Bad research doesn’t stink - Carl J. Pearson, PhD
Right now, we’re either witnessing a golden age of expertise or a crisis of expertise, depending on who you ask. It’s undeniable that technology has democratized access to high-quality information, data, and tools for research, creation, and distribution.
future.a16z.com • 21 Experts on the Future of Expertise - Future
These days, if you say you work in research, most people assume you work in academia. But it’s sort of odd that we assume you need someone’s permission to do research. There’s no reason that universities need to be the gatekeepers of exploring and developing new ideas.
nadia.xyz • The Independent Researcher
Jacob McHangama: Future generations will marvel at the new perspectives, voices, and knowledge that have come to light in the digital era and simply weren’t possible (or deemed desirable) in the age of analog. Where does all this leave expertise? Expertise remains crucial to knowledge production, but it must reflect genuine excellence in a given fi... See more
future.a16z.com • 21 Experts on the Future of Expertise - Future
Beware of research. I think the reason is that the subset of ideas that count as research is so narrow that it's unlikely that a project that satisfied that constraint would also satisfy the orthogonal constraint of solving users' problems.
Paul Graham • How to Get Startup Ideas
Andy Coravos: When people ask what you do, they really seem to be asking who you are, putting the attention on people’s credentials within institutions (the nouns) rather than on their actions and contributions (how they live, work, and cultivate knowledge in their fields). Expertise is equated with the former, when it should be more about the latt... See more
future.a16z.com • 21 Experts on the Future of Expertise - Future
Patrick Wyman: We’re not dealing with a crisis of expertise itself as much as a crisis of explanation. Far too many disciplines (most notably, epidemiology and public health over the last year) have run face-first into their inability to make the general public understand what they’re saying and why. .. All disciplines have their own technical lang... See more
future.a16z.com • 21 Experts on the Future of Expertise - Future
Finally, UCD’s focus on “successful” experiences obscures possibilities that lie outside of predetermined success metrics, preventing us from designing for uncertainty, failure, or experimentation in the ways we might.
Lis Hubert • Camera Obscura: Beyond the lens of user-centered design
Nadia Eghbal: It’s not just the discovery of knowledge (i.e., learning new things) that’s easier now, but also the validation (where your peers, rather than an accredited institution, decide whether your insights are worth discussing) and distribution of knowledge. Sharing new ideas previously required working with centralized gatekeepers, like a u... See more