Dataman, you've got to stop using a children's dictionary. Go to dictionary.com and look up 'theory' and you will get grown up definitions. Pay attention to definitions 1 and 2.
Main Entry: the·o·ry
Pronunciation: 'thE-&-rE, 'thi(-&)r-E
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -ries
1 : the general or abstract principles of a body of fact, a science, or an art <the theory and practice of medicine>
2 : a plausible or scientifically acceptable general principle or body of principles offered to explain natural phenomena <a theory of organic evolution> —see ATOMIC THEORY, CELL THEORY, GERM THEORY
3 : a working hypothesis that is considered probable based on experimental evidence or factual or conceptual analysis and is accepted as a basis for experimentation —the·o·ret·i·cal /"thE-&-'ret-i-k&l, "thi(&)r-'et-/ also the·o·ret·ic /-ik/ adjective —the·o·ret·i·cal·ly /-i-k(&-)lE/ adverb
| Source: Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc. |
You seem to be quite familiar with children's books. In your cut-and-paste definition, you seem to have left out a few choice definitons:
2 : abstract thought : SPECULATION 3 : the general or abstract principles of a body of fact, a science, or an art (music theory) 6 a : a hypothesis assumed for the sake of argument or investigation b : an unproved assumption : CONJECTURE