Hi Chris,
Thank you for your reply. You just walked into a very old discussion that is unfortunately found entirely within the scientific community. It is with you that the confusion continues to be spread.
The word theory is a scientific word in origin, which means we can ignore the non-scientific use of the word immediately. Let's not discuss that.
Theory = Fact(s) + Hypothes(is/es)
The Heliocentric theory ended up being proven and ceased to be a theory therefore. We do not talk about the Solar System theory; we say the Solar System.
Same for Evolution. It has been proven many times over. You even say so yourself and yet you keep the label in place that it is a theory. You are the one making the mistake and then try to justify it, warping the correct scientific use of the word.
Theories that have been proven cease to be theories.
The confusing part in science is twofold.
On the one hand, we have the Scientific Method in which the word theory is often seen as the goal. That is fine, truly nothing wrong with that, yet it is correct only for the Scientific Method itself. Most students learn this and do not learn the full meaning of the word theory.
Many people were not educated to learn that there is still a bit of Science remaining once we left the Scientific Method. Science is larger than the Scientific Method.
I already mentioned how the theory tag may have remained with Evolution. This is my explanation, so I don't mind being wrong about this if there is more data available. I think scientists could not agree when to stop calling Evolution a theory, and it was actually handy to keep it in place not to offend others (religious leaders in particular). It is especially with Evolution that we still see the tag theory attached to it, yet I have seen it more commonly used as 'field' nowadays, too.
It is not uncommon that a word gets used in another spot in language, and I do not mind this use, but this makes it harder to see what the word actually means.
Lastly, the word theory itself.
The Greek word Theo is the basis for this word and this can actually be translated with it then meaning God. But... this is not the Western idea of God, not connected to matter. Rather, this is a God that is tied to the facts. It is the unseen part attached to the seen part.
Same in the scientific theory. The hypothesis is the balloon that is tied to the facts on the ground.
The closer the balloon to the ground, the stronger the theory. The further away the balloon in the sky, the weaker the theory.
Yet when the theory touches the ground it ceased to be a theory. The balloon has then become a fact on solid grounds, not floating. Or, if it was an incorrect hypothesis, the balloon popped.
Chris, this may be a surprise to you. You may even decide to ignore this and say that I am wrong. But many scientific teachers are not teaching their students the full meaning of the word theory, so don't feel too bad about it.
