"Progress often requires deleting assumptions, not adding theories Tao explains that geocentrism persisted for so long not because of bad data but because of an unchallenged Aristotelian assumption — 'objects naturally want to stay at rest' — which made a moving earth seem absurd. Once Newton showed that 'object in motion remains in motion,' the assumption was deleted and heliocentrism became obvious. The practical takeaway: when you are stuck on a problem, before adding more solutions, list the assumptions you are treating as given and ask which one, if removed, would dissolve the problem entirely. Source: Terence Tao, Dwarkesh Podcast, Terence Tao – Hardest Math Problems, AI's Limits, and Scientific Progress"