Why do people strongly opine about topics they know nothing about?

[mr_boring]

The simple answer? We are human.

This all started about the time we started crawling into caves and becoming human.

Caveman A observed something. Caveman A is now the head of the Cave. Caveman B hates Caveman A. Caveman B starts telling the women that A is a moron and that he, B, is more knowledgeable and a better expert. Cavegirl B looks at caveman B like he is God. He mates with her. Cavegirl C is also impressed. Now Caveman A and B argue. B begins to BELIEVE in his own malarky.

make any sense?

 

[Pablo]

The simple answer? We are human.

This all started about the time we started crawling into caves and becoming human.

Caveman A observed something. Caveman A is now the head of the Cave. Caveman B hates Caveman A. Caveman B starts telling the women that A is a moron and that he, B, is more knowledgeable and a better expert. Cavegirl B looks at caveman B like he is God. He mates with her. Cavegirl C is also impressed. Now Caveman A and B argue. B begins to BELIEVE in his own malarky.

make any sense?

No but it’s probably what really happened

 

[burbguy82]

Now how did all three of us know this?

Well, I knew because I was shown the technique in real time, then did the same "experiment" myself, in the physical world, and duplicated it over and over and over again, obtaining the same result.

I did not, read it in a book, or allow a AI machine to tell me, and then re-preach it like gospel, and then proclaim my expert opinion as though everyone else was in error.

 

[Pablo]

Well, I knew because I was shown the technique in real time, then did the same "experiment" myself, in the physical world, and duplicated it over and over and over again, obtaining the same result.

I did not, read it in a book, or allow a AI machine to tell me, and then re-preach it like gospel, and then proclaim my expert opinion as though everyone else was in error.

Very cool, and you logically inferred this would always hold.

I learned in a "Properties Of Non-Ferrous* Alloys" class - *after a ferrous class. That you COULD quench...........I've done copper washers both ways and no didn't check the hardness.

Very human to note how you DIDN'T learn something. Hahahahahaha

 

[fozzdesy2001]

One thing I've never understood is why people are so comfortable having strong opinions about subjects they've never seriously studied and in many cases even thought about.

I don't mean disagreement. Disagreement is healthy. I'm talking about confidently declaring that an entire field is wrong while having little or no familiarity with the evidence, research, or arguments behind it.

If I know nothing about structural engineering, I don't assume I can walk into a room and explain why bridges are built incorrectly. If I know nothing about medicine, I don't assume decades of research can be dismissed based on a few minutes of thought. Yet when it comes to science, economics, history, or other complex topics, many people seem perfectly comfortable doing exactly that.

What causes this? Is it overconfidence? The internet rewarding certainty over curiosity? A distrust of expertise? Or have we simply lost the habit of saying, "I don't know enough about this to have an opinion yet"?

Who cares about your "feelings" about a topic, I certainly don't, and neither does the evidence. It seems to me that intellectual humility should be the starting point for learning, not the exception.

They are professional Calvinball players, and you get to help to prove how good they are. Remember, the only rule is that there are no rules, and the game can never be played the same way twice

 

[KrisZ]

Questioning things is good and even required. If it’s done by people outside the field and little experience, so be it. Sometimes an outside perspective is needed to break the group think of the “learned ones”.

 

[Pablo]

They are professional Calvinball players, and you get to help to prove how good they are. Remember, the only rule is that there are no rules, and the game can never be played the same way twice

Calvinball. Learned something!

 

[PWMDMD]

Well, I knew because I was shown the technique in real time, then did the same "experiment" myself, in the physical world, and duplicated it over and over and over again, obtaining the same result.

I did not, read it in a book, or allow a AI machine to tell me, and then re-preach it like gospel, and then proclaim my expert opinion as though everyone else was in error.

That's great for things that can be directly observed and repeated in real life. If I want to know whether a particular wrench fits a particular bolt, I can test it myself.

The problem is that most of what we're discussing isn't accessible that way. I can't personally reproduce the cosmic microwave background, build a particle accelerator, measure stellar nucleosynthesis, or observe billions of years of cosmic evolution. Neither can you.

At some point, all of us rely on the accumulated work of others. You trust engineers when you cross a bridge, doctors when you take medication, and physicists when you use GPS. The question isn't whether we rely on other people's knowledge. We all do. The question is whether that knowledge is supported by evidence, testing, replication, and predictive success.

Also, I've never claimed to be an expert. In fact, I've repeatedly said the opposite. My position is that I try to understand what the experts are saying and why they're saying it. There's a big difference between learning from people who know more than you and pretending to know more than everyone else.

Ironically, recognizing the limits of my own knowledge is precisely why I spend time reading books, listening to lectures, and yes, occasionally using AI as a tool. The person most likely to be wrong is often the one who believes his own experience is sufficient to evaluate every subject under the sun.

 

[PWMDMD]

Well, I knew because I was shown the technique in real time, then did the same "experiment" myself, in the physical world, and duplicated it over and over and over again, obtaining the same result.

I did not, read it in a book, or allow a AI machine to tell me, and then re-preach it like gospel, and then proclaim my expert opinion as though everyone else was in error.

Kind of an odd criticism, honestly.

Cosmology isn't plumbing. I can't go into my garage and recreate the early universe, build a particle accelerator, observe billions of years of stellar evolution, or independently verify the cosmic microwave background.

