[klabb3]

> Not possible. Theory comes first.

I used to think this way but it’s significantly more liberating and true to see theory as plausible explanations. Theories are very often afterthoughts, where the utility is prediction of new events, or narrowing the search space of experiments. A theory explaining past events only is not really a theory at all. But you can narrow search space in many ways without elaborate theories. For instance, you may assume that since birds can fly, if we make a machine that looks similar, we might be able to fly as well. Terribly simplistic theory, but nevertheless a good starting point.

[tdehnel]

Calling theories useful if they predict future events is called Instrumentalism and it’s a dead end if your goal is to understand reality.

“The magician will pull a rabbit from the hat” might reliably predict what happens, and be testable, but it is not a good scientific explanation because it doesn’t help anyone understand how the trick works.