Trending Scientific Theories in USA this year
The 100 most-viewed scientific theories this year on Wikipedia (USA). Ranked by real-world attention. Top: Big Bang.
100
Ranked
440,895
Total Views (this year)
1
Big Bang
hypothetical begin of the Universe through expansion out of an infinitely small and infinitely dense state
32,122
views
views
2
Fermi paradox
apparent contradiction between the lack of evidence and high probability estimates for the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations
29,254
views
views
3
flat Earth
archaic conception of the Earth's shape
26,075
views
views
4
theory of relativity
two interrelated physics theories by Albert Einstein
20,680
views
views
5
race
nonscientific human classification system primarily based on physical appearance
18,456
views
views
6
Dyson sphere
hypothetical megastructure, originally described by Freeman Dyson
16,210
views
views
7
general relativity
standard and classical physics theory of gravity and space
15,547
views
views
8
accelerationism
political philosophy that the prevailing system of capitalism should be expanded in order to generate radical social change
14,871
views
views
9
uncertainty principle
fundamental principle in quantum physics
13,516
views
views
10
special relativity
physical theory of measurement in an inertial frame of reference proposed in 1905 by Albert Einstein
11,468
views
views
11
Bose–Einstein condensate
state of matter of a dilute gas of bosons cooled to temperatures very near absolute zero
8,636
views
views
12
infrared radiation
electromagnetic radiation with longer wavelengths than those of visible light
8,626
views
views
13
Coriolis force
apparent or fictitious force on objects moving within a reference frame that rotates with respect to an inertial frame
8,261
views
views
14
meritocracy
political system in which capital is assigned on the basis of competence
7,404
views
views
15
germ theory of disease
prevailing theory about the cause of infectious diseases
6,941
views
views
16
boson
quantum system invariant by exchange of two identical instances
6,672
views
views
17
Einstein field equations
field equations in general relativity
6,206
views
views
18
heliocentrism
astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around a relatively stationary Sun at the center of the Solar System
5,872
views
views
19
trickle-down economics
economic theory
5,739
views
views
20
miasma theory
obsolete medical theory about the transmission of disease through bad air
5,638
views
views
21
Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era
a political theory attributed to Xi Jinping, the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party
5,418
views
views
22
big lie
gross distortion or misrepresentation of the truth
5,394
views
views
23
Lamarckism
hypothesis that an organism can pass on characteristics that it has acquired through use or disuse during its lifetime to its offspring
5,155
views
views
24
Third International Theory
theory of governance proposed by Muammar Gaddafi
5,097
views
views
25
Kurgan hypothesis
theory of Indo-European origin
4,611
views
views
26
axial tilt
angle between the rotational axis and orbital axis of a body
4,533
views
views
27
Darwinism
theory of biological evolution driven by natural selection
4,302
views
views
28
spherical Earth
assertion that the Earth is (at least approximately) spherical
4,262
views
views
29
continental drift
movement of Earth's continents relative to each other
4,218
views
views
30
insanity
abnormal mental or behavioral patterns
3,729
views
views
31
Realism
international relations theory
3,523
views
views
32
HIV/AIDS denialism
belief, contradicted by conclusive evidence, that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) does not cause acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AID
3,421
views
views
33
free energy principle
hypothesis in neuroscience proposed by Karl Friston
3,281
views
views
34
vitalism
discredited scientific hypothesis
3,231
views
views
35
Rényi entropy
family of diversity measures generalising Shannon entropy
3,170
views
views
36
spontaneous generation
disproven theory of life arising from nonliving matter
2,974
views
views
37
von Mises yield criterion
concept in continuum mechanics
2,973
views
views
38
Socialism in One Country
political theory by Joseph Stalin
2,949
views
views
39
Bose-Einstein statistics
statistical description for the behaviour of bosons
2,905
views
views
40
phlogiston theory
superseded scientific theory about combustion
2,865
views
views
41
Turing pattern
how patterns in nature, such as stripes and spots, can arise naturally and autonomously from a homogeneous, uniform state
2,743
views
views
42
principal–agent problem
conflict of interest when one agent makes decisions on another's behalf
2,718
views
views
43
Fermi–Dirac statistics
behaviour of many identical fermions, particles with half-integer spin
2,601
views
views
44
two-nation theory
political ideology that, in the Indian subcontinent, Hindus and Muslims comprise separate nations
2,576
views
views
45
History of atomic theory
history of scientific theory that views matter as made up of atoms of chemical elements
2,497
views
views
46
perturbation theory
quantum mechanics
2,495
views
views
47
cell theory
scientific theory that living organisms are made up of cells, that they are the basic structural/organizational unit of all organisms, and t
2,430
views
views
48
Penrose process
theorical process wherein energy can be extracted from a rotating black hole
2,416
views
views
49
elite theory
theory of the state
2,382
views
views
50
kinetic theory
mathematical model explaining macroscopic properties of gases in microscopic terms
2,254
views
views
51
palingenetic ultranationalism
theory concerning generic fascism
2,215
views
views
52
menstrual synchrony
purported menstrual cycle synchronization in women who live together
2,062
views
views
53
bricolage
construction or creation of a work from a diverse range of things that happen to be available, or a work created by such a process.
