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This article is from the Scientific Skepticism FAQ, by Paul Johnson Paul@treetop.demon.co.uk with numerous contributions by others.

1.4: If scientific theories keep changing, where is the Truth?

In 1686 Isaac Newton proposed his theory of gravitation. This was one
of the greatest intellectual feats of all time. The theory explained
all the observed facts, and made predictions that were later tested
and found to be correct within the accuracy of the instruments being
used. As far as anyone could see, Newton's theory was the Truth.

During the nineteenth century, more accurate instruments were used to
test Newton's theory, and found some slight discrepancies (for
instance, the orbit of Mercury wasn't quite right). Albert Einstein
proposed his theories of Relativity, which explained the newly
observed facts and made more predictions. Those predictions have now
been tested and found to be correct within the accuracy of the
instruments being used. As far as anyone can see, Einstein's theory
is the Truth.

So how can the Truth change? Well the answer is that it hasn't. The
Universe is still the same as it ever was, and Newton's theory is as
true as it ever was. If you take a course in physics today, you will
be taught Newton's Laws. They can be used to make predictions, and
those predictions are still correct. Only if you are dealing with
things that move close to the speed of light do you need to use
Einstein's theories. If you are working at ordinary speeds outside of
very strong gravitational fields and use Einstein, you will get
(almost) exactly the same answer as you would with Newton. It just
takes longer because using Einstein involves rather more maths.

One other note about truth: science does not make moral judgements.
Anyone who tries to draw moral lessons from the laws of nature is on
very dangerous ground. Evolution in particular seems to suffer from
this. At one time or another it seems to have been used to justify
Nazism, Communism, and every other -ism in between. These
justifications are all completely bogus. Similarly, anyone who says
"evolution theory is evil because it is used to support Communism" (or
any other -ism) has also strayed from the path of Logic.

 

Continue to:

• prev: 1.3: Can science ever really prove anything?
• Index
• next: 1.5: "Extraordinary evidence is needed for an extraordinary claim" (scientific skepticism)

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