Theory or Hypothesis
By Mark Stewart
Posted 8-19-2007
A theory may exist at all levels of precision or validity. There really is no such thing as a “typical”
scientific theory, because the word “theory”, which I have indicated previously refers to the
interpretation of the facts, can exist in all degrees of sureness and certainty, as well as all degrees of
sophistication and development. We can begin at one end with a hypothesis. What is a hypothesis? A
hypothesis is an idea put forward to explain certain observations. Strictly speaking, when we gather
observations together, the first stage in our theoretical work is to advance a hypothesis. There is a
sense in which all theories are hypotheses until they have been subsequently tested by specially
designed experiment. I will say more about this, but a hypothesis is a foundation for the development
of ideas. It comes from a Greek word that means “to put beneath”, “to lay beneath”. A hypothesis is a
foundation. It is not, therefore, something insubstantial and flimsy. In fact it is quite the opposite. It is
a substance, a foundation, a premise, and a starting point. It is not a complete theory any more than a
foundation for a building is the complete building, but just as a building needs a foundation so any
theory needs a hypothesis. So at its inception the newly created theory is a hypothesis, something
proposed but not fully developed, a basic concept that enables us to develop ideas and to build a
self-respecting theory upon it.
The hypothesis stands at one end of the theoretical spectrum. At the other end there is the fully
developed theory that passes into the book as “natural law”. There are theories that have not only
been advanced to explain facts, but that have been developed and established by subsequent
experiment and various tests. They have stood the test of time and further investigation; they
become well established, and they pass into the realm of scientific law. There is therefore a vast
spectrum of possibilities. If I say I have a theory, you may properly ask, “Where in that spectrum does
the theory lie? Is it a hypothesis, a premise, a starting point on which to develop ideas? Or have you
worked all the way through it, and have you come to a complete, finished, tested theory that we can
call a scientific law? Or does it lie somewhere between these extremes?” And that is the second point
that theory can exist on all levels of precision or validity.
There is one very real problem that we meet at this juncture. We start with a hypothesis. There is no
difficulty in providing a hypothesis, but when we want to develop it into an established theory, real
difficulties may emerge because some of the things we need to do, by way of experiment, to prove
our hypothesis and to strengthen our theory, are for one reason or another inaccessible. Ghost
theory, at least at this point in time, remains somewhat illusive. This is not to say great gains can’t be
made. A lot of provocative thinking and theorizing, as well as much experimentation and more
research need to be done and quantified. But I believe it must be done with a solid foundation. Thus
these series of articles are a beginning. Later I will delve into electromagnetic theory and how it
relates to the paranormal. My next article will deal with the nature of theory and dealing with reality.