Many non-scientists use the words“hypothesis” and “theory” interchangeably (if they use ‘hypothesis” at all) and as synonyms for “idea.”
To a scientist, hypotheses are much more than an idea, much more than an “educated guess”; they are possible explanations based on numerous and repeatable observations (data). In the hierarchy of the scientific method, a theory is an even stronger statement than hypothesis.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the top scientific society in the United States, defines “theory” as “a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts that have been repeatedly confirmed through observation and experiment. Hypotheses and theories may begin as a bright idea, but they are so much more.
*(http://www.aaas.org/news/press_room/evolution/qanda.shtml accessed 3-25-10)
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