It's nice to see there is still an interest here in such a thing - thanks guys.
If anyone is still having trouble getting the file to open 1) Try opening it on a computer (as opposed to a mobile device). 2) If you have a Google account, try logging into that and then opening the link (shouldn't matter, but occasionally does. Bug, I guess) 3) If all else fails, send me a PM. I'm not always very active here, but I'll try to respond as soon as possible.
@EraVulgaris
At CCNY, theses were just graded on "pass/fail," along with a comprehensive exam and a presentation in front of a panel. Any one of those three things could sink your graduation that semester.
@rumborak
Music theory's goal isn't to predict why a song is popular - but that actually is a branch of study. There are studies on what chords are most common, what progressions and rhythms most popular, etc. Writing a pop hit is more a matter of formula - and pretty much always has been. But enduring popularity is another beast altogether - and something which has been studied, though significantly less so. To my knowledge, there's no consensus on the subject, but the running hypothesis is that enduringly popular works are less formulaic and more expressive - but such a thing is difficult to measure.
As for the scientific nature of music theory - well, any analytical study of an art must resign itself to only approximations of "science." More properly, it could be called "music analysis" - though there is hard science involved. Physics, probabilities, statistics, etc.
The "lowest levels" of theory are cut and dry - scales, chords, rhythms. This is the domain of most undergraduate theory classes. Much beyond this, things become much less obvious. The discussion turns to opinions and support thereof. But it doesn't end there - you do have a point, hindsight is extremely important to music theory. Because, ultimately, we're trying to describe things. You can only truly speak of a "period" in history after it is over. Until then, you may only notice it's emergence and guess at it's future.
This is especially true of popular music theory - which has only really been a "thing" for about 10 or 15 years. A blink, academically speaking. There are fundamental questions about popular music that theorists are still grappling with - and any paper that is written now must grope about in that uncertain fog.