Compatibility Criteria
What is compatibility criteria? How should it be defined?
It is necessary to define compatibility criteria in order to understand the method of any scientific community. The definition of method suggests that it can consist of different criteria for theory assessment. The question is how compatibility criteria are different from other criteria of theory evaluation. Thus, it is a key concept in current Scientonomy.
In the scientonomic context, this question was first formulated by Hakob Barseghyan in 2015. The question is currently accepted as a legitimate topic for discussion by Scientonomy community. Compatibility Criteria (Fraser-Sarwar-2018) is currently accepted by Scientonomy community as the best available definition of the term. Compatibility Criteria (Fraser-Sarwar-2018) states "Criteria for determining whether two elements are compatible or incompatible."
Contents
History
Acceptance Record
| Community | Accepted From | Acceptance Indicators | Still Accepted | Accepted Until | Rejection Indicators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scientonomy | 1 January 2016 | Yes |
All Theories
| Theory | Formulation | Formulated In |
|---|---|---|
| Compatibility Criteria (Barseghyan-2015) | Criteria for determining whether two theories are compatible or incompatible. | 2015 |
| Compatibility Criteria (Fraser-Sarwar-2018) | Criteria for determining whether two elements are compatible or incompatible. | 2018 |
Accepted Theories
| Community | Theory | Accepted From | Accepted Until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scientonomy | Compatibility Criteria (Barseghyan-2015) | 1 January 2016 | 11 October 2020 |
| Scientonomy | Compatibility Criteria (Fraser-Sarwar-2018) | 11 October 2020 |
Suggested Modifications
| Modification | Community | Date Suggested | Summary | Verdict | Verdict Rationale | Date Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sciento-2018-0017 | Scientonomy | 28 January 2018 | Accept the new definition of compatibility criteria as criteria for determining whether two elements are compatible or incompatible. | Accepted | The discussions concerning this modification took place mostly online, but primarily outside of this encyclopedia. There is a communal agreement that the modification is to be accepted as it fixes "an obvious drawback of [Barseghyan's] original definition".c1 Since "compatibility is a stance that can be taken towards methods, theories, and questions alike"c2 it is agreed that we need a definition that is applicable to all epistemic elements, not merely theories. It was also noted that the new definition has the advantage of being "neutral to the the addition of new epistemic elements to the scientonomic ontology".c3 | 11 October 2020 |
Current View
In Scientonomy community, the accepted definition of the term is Compatibility Criteria (Fraser-Sarwar-2018). It is defined as: "Criteria for determining whether two elements are compatible or incompatible."
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Like demarcation and acceptance criteria, compatibility criteria can be part of an epistemic agent's employed method. An epistemic agent employs these criteria to determine whether two elements (e.g. methods, theories, questions) are mutually compatible or incompatible, i.e. whether they can be simultaneously part of the agent's mosaic. In principle, these criteria can be employed to determine the compatibility of elements present in the mosaic, as well as those outside of it (e.g. scientists often think about whether a proposed theory is compatible with the theories actually accepted at the time). Fraser and Sarwar point out that Barseghyan's original definition of the term "excludes a simple point that is assumed elsewhere in scientonomy: elements other than theories (i.e. methods and questions) may be compatible or incompatible wit… Read More
Related Topics
This topic is also related to the following topic(s):
- Mechanism of Theory Acceptance
- Mechanism of Scientific Change
- Demarcation Criteria
- Acceptance Criteria
- Scientific Change
- Theory
- Method
