We provide a philosophical reconstruction and analysis of the debate on the scientific status of cosmic inflation that has played out in recent years. In a series of critical papers, Ijjas, Steinhardt, and Loeb have questioned the scientificality of current views on cosmic inflation. Proponents of cosmic inflation, such as Guth and Linde, have in turn defended the scientific credentials of their approach. We argue that, while this defense, narrowly construed, is successful against Ijjas, Steinhardt, and Loeb, the latters’ reasoning does point to a significant epistemic issue that arises with respect to inflationary theory. We claim that a broadening of the concept of theory assessment to include meta-empirical considerations is needed to address that issue in an adequate way.

我们对近年来发生的关于宇宙膨胀的科学地位的争论进行了哲学重建和分析。在一系列批评论文中，伊贾斯、斯坦哈特和勒布对当前宇宙膨胀观点的科学性提出了质疑。宇宙膨胀的支持者，如古斯和林德，反过来捍卫了他们方法的科学依据。我们认为，虽然这种狭义的辩护对于伊贾斯、斯坦哈特和勒布来说是成功的，但后者的推理确实指出了暴胀理论中出现的一个重要的认知问题。我们认为，需要扩大理论评估的概念，将元经验考虑因素纳入其中，以充分解决该问题。