Education, misinformation, and ultracrepidarians
I have a smart friend who often questions governments, institutions, experts, and...you get the idea. It's almost like a hobby for him, alongside astrophotography and coding.
We have discussions about politics and societal organisation. Usually, it ends with him not trusting any source of information and sending out scrapers to verify, and me talking about proper interrogation of sources, not making assumptions, and valuing the education and knowledge of experts in a field.
Ultracrepidarians
If you're an ultracrepidarian you offer an opinion on something you have no special knowledge of. It would be like me offering non-expert opinions on a subject in the field of microbiology when I'm a psychologist. Knowledge doesn't always translate well from one field to another. Intelligence is not a stand-in for expert knowledge.
Unsurprisingly, ultracrepidarians are everywhere. No doubt we live in the age of the ultracrepidarian! Influencers pretending to be experts in dermatology, mathematicians presuming knowledge in quantum physics, and social media users offering opinions on foreign policy.
The value of education
In conversations with my friend, it's also clear that I place intense value on higher education. I defer to expert knowledge above the opinions formed around kitchen tables. I value scientific methodology above quick data scrapes. I cherish the careful piecing together of literary knowledge over years from a vast range of sources. I place value on the slow and steady archaeological digs and incomplete primary sources that contribute to the jigsaw puzzle of history.
I've long nurtured a classical liberal arts view of education ~ that learning is a reward in and of itself because it improves the mind. An improvement in knowledge leads to a greater understanding of ourselves, other people, and the world. For me, this personal development leads to better societies where we strenuously devalue greed and corruption, and sincerely value knowledge and compassion.
But in a world where private universities exist to produce obedient workers, and vocations are sternly tied to academic results, my views may appear quaint at best. Yet, I stand by them because I believe in the transformative power of knowledge.
In a world of misinformation exists despair
It's clear we live in an age where the spread of misinformation is regularly motivated by the desire for money and influence. AI provides the lazy and feckless with the means to create a thin shell of subject expertise that glitters just enough to capture the attention of the vulnerable and the gullible.
The speed of misinformation is matched only by the rapidity of answers that people now expect. The digital universe has, perhaps, engineered a culture where the value of knowledge is measured by social reach, short attention spans, and slick production values.
The idea that knowledge should be gained slowly over time, interrogated, verified, learned from experts, and backed by evidence, seems ever so stagnant and unappealing in today's world. For, what is the value of knowledge, gained carefully and methodically, in a world where fast opinions create enough buzz to sell a personal brand?
The intersection of social media and marketing has created siloes of people who are commodities for big corporations to sell. The most common interactions between people on such platforms reveal the transformation of the web from a personal expression of the individual to an arena where individuals compete as merchants. In this environment, knowledge is important only insofar as it boosts reach and profits. There's no question around veracity, nor any interest in it. Glitter sells, and slowly gained, verified knowledge remains the dullest data point.
Back to my friend...
The line that divides
Given my biases, I'll usually defer wryly to the role of educated experts in our conversations. But what about misinformation and institutional bias, he'll say? How can we trust experts and scientists when they can be purchased by nefarious interests? These are valid points.
Even the most ardent of scientists may stray from the path of proper methodology and into a world of magical thinking, either because it pays more, attention is liberally showered, or both. So, it's always wise to verify knowledge by weeding out false claims via correct processes when possible. Misinformation exists and should be questioned, though this proves difficult in an environment where glitter sells and loose truths travel quickly.
The most appealing fast facts are tidbits that don’t tax the attention. Just as takeaway food is convenient and satisfies a gnawing hunger temporarily, half-truths and lies are consumed without much consideration. In the most feckless of minds, the loosest of truths are a weapon with which to beat down opponents, just as two groups go to mindless war to prove their righteousness. And so the amplification of this intolerable situation continues as online walled gardens are allowed their dominance.
But even in this world, I maintain that the only line between expertise and opinion is education and the capacity to admit lack of knowledge and error. Knowledge and expertise is built slowly over time. Initially, on the uncertain foundations of the student, and then tested time and again through questions, reflections, and applications. Always, one must be open to being wrong and interrogating cherished knowledge. And sometimes, we may not know. We must accept we may never know some things. Knowledge does not justify arrogance, nor does the quest for it confer omnipotence.
In conclusion
The irony of my writing about different topics about which I may know very little isn't lost on me. Try as I might to adhere to how and where my knowledge is acquired, I'm also victim of a too-fast world focussed mostly on glitter and weaponised culture. My only comfort is that I strive to remain open to correction and open to admitting my lack of knowledge. This process, rather than a stubborn refusal to interrogate and reflect, is the journey of knowing and understanding.
Sadly, we also seem to have entered an era where there's an expectation that any fact or drop of knowledge uttered must be one hundred percent accurate or it becomes a chink in one's armour. Such is the lack of tolerance we now face. In this space, gaining knowledge slowly and carefully seems almost a necessary revolution.
Reply by email: moodywarlock@proton.me. Subscribe to my blog via RSS feed.
Previous /