Theories

• In the box diagram, there was a bit on background research.
• No one comes without a past.
• We have been influenced by existing theories.
• Indeed, to come up with a hypothesis, you have to have some sort of theory already.
• This is good because theories allow things to be tied together.
• They enable us to simplify the problems and reduce problems to ones that have already been solved.
• In some sense, they are key points in our cognitive maps and maps that reflect reality.
• Theories range on how true they are.
• In some sense Newton's theory of gravity is wrong, though it is probably better thought of as incomplete.
• One problem is that whole communities can be stuck in an incorrect or incomplete theory.
• Kuhn talks about paradigm shifts with new theories replacing old ones.
• Theories like gravity, relativity, and evolution are supported by tons of evidence and experiments.
• Other theories are less supported.