Evolution "theory". Why don't people understand the meaning of the word "theory".?

Question

Can someone please explain the definition of scientific theory? After all, we have the theory of gravity, the theory of cell evolution and the theory of relativity. Are people saying that gravity is just a theory?

Answer 1

Here is an excellent website.
http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/evohome.html
It's published by Berkeley University. So it rates very high on the credibility scale. (unlike sites like answeringgenesis.org which rates high only on the laughable B.S. scale).

For those of you claiming that gravity is a law, do some more reading. The only "laws" of gravity are the ones that Newton wrote himself. And they are not widely accepted.
Einstein himself wrote theories about gravity, as has Stephen Hawkings.
No, gravity is not a law, it's still a theory.

Answer 2

Yes, gravity is just a theory. The easiest way to think of it is that a scientific theory is that is explains a phenomenon. There is a phenomenon that we see where species change, split, and adapt to produce different gene pools and species. A theory (the theory of evolution) states that this is due to things like natural selection and genetic drift. Then there are laws to back up this theory. The same with gravity. There is a phenomenon that mass is attracted to each other. There is the theory of relativity to explain this. Then there are some laws to support this theory. But gravity is still a theory, since it can't be proven what causes it or why it happens.

Answer 3

A theory is "a coherent group of general propositions used as principles of explanation for a class of phenomena" [Random House American College Dictionary]. The term does not imply tentativeness or lack of certainty. For instance Human Sexual Reproduction is the theory that explains where babies come from.


A law is a statement describing a relationship observed to be invariable between or among phenomena for all cases in which the specified conditions are met.

Laws and theories are entirely different types of things one does not become the other. Nor is either dependent on its level of certainty.

Often laws are expressed in an equation relating two distinct things. Examples are newtons force law F=ma or Einstein's Equation equating mass and energy E=mc^2.

Answer 4

Ignorance.

A scientific theory is a hypothesis supported by evidence. Example: The 'Germ Theory of Disease' proposes that micro-organisms are the cause of many diseases. This theory was highly controversial when first proposed but it is now universally accepted by biologists that micro-organisms do indeed cause disease. The theory is supported by evidence, such as the observation that penicillin kills bacteria in culture, and when taken by someone suffering from specific diseases, the patient has a much greater chance of recovering than an untreated patient. This sounds obvious now, but it wasn't always so - people used to think that the idea of micro-organisms causing disease was nonsense.

So, no-one today doubts that germs cause disease but nevertheless the 'Germ Theory of Disease' is still a theory - it is a proposition (or a set of propositions) which seeks to explain an aspect of the natural world and it is consistent with observable facts.

Hope this helps...

Answer 5

A theory is a well-documented explanation of scientific facts that has been accepted by the scientific community. It is not "upgraded" to becoming a fact, because a theory explains a fact.

For example, the fact is that animals change over time. The theory is natural selection.

Answer 6

http://www.evolutiondeceit.com/chapter9.php

Let us suppose that millions of years ago a cell was formed which had acquired everything necessary for life, and that it duly "came to life". The theory of evolution again collapses at this point. For even if this cell had existed for a while, it would eventually have died and after its death, nothing would have remained, and everything would have reverted to where it had started. This is because this first living cell, lacking any genetic information, would not have been able to reproduce and start a new generation. Life would have ended with its death.

Answer 7

Essentially, it's a conclusion brought about by multiple scientific analyses and/or experiments that is most likely a fact. The only difference between a theory and a (scientific) law is the fact that a law CAN NOT be disproven, whereas a theory has a very slight chance of being disproven. (A few theories have been disproven, but a huge majority become laws.)

Answer 8

NOT a theory! Have you visited a library lately?

Our ape-like predecessors kept their stout figures for 2 million years because having short legs ironically gave them the upper hand in male-to-male combat for access to mates, finds a new study.

Early hominins in the genus Australopithecus, which lived from 4 million to 2 million years ago, are considered immediate predecessors of the human genus Homo, and had heights of around 3 feet 9 inches for females and 4 feet 6 inches for males.

Until now, the squat physiques of australopiths and other human predecessors were considered an adaptation for climbing in tree canopies.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,2585...

Answer 9

Deliberate, willful ignorance.

The scientific definition of "theory" refers to a hypothisis that has been tested and has evidence for. Creationists clamp on to the layman (and inaccurate) use of the term and hold on for dear life.

News flash: Everything in science is a "theory". Scientists gave up making up "Laws" a long time ago when they realized that any theory was subject to modification pending new evidence.

Answer 10

Sorry, they will be confused by the fact that gravitational theory has laws and say that it's "a law, not a theory".

They also have a special term for evolution "just a theory". You will seldom see them use the word "theory" by itself.