Synchronism vs. Asynchronism of Method Rejection

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When a method is rejected, must it be the case that a theory has also been rejected?

In the scientonomic context, this question was first formulated by Hakob Barseghyan in 2015. The question is currently accepted as a legitimate topic for discussion by Scientonomy community.

In Scientonomy, the accepted answers to the question can be summarized as follows:

  • A method becomes rejected only when some of the theories, from which it follows, also become rejected.
  • A method ceases to be employed only when other methods that are incompatible with the method become employed.

Scientonomic History

Acceptance Record

Here is the complete acceptance record of this question (it includes all the instances when the question was accepted as a legitimate topic for discussion by a community):
CommunityAccepted FromAcceptance IndicatorsStill AcceptedAccepted UntilRejection Indicators
Scientonomy1 January 2016This is when the community accepted its first answer to the question, Synchronism of Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015), which indicates that the question is itself legitimate.Yes

All Theories

The following theories have attempted to answer this question:
TheoryFormulationFormulated In
Synchronism of Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015)A method becomes rejected only when some of the theories, from which it follows, also become rejected.2015

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Accepted Theories

The following theories have been accepted as answers to this question:
CommunityTheoryAccepted FromAccepted Until
ScientonomySynchronism of Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015)1 January 2016

Suggested Modifications

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Current View

In Scientonomy, the accepted answers to the question are Synchronism of Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015) and Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015).

Synchronism of Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015) states: "A method becomes rejected only when some of the theories, from which it follows, also become rejected."

Synchronism-of-method-rejection-box-only.jpg

The principle of this theorem is first introduced in Barseghyan (2015). We recall that "there are two somewhat distinct scenarios of method employment. In the first scenario, a method becomes employed when it strictly follows from newly accepted theories. In the second scenario, a method becomes employed when it implements the abstract requirements of some other employed method by means of other accepted theories. It can be shown that method rejection is only possible in the first scenario; no method can be rejected in the second scenario. Namely, it can be shown that method rejection can only take place when some other method becomes employed by strictly following from a new accepted theory; the employment of a method that is not a result of the acceptance of a new theory and is merely a new implementation of some already employed method cannot possibly lead to a method rejection."1p. 174

As per Barseghyan, it is important to note that "two implementations of the same method are not mutually exclusive and the employment of one doesn’t lead to the rejection of the other".1p. 176 Barseghyan illustrates this nicely with the example of cell-counting methods (see below). Furthermore, he writes, "an employment of a new concrete method cannot possibly lead to a rejection of any other employed method. Indeed, if we take into account the fact that a new concrete method follows deductively from the conjunction of an abstract method and other accepted theories, it will become obvious that this new concrete method cannot possibly be incompatible with any other element of the mosaic. We know from the zeroth law that at any stage the elements of the mosaic are compatible with each other. Therefore, no logical consequence of the mosaic can possibly be incompatible with other elements of the mosaic. But the new method that implemented the abstract method is just one such logical consequence".1p. 176-7

According to the synchronism of method rejection theorem, a method becomes rejected only when some of the theories from which it follows become rejected. By the method rejection theorem, a method is rejected when other methods incompatible with it become employed. By the Third Law, this can happen only when some of the theories from which it follows are also rejected.1p. 177-183

Mechanism of Method Rejection

Method Rejection theorem (Barseghyan-2015) states: "A method ceases to be employed only when other methods that are incompatible with the method become employed."

Method-rejection-theorem-box-only.jpg

According to the method rejection theorem, a method ceases to be employed only when other methods that are incompatible with it become employed.

Related Topics

This question is a subquestion of Mechanism of Method Rejection.

This topic is also related to the following topic(s):

References

  1. a b c d  Barseghyan, Hakob. (2015) The Laws of Scientific Change. Springer.