A few years ago Abram and I were discussing something like this, and converged on “TC Chamberlin’s essay about method of multiple working hypotheses is the key to rationality”. Or in other words, never have just one hypothesis, always have a next best.
From the Google search: Here’s the pdf of the “revised and somewhat shortened” version from 1897. The Google search results also link to several discussions of the essay.
T. C. Chamberlin’s classic essay on “The Method of Multiple Working Hypotheses” was originally published in Science in 1890 and has been cited by virtually all who have struggled to define the scientic method. The version of the essay reprinted here was revised and somewhat shortened by Chamberlin and first published in The Journal of Geology in 1897.
A few years ago Abram and I were discussing something like this, and converged on “TC Chamberlin’s essay about method of multiple working hypotheses is the key to rationality”. Or in other words, never have just one hypothesis, always have a next best.
Much delayed hot take: science is slowing down due to a misapplication of specialization of labor, which drives focus on a single hypothesis.
Link?
From the Google search: Here’s the pdf of the “revised and somewhat shortened” version from 1897. The Google search results also link to several discussions of the essay.