This is exactly the kind of anti-education/intellectualism that I find puzzling.

Nobody learns cosmology, medicine, engineering, or physics from direct personal experience. We learn from books, papers, lectures, and experts who have dedicated their lives to those subjects.

The irony is that people who have never gone through the process of seriously educating themselves on a complex topic often seem to view learning from others as a weakness rather than the foundation of knowledge itself.

It's ok...I know where this comes from without having to explicitly state it.

Again, you've shifted from debating the content of my posts to attacking me. If that makes you feel better about yourself, go for it, but it's telling about you as a person.

 

[PMT133]

Actually, I see some of the projects the engineers I graduated with are working on and I'm very concerned.

 

[PWMDMD]

Actually, I see some of the projects the engineers I graduated with are working on and I'm very concerned.

I see the state of the auto industry and I'm concerned too...

It's usually not the engineering knowledge that's the issue - it's the bean counters telling the engineers what they can and can't do.

 

[MountainManDan]

Just Found Out there are R19 Garage Doors only 2" Thk. ( Wait What ) I can't have R20 Door for My Home

How Smart are They ?

 

[Pablo]

Just Found Out there are R19 Garage Doors only 2" Thk. ( Wait What ) I can't have R20 Door for My Home

How Smart are They ?

If I ever build a place - all doors will have a snow entrance/mud room entrance/ heat cold exchange chamber. Even the garage doors.

For the climate

 

[MountainManDan]

R19 Garage Doors only 2" Thk. ( Wait What ) I can't have R20 Door for My Home

I have Dual Doors as You say on 2 Outlets of 3 Locations - Main I had Purchased - I - Believe around 2012 Best I could get ..
Moved it South ( Perfect Fit ) Pulled Old 1980's Up Grade that still had No Thermal Pain Glass or E-Coatings = G O N E . .

Installed Unit -Moved while inside Pallet Framed Stand Up - was - Bear to Move , but It's Much Better - then -
Old one in Retirement Home
Perfect Fit ..

Still Not Seeing R19 Front Doors . .in 2026 , so What'sssss Up ?

 

[PMT133]

I see the state of the auto industry and I'm concerned too...

It's usually not the engineering knowledge that's the issue - it's the bean counters telling the engineers what they can and can't do.

Yeah I typically joke about them but they still passed all the same as I did. I will say I have not taken a FE or PE for several reasons, mainly that in my field it isn't required. I know some of those guys that have gone through on multiple attempts and still haven't come close to passing though. And that is what scares me. But in reality they have enough oversight where their shortcomings are caught by others.

I agree about bean counters though. But at the same time the engineers tend to forget things need to be serviced. I remind the ones I work with a lot about that and it makes everyone's life easier. Push comes to shove, everyone is trying to do the right thing and thats really all I can ever ask for.

 

[PWMDMD]

Yeah I typically joke about them but they still passed all the same as I did. I will say I have not taken a FE or PE for several reasons, mainly that in my field it isn't required. I know some of those guys that have gone through on multiple attempts and still haven't come close to passing though. And that is what scares me. But in reality they have enough oversight where their shortcomings are caught by others.

I agree about bean counters though. But at the same time the engineers tend to forget things need to be serviced. I remind the ones I work with a lot about that and it makes everyone's life easier. Push comes to shove, everyone is trying to do the right thing and thats really all I can ever ask for.

My understanding, and this is second hand and not my wheelhouse, is most of their energy goes into figuring out how to build the vehicles as cheaply as possible, and servicing the vehicles is a secondary thought. The business rationale is the former savings affects 100% of the vehicles produced while the latter warranty expense only the small percent that have failures.

 

[burbguy82]

Nobody learns cosmology, medicine, engineering, or physics from direct personal experience

I see. Where did the OGs learn? What book did they read? What lectures did they attend?

 

[ZeeOSix]

The learned knowledge that is obtained through experts and SMEs in the field is passed on to others through the channels of higher education, like all the degree granting Universities in this country. Some people become experts in certain fields from more experience than education. And people's knowledge may continue to grow as their experiences expand and grow, and through continued education while working in their feild (seminars, scinetific research, funded studies, etc).

 

[Pablo]

They are professional Calvinball players, and you get to help to prove how good they are. Remember, the only rule is that there are no rules, and the game can never be played the same way twice

The learned knowledge that is obtained through experts and SMEs in the field is passed on to others through the channels of higher education, like all the degree granting Universities in this country. Some people become experts in certain fields from more experience than education. And people's knowledge may continue to grow as their experiences expand and grow, and through continued education while working in their feild (seminars, scinetific research, funded studies, etc).

That is a good thing

 

[PWMDMD]

I see. Where did the OGs learn? What book did they read? What lectures did they attend?

Of course the OGs contributed original ideas. But they didn't do it in a vacuum. Einstein studied Newton, Maxwell, Boltzmann, Lorentz, Riemann, and many others before making his own contributions. Carl Sagan didn't single-handedly discover modern cosmology. He spent decades learning from and synthesizing the work of thousands of scientists.

That's how education and science have always worked. Every generation builds on the work of the previous one. Standing on the shoulders of giants isn't a weakness - it's the entire reason science progresses.

The notion that learning from textbooks, lectures, and published papers somehow makes your understanding less legitimate completely misses how every educated person acquires knowledge in the first place.

All those questions do is let me know you have no idea how the education process works...but you seem to have BIG opinions on it.