(March 29, 2021 at 4:04 pm)polymath257 Wrote: So, no, it *isn't* always possible to simply tweak a theory and keep it going. There are some observations that strike at the central assumptions of a model and show that model to be incorrect.
Good theories have aspects that can be adjusted to new information, but they also have foundational predictions which must hold true or the theory is false.
Bad theories can never be found to be so flawed as to be false, because they never predict anything foundational.