Quote:
Originally Posted by DMcCunney
In the US, that quote is attributed to comedian George Carlin.
A lot of that comes down to how you perceive the world.
We make a mental model of the world around us, based on what we perceive through our senses. But while we have a number (13, the last I looked, though some of those are concerned with our internal state), we generally have one that is our primary sense, and which that is affects how we perceive the world.
My primary sense is visual. I see patterns. In many cases, my "It won't work" response is because the pieces simply don't fit together in my model. I can usually reproduce the chain of thought embodied in that gestalt, but explaining it may depend on the primary senses of those I'm explaining it to.
My SO, for example, is extremely nearsighted, and needs prescription glasses to see anything a foot beyond her face. (I'm increasingly far sighted, and need reading glasses.) Her primary sense is hearing. When she asks a technical question, my impulse is to grab pencil and paper and draw a diagram, but that will convey nothing to her. I need to find a different metaphor to get across the concept.
And they discover it the hard way. The question is whether anyone has gotten back to you after the fact and said "You were right." 
See above about sensory frameworks and modes of perception. What we find glaringly obvious will differ depending upon who we are.
One of the characteristics I subsume under the concept of "intelligence" is the ability to foresee likely future outcomes of present actions. A lot of my "It Won't Work" opinions are based on considering what is likely to happen as a result of something being done now, and concluding the result will not be what the people doing it expect or want.
But those are where a lot of "Don't want to believe something" responses get triggered. There are any number of cases where I just keep my mouth shut, because opening it would require saying "Everything you think you know is wrong. The world simply doesn't work the way you assume, and never has."
If I'm going to waste time, I want how I waste it to be fun, and having that sort of discussion isn't.
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Dennis |
Perception is everything. I have been called smart a few times but I always think no not really. When I was working at a college, my boss commented one time that I was really smart. I had to comment back, no I am the dumb one in the family. Dad was valedictorian, mom could have been, my little brother has been a certified genius since he was 9 or 10. So yeah, not the smart one. Not dumb or stupid but in comparison to who I knew not smart either.
Another time at college, I put my foot in my mouth because I didn't know something.
I was having trouble explaining an algebra problem to one of my students (I was a math tutor. ) I decided to go find help. Well the physics professor saw me and asked if he could help. Brilliant me said I don't think so since this is algebra. He didn't laugh out loud but told me that physics was based on algebra and yes he could help me.
He did later tell every professor in his department about my comment.
When I asked another professor if they would tease a normal student about not knowing something, the answer was no, but it was a shock to them that I didn't know something.