PROPOSAL FOR THE APPLICATION OF CRISTIAN CHALL'S METHODOLOGY FOR THE EVALUATION OF COSMOLOGICAL THEORIES OF THE PAST STATE
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Abstract
The starting point for this essay is to answer the question of why the so-called Past State of the Universe is an epistemic problem that is worth addressing, among other reasons, because if we do not accept its validity this would lead to a ‘skeptical catastrophe’. Subsequently, we review the theory evaluation methodology proposed by Dr. Cristin Chall, who elaborated it from a hybrid between the Scientific Research Programmes (SRPs) introduced by Imré Lakatos, together with the problem-solving capacity in scientific rationality, taken from Larry Laudan's research traditions methodology. Once Chall’s methodology has been reviewed, we intend to apply it to two theories (that of inflation and that of the Conformal Cosmological Cycle) which deal with the so-called cosmological Past State, in order to try to determine which of them is epistemically more viable. It should be noted that our purpose is not to invalidate any of these theories, but rather to carry out an exercise of evaluation of epistemic virtues from the philosophy of science, in this case focused on cosmology.
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