Approximately Right Versus Exactly Wrong—Insights and Overview

ABSTRACT

This paper summarizes five contributions from the panel discussion at the “1st Biennial ESIS‐CSIC Conference on Structural Integrity” related to the well‐known maxim “It's better to be approximately right rather than exactly wrong” as reiterated by the late Professor Roderick A. Smith. In the presentations, Shan‐Tung Tu pointed out that this maxim is a fundamental issue in engineering philosophy, since it summarizes the relation between theoretical perfection and practical feasibility. Wanlin Guo overviewed basic assumptions of fracture mechanics, with a focus on fatigue problems in relation to the maxim. Hongbiao Dong discussed data‐driven modeling in manufacturing in relation to an enduring philosophical observation by George Box: “all models are wrong, but some are useful.” Ali Mehmanparast used the design philosophy of offshore wind turbine welded structures to illustrate multiple sources of uncertainty. Youshi Hong concluded that the “Better to be Approximately Right rather than Exactly Wrong” applies to various aspects of science and engineering, including experimental investigations. In general, this maxim is full of profound scientific and engineering philosophy that is to balance reasonable approximations against rigid theoretical precision, and correctly guides optimized structural designs, mechanical theory advancement, industrial solutions, and experimental investigations. It emphasizes grasping the essence of encountered scientific or engineering problems and addressing its core.