Lakatos

Imre Lakatos was a philosopher of science who developed a model to understand how scientific theories progress. He proposed that science advances through "research programs," which consist of a central theory and a set of supporting assumptions. These programs are evaluated based on their ability to explain new facts and predict outcomes, while also allowing for some flexibility to modify ideas in response to new data. Unlike the idea that science only moves forward through simple hypotheses testing, Lakatos emphasized continuous development and the importance of a research program’s overall ability to solve problems over time.