ANN and OT: Calling All SETI Enthusiasts

Jim Hurley jhurley0305 at sbcglobal.net
Wed Mar 28 14:28:11 EDT 2012


Roger and RIchard,

Two more distinctions:

1) Theories that supersede vs. theories that overturn

The General theory of relativity superseded Newton's theory of gravity and QM superseded Newtonian dynamics.
In each case, the second is the classical limit of the first.

On the other hand, Newtonian theory of gravity  overturned Aristotelian theory  of gravity.



2) Theories of such weight, of such abundance and breadth of confirmation, vs. Theories of the lesser weight

Regarding this distinction, the current rhubarb over experimental evidence purporting to find neutrinos that traveled at a speed greater than light, some die hard theoretical physicists have recalled Sir Arthur Eddington (renowned British astrophysicist) facetiously  saying "Experiments should not be believed until they have been confirmed by theory." 

The neutrino played a  similar roll many years ago. In a certain collision of elementary particle the evidence of the tracks in the cloud chamber were such that energy was not conserved in the reaction. Rather than admit a violation of such an entrenched  fundamental physical law, it was assumed that there was some, as yet unknown, particle that was invisible in the cloud chamber that had carried away the missing energy. Later that particle was found; it was the neutrino.



Jim



> 
> Message: 21
> Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:51:45 -0600
> From: Roger Guay <irog at mac.com>
> To: use-livecode at lists.runrev.com
> Subject: Re: use-livecode Digest, Vol 102, Issue 56
> Message-ID: <F4ABE6CC-D6A3-4258-8956-25B7172FB0D6 at mac.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII
> 
> Thanks for your great post, Richard. Just one clarification if I may. 
> 
> Hypothesis, Theory and Law have different connotations in science. A good explanation is found at:
> 
> 									http://wilstar.com/theories.htm
> 
> Cheers,
> Roger 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Mar 27, 2012, at 5:43 PM, use-livecode-request at lists.runrev.com wrote:
> 
>> Message: 12
>> Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2012 12:22:20 -0700
>> From: Richard Gaskin <ambassador at fourthworld.com>
>> To: use-livecode at lists.runrev.com
>> Subject: Re: ANN and OT: Calling All SETI Enthusiasts
>> Message-ID: <4F72136C.6060109 at fourthworld.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>> 
>> 
> 
> Snip . . . . snip
> 
> 
>> And Einstein's Theory is just that, a theory.  It's not yet a law, and 
>> for good reason.  Every few years we hear from another quantum physicist 
>> suggesting that they may be on the edge of something that disproves it. 
>> Wouldn't be the first time a new discovery completed shattered our 
>> understanding of how things work.
> 
> snip . . . snip
> 
> 
>> -- 
>> Richard Gaskin
>> Fourth World Systems
>> Software Design and Development for the Desktop, Mobile, and the Web
> 
> 
> 





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