ABSTRACT
A communication breakdown between the proponents of two incommensurable theories is not signified by the untranslatability between the languages of the theories, but is rather indicated by the occurrence of a truth-value gap between the languages. The insights are derived from two case studies. One is a not-yet-well-known study comparing contemporary Western medical theory and traditional Chinese medical theory; the other is the well-known debate on the absoluteness of space between Newton and Leibniz. Both Newtonians and Leibnizians would regard these classical Euclidean axioms as general truths. Newtonians and Leibnizians should have no disagreement about the truth-value status of the sentences of Euclidean language. Traditional Chinese medical theory (CMT) practiced widely inside and outside of Pan-Chinese culture and is very successful. CMT is hardly intelligible to most Western physicians. They are very sceptical of Chinese medicine and even regard Chinese physicians as medicasters.
