Quote:
Originally Posted by DanishDynamite
We can propose anything we want, but if the propositions can't be tested, even in principle, they are of no more relevance than any other ravings.
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The general progression of theories is this:
1.) There is an inconsistency with the currently used model.
2.) The inconsistencies are documented over a range of different situations.
3.) The nature of the inconsistency is studied.
4.) A new theory, which is usually just a modification of the original one, is proposed that includes
a. a more accurate explanation of where the inconsistency is observed.
b. and a mathematical prediction of things that would be true if the inconsistency is accounted for.
5.) the mathematical predictions of the theory are usually proved to be real.
6.) New inconsistencies are found, which are less significant than the ones the theory fixed.
This predictive power is based in the mathematics, and is one of the defining features of theories in general. For example, the Theory of Relativity predicted black holes, which no sane person at the time could possibly believe in, but they were proven to exist later on.