In the end, a theory is accepted not because it is confirmed by conventional empirical tests, but because researchers persuade one another that the theory is correct and relevant.
Interpretation
The acceptance of a theory relies more on the persuasion among scholars than on empirical evidence alone.
This quote by Fischer Black highlights the social dynamics of scientific acceptance, suggesting that the credibility of a theory often hinges on the persuasive abilities of researchers rather than solely on empirical validation. It reflects the importance of consensus and communication within the scientific community in determining what is accepted as knowledge.
In practice
During a scientific conference, this quote could be used to emphasize the importance of collaboration and consensus in research.
The fossil reserves that have already been discovered exceed what can ever be safely used. Yet companies spend half a trillion dollars each year searching for more fuel. They should redirect this money toward developing clean energy solutions
The roads by which men arrive at their insights into celestial matters seem to me almost as worthy of wonder as those matters in themselves.
When somebody discovers something like the quadratic formula or the Pythagorean theorem, the convention in science is that he can't control that idea. He has to give it away. He publishes it. What's rewarded in science is dissemination of ideas.
What is especially striking and remarkable is that in fundamental physics a beautiful or elegant theory is more likely to be right than a theory that is inelegant.
Every cell in our body, whether it's a bacterial cell or a human cell, has a genome. You can extract that genome - it's kind of like a linear tape - and you can read it by a variety of methods. Similarly, like a string of letters that you can read, you can also change it. You can write, you can edit it, and then you can put it back in the cell.
Science is nothing, but trained and organized common sense.
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