Philosophy, Science, and Social Research

"If a great theory cannot be tested, it is philosophy, not science." -- The Elegant Universe

Does this statement imply the importance of the burden of proof in Social Sciences research? Since Communication Studies falls under the disciplinary umbrella of Social Sciences, must our argument be judged on its convincing power to its readers? If the argument is made based on philosophical approaches, must the conclusion still be valued based on its scientific validity?

Late last night, PBS aired the first part of the NOVA program "The Elegant Universe," which presents the concept of String Theory, one of the latest and most fascinating conceptions of the universe. According to Brian Greene, professor of physics and mathematics at Columbia University, String Theory proposes a startling idea that successfully unites the laws of the large—general relativity—and the laws of the small—quantum mechanics—breaking a theoretical deadlock that has frustrated and puzzled scientists for nearly a century.

Inspired by String Theory, Communication Studies scholar R. Schrag has written on Chord Theory (waiting to be published, I think). According to String Theory, Schrag says, "the building blocks of everything are infintesimally vibrating strings. If we acknowledge that a tiny vibrating string creates musics, then, at the center of everything lies music that comes together in chords of increasing complexity that ultimate compose the symphony of the universe. Understanding that composition process, the ways in which strings and notes come together to form chords is the objective of Chord Theory. Chord Theory provides significant new insight into those areas of quintessentially human composition: love, faith, truth and beauty."