 The requirement of truth for laws has the consequence that a given empirical statement \(S\) can never be definitely known to be a law; for the sentence affirming the truth of \(S\) is tantamount to \(S\) and is therefore capable only of acquiring a more or less high probability, or degree of confirmation, relative to the experimental evidence available at any given time (Hempel and Oppenheim 1948: note 22, italics added).