What is the primary distinction between a scientific law and a scientific theory?

Answer

A law typically summarizes *what* happens, while theories attempt to explain *why*.

Scientific laws are descriptive statements or mathematical relationships that summarize consistent observations under specific conditions, whereas theories focus on explaining the underlying mechanism or reason (the 'why').

What is the primary distinction between a scientific law and a scientific theory?
Definitionsciencetheorymethodhypothesis