ok. has any theory in your opinion been proven beyond reasonable doubt?
Yes, I would consider theories such as the theory of evolution and the theory of gravity as proven beyond reasonable doubt. Other theories, such as:
- the standard model of particle physics (already discussed),
- inflation theory (which correctly predicted the astronomical observation that the universe is extremely flat and explains why it has not collapsed on itself),
- numerous other theories in fields as diverse as economics and psychology,
have not been proven "beyond reasonable doubt". Science does not give a different name to theories that have or have not, been proven beyond doubt. Once a hypothesis survives a few different types of experiments and observations, it gets called a "theory" and never earns an upgraded term.
by your standard evolution certainly hasn't as there are still a lot of stuff evolution does not explain well atm...
Take this analogy. I have a theory that the road going past my house can be used by cars. I observe that it is flat and smooth with no steep parts, and connects all the way to and from the freeway. Furthermore, I have seen cars drive past my house. I have no idea what was the colour of the first car ever to drive past my house. In fact, I do not know the colour of the first car to drive past this morning. I may never find out. But I think my theory is proven beyond reasonable doubt, especially after seeing cars go past my house, even though I am unable to provide these colours.
Furthermore, my theory does not explain who built the road. But I have a different theory about that.
I have another theory that trucks might be able to drive past my house as well. I have never seen a truck drive past my house, but it looks to me like a truck should be able to. Perhaps if a truck came past my house, it might sink. I doubt it, but I cant prove it won't. This is an example of a theory not proven beyond reasonable doubt.
no theory can explain everything, so no theory is proven beyond reasonable doubt, so we are back to relativism???
Well, I disagree with the first part (for reasons given above), and I am not sure what you mean by the second. I avoid words like "relativism" because they mean different things to different people and end up in tangled SBF type arguments where nobody is sure what the argument is, or even can agree what particular words mean.