The universal acceptance of atomism in physics and chemistry in the early 20th century went along with an altered view on the epistemic status of microphysical conjectures. Contrary to the prevalent understanding during the 19th century, on the new view unobservable objects could be ‘discovered’. It is argued in the present paper that this shift can be connected to the implicit integration of elements of meta-empirical theory assessment into the concept of theory confirmation.

中文翻译：

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元经验理论评估在接受原子论中的作用

20 世纪初，原子论在物理和化学中的普遍接受伴随着对微观物理猜想认识地位的改变看法。与 19 世纪的普遍理解相反，在新观点中，可以“发现”不可观察的物体。本文认为，这种转变可能与元经验理论评估的要素隐含地整合到理论确认的概念中有关。