Genius vs. Expertise
The idea that 'expertise is just pattern-matching is challenging to me because it doesn't seem like it should be so simple. What about creativity? Don't different mechanisms than prototype-based recognition drive creativity? The short answer seems to be 'yes, creativity relies on connecting different ideas, which is independent of expertise. The an... See more
Commoncog • Expertise is ‘Just’ Pattern Matching
The more knowledge students have about the way their brain works, how society operates, and the magic of the natural world in which they live, the more creativity they will be able to exert throughout their lives, helping to evolve society into a place that works better than today.
Leyla Acaroglu • System Failures: The Education System and the Proliferation of Reductive Thinking
Professor K. Anders Ericsson explains in his 2016 deliberate practice book that human expertise results from the development of effective mental representations of whatever field you wish to specialize in. Although this view of expertise as tacit knowledge is relatively well-known, it seems uncontroversial. The art of practice, however, may simply ... See more
Commoncog • Expertise is ‘Just’ Pattern Matching
“When experts exhibit their superior performance in public their behavior looks so effortless and natural that we are tempted to attribute it to special talents,” Ericsson notes. “However, when scientists began measuring the experts’ supposedly superior powers… no general superiority was found.”
Cal Newport • So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love
