Pattern-chaser wrote: ↑February 6th, 2022, 11:16 am
And what are "hypotheses" - prior to further investigation - but speculation?
stevie wrote: ↑February 6th, 2022, 11:36 am
As written: Scientific hypotheses are supported by logic AND already available scientific knowledge (which is based on scientific evidence). Whereas speculations are groundless fabrications by thought.
Speculations are Einsteinian 'thought experiments', whereby we imagine possibilities. Of course they are fabrications, but they aren't necessarily "groundless". "Scientific hypotheses" are
imagined possibilities, which are usually subjected to scientific scrutiny to see if they have (scientific) merit. It may be that these possibilities are based on existing knowledge, but they remain
speculative until they are firmed-up by other means. Are "scientific hypotheses" somehow different?
Is "
Wow! I wonder if benzene could be structured in a ring...?" a speculation or a hypothesis? It looks like both/either to me.