Wikipedia:Words to avoid: Difference between revisions

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Do not use ''[[theory]]'' to mean ''guess'' or ''speculation''; however, the verb ''to theorize'' may be appropriate for learned speculation.

In the [[natural science]]s and other academic fields, a theory is a coherent explanation that is consistent with available knowledge and that has passed multiple independent tests. Well-known examples are [[Albert Einstein]]'s theory of [[general relativity]], [[B.F. Skinner]]'s theory of [[reinforcement]] ,<ref>Skinner, B.F. (1969). Contingencies of reinforcement: a theoretical analysis. Appleton-Century-Crofts ISBN 0-13-171728-6.</ref> and the [[modern evolutionary synthesis]]. Theories are open to constant scrutiny that often reveals their limitations, as with [[Isaac Newton]]'s [[Newton's law of universal gravitation|theory of gravity]], but they remain highly accurate descriptions of observable data within these limitations.

,and the [[modern evolutionary synthesis]]. Theories are open to constant scrutiny that often reveals their limitations, as with [[Isaac Newton]]'s [[Newton's law of universal gravitation|theory of gravity]], but they remain highly accurate descriptions of observable data within these limitations.

In [[mathematics]], ''theory'' is used to refer to a body of knowledge consisting of many theorems about related objects, as with [[Galois theory]] or [[Representation theory]]. A ''[[theorem]]'' is a proven result, and a ''conjecture'' is a proposed but unproven hypothesis.