Study Guide: Concept 7 — Progressive vs Degenerating

Core Concept

The demarcation criterion: progressive programmes predict novel facts (some corroborated); degenerating ones only accommodate after the fact. Science/pseudoscience is a property of trajectory, not content — and verdicts are provisional (programmes recover).

Key Terms

Progressive/degenerating problemshift · novel fact · use-novelty · accommodation

Case Summary

Einstein: light-bending predicted before Eddington measured — stunning novelty. Marxism, per Lakatos's audit: failed predictions patched by excuses predicting nothing.

Application Checklist

• [ ] Score your framework's last five adjustments: predictions vs excuses
• [ ] Audit one hyped technology by its novel-fact record
• [ ] Set the quarterly Lakatos review on your main strategy

Self-Test

1. Theoretical vs empirical progress — the difference?
2. Why doesn't degeneration equal death?
3. What counts as a "novel fact" after the use-novelty refinement?