1,955
views
views
54
iron law of oligarchy
Political theory claiming that all organizations will eventually become oligarchic
1,937
views
views
55
growing block universe
past and present exist while the future does not
1,863
views
views
56
Aristotle's biology
theory of biology, grounded in systematic observation and collection of data, mainly zoological, embodied in Aristotle's books on the scienc
1,836
views
views
57
Penrose diagram
two-dimensional diagram that captures the causal relations between different points in spacetime
1,828
views
views
58
modern evolutionary synthesis
early-20th-century scientific theory combining Darwinian evolution and Mendelian inheritance
1,828
views
views
59
domino theory
theory concerning the influence of Communism
1,825
views
views
60
Three Worlds Theory
Maoist interpretation and formulation of international relations
1,809
views
views
61
Madman theory
feature of Richard Nixon's foreign policy
1,774
views
views
62
neorealism
concept in international relations
1,738
views
views
63
foco
theory of revolution by way of guerrilla warfare
1,731
views
views
64
Duverger's law
principle in political science
1,675
views
views
65
probability axioms
axioms that are relevant to the probability theory
1,665
views
views
66
Bell state
quantum state of two qubits that exhibits maximal quantum entanglement
1,642
views
views
67
Stokes parameters
1,539
views
views
68
Dirac sea
ground state of a fermionic field; thought of as a "sea" of negative-energy states that have been all filled in, thus rendering the vaccum s
1,529
views
views
69
Kelvin–Helmholtz instability
fluid instability that occurs when there is velocity shear in a single continuous fluid or a velocity difference across the interface betwee
1,473
views
views
70
Bell test experiments
experiments in quantum mechanics
1,423
views
views
71
withering away of the state
concept coined by Engels that, with the realization of socialism, the state will become obsolete and disappear as the society will govern it
1,414
views
views
72
killer ape theory
theory that war and interpersonal aggression was the driving force behind human evolution
1,394
views
views
73
Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory
chemical theory defining acids and bases by transfer of protons (hydrons)
1,369
views
views
74
Fresnel zone
region of space involved in radio propagation between a transmitting and receiving antenna
1,350
views
views
75
von Neumann entropy
type of entropy in quantum statistical mechanics
1,336
views
views
76
capability approach
economic theory
1,301
views
views
77
pluralism
view that politics and decision making are located mostly in the framework of government, but that many non-governmental groups use their re
1,272
views
views
78
rotating black hole
black hole with angular momentum
1,270
views
views
79
Jahn–Teller effect
mechanism of spontaneous symmetry breaking in molecular and solid-state systems
1,256
views
views
80
post-Marxism
trend in political philosophy and social theory
1,213
views
views
81
flood geology
attempt to interpret and reconcile geological features of the Earth in accordance with a literal belief in the global flood described in Gen
1,203
views
views
82
democratic peace theory
theory which posits that democracies are hesitant to engage in armed conflict with other identified democracies
1,179
views
views
83
Gallicanism
the belief that popular civil authority—often represented by the monarchs' authority or the state's authority—over the Catholic Church is co
1,166
views
views
84
Unified neutral theory of biodiversity
theory of evolutionary biology
1,153
views
views
85
refrigerator mother theory
discredited historical theory that autistic spectrum disorders are caused by a lack of parental emotional warmth
1,129
views
views
86
devolution
process of evolving from a complex organism to a simpler organism
1,127
views
views
87
Fresnel diffraction
diffraction
1,122
views
views
88
Aristotelian physics
natural sciences as described by Aristotle
1,100
views
views
89
voting paradox (Condorcet)
Marquis de Condorcet's observation regarding times when voters' collective preferences are cyclic, even when voters' individual preferences
1,099
views
views
90
heat death paradox
paradox relating to fate of universe
1,087
views
views
91
Pauli effect
supposed tendency of technical equipment to fail in the presence of certain people
1,054
views
views
92
particle horizon
the maximum distance from which light from particles could have traveled to the observer during the age of the universe
1,048
views
views
93
isospin
quantum number related to the weak interaction
1,010
views
views
94
Neo-Darwinism
the current paradigm in evolutionary biology
989
views
views
95
Flory–Huggins solution theory
Lattice model of polymer solutions
985
views
views
96
orthogenesis
obsolete biological hypothesis that organisms have an innate tendency to evolve towards some goal
970
views
views
97
Maxwell–Boltzmann statistics
statistical distribution used in many-particle mechanics
934
views
views
98
preformationism
formerly-popular theory that organisms develop from miniature versions of themselves
914
views
views
99
Stokes flow
fluid flow where advective inertial forces are small compared with viscous forces
896
views
views
100
theory of tides
aspect of history
891
views
views