We seek explanations when we encounter a problem with existing ones. We then embark on a problem-solving process. New explanatory theories begin as unjustified conjectures, which are criticized and compared according to the criteria inherent in the problem. Those that fail to survive this criticism are abandoned. The survivors become the new prevailing theories, some of which are themselves problematic and so lead us to seek even better explanations. The whole process resembles biological evolution.
Noticing problems required first a world view—having a collection of explanations for how things are in the world. Without them, you won’t notice how things could be better, or rather where things are lacking. When your best explanations fail, that’s the opportunity. How you define the problem in that instance determines the shape of the explanations that you can come up with.
