For this theme I have read the articles assigned by the course, the article of my choice and general "stuff" on the webpage of the journal which I chose to write about. I based my understanding of the article I chose on my previous knowledge of the acoustical field, so no further reading was necessary.
What I have learned after this weeks theme is that theory seems to be everywhere and that theory in a scientific context is not just the theory which is proposed but also all the underlying theories on which it is built. When I was reading my article I was frantically looking for theories and with some struggle concluded what was their main theory. It was much harder than I thought to distinguish hypothesis from theory. Also, in my struggle I failed to recognize all the underlying theories at work in the article. Things that are taken for granted in the argumentation and the formation of their hypotheses. Acoustical theory, signal theory, theories regarding perception and regarding human evolution were some of the theories that I disregarded since it was not what they were emphasizing.
A thought occurred during the seminar that I think will help me to further understand theory and that will "keep it in the loop" in my mind. That theories are a natural part of language. Concepts are in a way theories of that which it conceptualize and so in that way we speak in theories.
In the process of trying to understand the essence of theory I made an attempt to define theory. I think it was quite helpful too in my learning process. I am by no means completely satisfied with this definition but I believe it at least provided me with a framework for thinking about theory.
My def: of theory;
Logically sound argumentation proving causality between events based on premises that are fairly assumed to be relevant and sufficient for the argument.
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