[Phys-L] Inventing or discovering?

[Ludwik Kowalski <kowalskil@MAIL.MONTCLAIR.EDU>]

On Saturday, Mar 26, 2005 Jim Green wrote

> . . . We don't discover a "unique force vector"; we invent the
> of a vector with the wild hope that our calculations will be
> made easier.  If we divide a set "force vectors" by the
> associated charge, we have the _invented_  concept of  a
> "vector field."   We have not  _discovered_ a field.
> Nevertheless sometimes we reify the idea of a field.
> This is just fine as long as we remember that this is an
> invention not a bucket of stuff we have discovered. . . .

What a coincidence; the message posted by Allison Innes was the very
next on my screen this morning. Allison wrote:

> There is a mountain of evidence proving that Bell did,
> indeed,  invent the telephone. Granted, other people were
> working on similar (and unsuccessful)ideas, but Bell was
> the first to successfully invent the telephone.

Telephone was "invented," X rays were "discovered"  and the electric
field was "reified." What makes these three terms different?

P.S. Which term is the most appropriate for "energy," "angular
momentum," and "black hole" in physics?

Ludwik Kowalski
Let the perfect not be the enemy of the good.
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