You’re missing the point. “Authorities are always wrong” is not only demonstrably false (I could have listed a dozen other examples), it practically invites the reader to think that reversed stupidity is intelligence. We follow the wisdom of the majority because we don’t have the cognitive capacity to reason through every problem as if it were new, and by doing what the majority does in scenarios where we’re not domain experts, we’re at least guaranteed a “not-terrible” outcome, even if it’s sub-optimal.
You’re missing the point. “Authorities are always wrong” is not only demonstrably false (I could have listed a dozen other examples), it practically invites the reader to think that reversed stupidity is intelligence.
I think you are heavily misreading the intent of the quote, if that’s what you take from it.
The quote basically teaches the kind of relationship that Feynman had with authority. Don’t believe in it just because they say so, but demand evidence and follow where the evidence leads you.
Feynman might have benefited from brushing his teeth more frequently but he still left the legacy he did because of his relationship to authority.
My interpretation is that this quote is aimed at people who do have the cognitive capacity to reason through specific problems that are important to them, but are failing to do so because they put too much trust in authorities.
You’re missing the point. “Authorities are always wrong” is not only demonstrably false (I could have listed a dozen other examples), it practically invites the reader to think that reversed stupidity is intelligence. We follow the wisdom of the majority because we don’t have the cognitive capacity to reason through every problem as if it were new, and by doing what the majority does in scenarios where we’re not domain experts, we’re at least guaranteed a “not-terrible” outcome, even if it’s sub-optimal.
I think you are heavily misreading the intent of the quote, if that’s what you take from it.
The quote basically teaches the kind of relationship that Feynman had with authority. Don’t believe in it just because they say so, but demand evidence and follow where the evidence leads you.
Feynman might have benefited from brushing his teeth more frequently but he still left the legacy he did because of his relationship to authority.
Saying “always wrong” is too strong if that was the intent of the quote. It would be a better quote if the author said “could be wrong”.
Fair enough, I disagree with it less now that I’ve read it through again.
My interpretation is that this quote is aimed at people who do have the cognitive capacity to reason through specific problems that are important to them, but are failing to do so because they put too much trust in authorities.