how it oppresses the things I enjoy the most. Unfortunately, the simplest things, such as thinking for myself, creating my own reality and being whatever the hell I want to be each day of my life, are a sin. To be a good Christian basically means to give up the reigns of your life and let some unseen force do it for you.|4=Brandon Boyd (1997)|5=<ref name=ly />}}

"Favorite Things" also includes a sample of the 1959 track "Flamenco Fantasy", by [[easy listening]] group the [[101 Strings|101 Strings Orchestra]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.whosampled.com/sample/121289/Incubus-Favorite-Things-101-Strings-Flamenco-Fantasy/|title=Incubus's 'Favorite Things' sample of 101 Strings's 'Flamenco Fantasy' &#124; WhoSampled|website=[[WhoSampled]] }}</ref> The song has a similar title to "[[My Favorite Things (song)|My Favorite Things]]", from the ''[[Mary Poppins (film)|Mary Poppins]]'' musical and film, with both songs repeatedly mentioning their titles in the lyrics. However, it does not musically reference "My Favorite Things". The single "A Certain Shade of Green" has been described as being a song about [[procrastination]].<ref name="songfacts">{{Cite web|url=https://www.songfacts.com/lyrics/incubus/a-certain-shade-of-green|title=Lyrics for A Certain Shade Of Green by Incubus - Songfacts}}</ref> The line "Are you gonna stand around till 2012 A.D.?" is a reference to [[2012 phenomenon|an interpretation]] of the [[Maya calendar|Mayan calendar]] which dictated that the world would end on December 21, 2012. Boyd did not believe this to be true, but it was on his mind as his mother was researching it for a book called ''Maya Memory: The Glory That Was Palenque''.<ref name="songfacts"/>

While recording "Nebula", Boyd said in 1997, "we found out what it's like to actually plug a phaser pedal into the wall while it's on. It sounds like a laser gun, and that's the first sound you hear in 'Nebula'."<ref name="ly"/> He added that for the song, "we used these walkie-talkies for children that have this Slinky-like coil between them. When you talk through them and hit the coil, it makes this natural reverb, like talking in another dimension."<ref name="ly"/>

"Summer Romance (Anti-Gravity Love Song)" was the first love ballad the band wrote, but was written in a less serious manner than later songs touching on similar subjects, such as "[[Stellar (song)|Stellar]]". It featured saxophonist Jeremy Wasser of [[Hoobastank]], a band which grew up in the same neighborhood of Southern California. The members of Hoobastank had known Incubus since 1993, and through them were introduced to Jim Wirt in 1996, with Wirt going on to produce several Hoobastank recordings.<ref>https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Hits/00s/2002/Hits-2002-02-15.pdf</ref> At that time, Hoobastank were unsigned and also playing a funk metal-style of music inspired by bands like Faith No More and Mr. Bungle. By the time Hoobastank signed to [[Island Records]] in 2000, they got rid of Wasser and had changed their sound to a more straightforward rock style.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mtv.com/news/rjpmiv/hoobastank-crawling-out-of-incubus-shadow|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221204105348/https://www.mtv.com/news/rjpmiv/hoobastank-crawling-out-of-incubus-shadow|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 4, 2022|title=Hoobastank 'Crawling' Out Of Incubus' Shadow|website=MTV}}</ref> The penultimate track "Deep Inside" is another of the lighter songs on the album, drawing heavily from funk music. However, it also has a short heavy metal section beginning roughly 3 minutes into the song. The lyrics reference being high on drugs at 3 A.M. in the morning, and as the song goes on the time progresses to 4 A.M. and eventually 5 A.M.<ref>"Deep Inside" lyrics, Incubus. (Epic/Immortal Records, 1997)</ref> "Deep Inside" stopped being performed live when Alex Katunich left Incubus at the beginning of April 2003, with the last known performance coming during December 2001.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.setlist.fm/stats/incubus-1bd68944.html|title=Incubus Tour Statistics &#124; setlist.fm|website=www.setlist.fm}}</ref>

The closing track "Calgone" lyrically revolves around an alien abduction.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://chorus.fm/reviews/incubus-s-c-i-e-n-c-e/|title=Incubus – S.C.I.E.N.C.E.|date=September 8, 2022|website=chorus.fm}}</ref> It ends with a sound clip of the band arguing with DJ Lyfe (who is referred to by his real name of Gavin), for supposedly deleting a track they had been working on in the studio.<ref>"Calgone" lyrics, Incubus. (Epic/Immortal Records, 1997)</ref> On physical versions of the album, "Calgone" is followed by a hidden track called "Segue 1", which plays after 30 seconds of silence. The hidden track is also known as "Jose Loves [[Kate Moss]], Part 1", and has been treated as a separate track on streaming sites such as [[Spotify]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://open.spotify.com/album/0XC5hMpEFLDSuRxc5bVtIZ|title=S.C.I.E.N.C.E.|date=September 9, 1997|via=open.spotify.com}}</ref> It begins with a sound recording at a morgue, and the pathologist is describing injuries a patient had sustained during a car crash on May 12, 1997.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://hiddensongs.com/incubus-science|title=Incubus: "Segue 1" from S.C.I.E.N.C.E.}}</ref> The hidden track goes on to feature several different sound samples and funk/electronic musical pieces. It samples sounds from the 1985 [[Sorcerer (pinball)|Sorcerer pinball machine]] and the song "Show Me Your Titz", from Hoobastank's 1997 demo ''Muffins''.<ref name="samp"/> It also has an electronic piece in the style of [[Mozart]]'s [[Toy Symphony]], a sound sample of an unknown woman saying "is this the shit, or what?", and a short skit parodying ''[[The Karate Kid]]''.<ref name="samp">{{Cite web |url=https://www.whosampled.com/Incubus/Segue-1/|title=Segue 1 by Incubus - Samples, Covers and Remixes |website=WhoSampled}}</ref><ref>"Calgone" lyrics, Incubus (1997).</ref>