Theories are hypotheses for science to prove or disprove...?

Question

So why is it still Darwin's Theory and not Darwin's Law?

Answer 1

Science never calls anything a law anymore. All models are just close approximations and we have learned that everything has a little error.

Hypotheses are untested. Theories are tested and have passed everything so far. Gravity is still a theory, and no one doubts it. We actually have a better idea how evolution works than gravity.

Answer 2

A hypothesis is an idea or set of ideas about how something works. When evidence in sufficient quanitity is accumulated, the hypothesis becomes a theory.

The difficulty is the ambiguity that attaches to the word theory. In the scientific context the word means a set of assumptions that have been born out by evidence, while in norma loquendi, it means an incomplete guess, or hunch about something.

When we talk of Darwin's theory, or the theory of relativity, we are discussing ideas which have been born out by evidence.

Answer 3

No, that's not what a theory is. A theory is a well-established idea of how something works. It is repeatable, predictable, and fasifiable. It contains facts and laws. Theories are not promoted to laws or facts - they are already above that level. Theories are the most powerful tools that science has.

Answer 4

We do not call things laws any more. It may suprise you to know that all the 'laws' of physics, such as motion and gravity, are in fact not true yet those that we call theories such as Relativity and Evolution are in fact still correct (and by that we mean not yet disproved as with all of science).