The classical observationalist-inductivist account of science

The classical observationalist-inductivist account of science is essentially derived from the view of science where new knowledge is the result of past observations and any knowledge derived thereof is purely inductive. Therefore, it is fallible in the sense that it is not capable of understanding new possibilities unless they have been observed. This view of science is essentially the result of observations by David Hume, who believed that the premise of science is the result of observation of regular occurring events, which does not exclude events which are possible but have not occurred during the inductive process. This is called the "problem of induction".

ee also

*Theories and sociology of the history of science