The Theory Determines the Observation
I went to Cuba thinking, Okay, I shall simply describe what I see, I will say this happened and that happened, I will not suggest that I approve or disapprove of this form of government. But it is not possible – what you select to write down is in the light of some particular view. You keep experimenting and trying out the favorable and the unfavorable views, but the only way you can select what to write about is in the light of some idea.
Einstein famously said that “the theory determines the observation.” He meant that in an experiment what you tend to observe is what either confirms or disconfirms the theory you started with. Sometimes scientists do manage to notice what appears to be extraneous phenomena, and look for a new explanation. They then hit on new theories, which have to be tested in their turn by experiment. In exactly the same way when you look at the world you start with a set of expectations, and what you see either proves those expectations or doesn’t. Even simply walking down the street, you see roughly what you expect to see – cars moving around, pedestrians walking, shops busy . . . It is very difficult when something happens that doesn’t fit into that pattern.
Writer Michaels Frayn, in The Paris Review
[x]#482 fan vrijdag 9 april 2004 @ 15:00:18
