turning theory into praxis?

What Theory is Not, Theorizing Is

What Makes a Good Theory, and How Do We Make a Theory Good?

I present an ontology of criteria for evaluating theory to answer the titular question from the perspective of a scientist practitioner. Set inside a formal account of our adjudication over theories, a metatheoretical calculus, this ontology comprises the following: (a) metaphysical commitment, the need to highlight what parts of theory are not under investigation, but are assumed, asserted, or essential; (b) discursive survival, the ability to be understood by interested non-bad actors, to withstand scrutiny within the intended (sub)field(s), and to negotiate the dialectical landscape thereof; (c) empirical interface, the potential to explicate the relationship between theory and observation, i.e., how observations relate to, and affect, theory and vice versa; (d) minimising harm, the reckoning with how theory is forged in a fire of historical, if not ongoing, abuses—from past crimes against humanity, to current exploitation, turbocharged or hyped by machine learning, to historical and present internal academic marginalisation. This work hopes to serve as a possible beginning for scientists who want to examine the properties and characteristics of theories, to propose additional virtues and vices, and to engage in further dialogue. Finally, I appeal to practitioners to iterate frequently over such criteria, by building and sharing the metatheoretical calculi used to adjudicate over theories.

How can we develop transformative tools for thought?

🛠🧠🖌💥🌎✨🔜

How can we develop transformative tools for thought?

🛠🧠🖌💥🌎✨🔜

Vector theory of change — a theory of change for complex systems - The Cynefin Co

We're launching a short explainer on vector theory of change, which describes how approaches to theory of change thus far have not been suitable for complex systems, and how vector theory of change helps to rectify these issues. It walks you through vector theory of change step by step: starting from where you are, setting direction and finding stepping stones, designing interventions, and monitoring continuous feedback as opposed to recklessly aiming for a fixed endpoint at any cost.

Guide to Incrementals | The Paper Pilot

The Paper Pilot's digital garden of thoughts on philosophy, politics, and sociology

Guide to Incrementals/Balancing | The Paper Pilot

The Paper Pilot's digital garden of thoughts on philosophy, politics, and sociology

My Journey Back to Math: A Short Review of MathAcademy

Personal journey of rediscovering math through MathAcademy and learning in public

Crafting a good (reasoning) model

A recent talk I gave on model training, reasoning, and the next frontier.

Applied Pure Mathematics

Some thoughts about mathematics as a cultural and social technology.

Regenerative Economics - Principles

Our hope is that the Regenerative Economics materials act like a wildflower, taking root in even the smallest of cracks and spreading seeds to change the way economics is understood by young people around the world. The guiding principles: Facilitate change from the ground up: We recognise the

Terence Tao – Kepler, Newton, and the true nature of mathematical discovery

“And what those stories teach us about how AI will revolutionize math”

Alienation, Idealization, and Modeling

Models allow us to expose, explore, and excavate our assumptions. This is especially true for the sorts of assumptions that concern scholars of marginalization and resistance, who aim to show how ...

How physics at the roots of reality point to a grand unified theory | Aeon Essays

Physics displays an uncanny alignment at its very deepest levels. Is a grand theory of everything finally within reach?