Why progress depends on continuously searching for better explanations.
The quality of our understanding depends on the quality of our explanations. Yet we often settle for the first explanation that seems reasonable, fits the available evidence, or confirms what we already believe.
Physicist David Deutsch argues that progress depends on our willingness and ability to continually search for better explanations of reality.
In The Fabric of Reality (1997), Deutsch challenges the idea that scientific knowledge is primarily about collecting facts and making predictions. He writes:
“Facts cannot be understood just by being summarized in a formula […] They can be understood only by being explained.”
Explanations help us understand why things happen, how they work, and what underlying mechanisms produce the outcomes we observe.
But not all explanations are equally good.
In The Beginning of Infinity (2011), Deutsch argues that good explanations are hard to vary. Their details are necessary to explain the phenomenon and cannot be arbitrarily changed without undermining the explanation.
Poor explanations, by contrast, can be easily modified to accommodate almost any evidence. They appear convincing precisely because they are difficult to challenge.
The important implication is that finding an explanation is not the end of thinking. It is the beginning of improving our understanding.
Deutsch writes:
“All progress, both theoretical and practical, has resulted from a single human activity: the quest for what I call good explanations.”
How to Apply the Principle
The practical approach is to treat every explanation, including our most trusted ones, as open to improvement.
This means developing the habit of asking:
- What is my current explanation? Make explicit what I believe and why.
- What does it fail to explain? Identify contradictions, gaps, and unresolved problems.
- Could there be a better explanation? Look for alternatives that explain more, with fewer arbitrary assumptions.
- How can I challenge it? Actively seek criticism and evidence that might reveal errors.
- What have I learned? Improve or replace the explanation when a better one emerges.
This is not about endlessly questioning everything or abandoning explanations that work. It is about recognizing that even our best explanations are provisional and can be improved.
Scientific progress has repeatedly demonstrated that explanations once considered adequate can be replaced by deeper explanations with greater accuracy, explanatory power, and reach.
The same principle applies to how we develop knowledge and make decisions.
The objective is not to find an explanation we can defend indefinitely. It is to keep discovering explanations that are better than the ones we currently have.
This is the foundation of intellectual progress: an ongoing commitment to identifying errors, solving problems, and improving our understanding of reality.
References
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Deutsch, D. (1997). The Fabric of Reality. Penguin. Chapter 1, “The Theory of Everything.” Read chapter.
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Deutsch, D. (2011). The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World. Allen Lane. Introduction and Chapter 1, “The Reach of Explanations.” Read excerpt.