4 ms·

The worst student in medschool can still become a doctor, and the worst student in lawschool can still become a lawyer. People with a track record of terrible j

by gizmo 11y ago

The worst student in medschool can still become a doctor, and the worst student in lawschool can still become a lawyer. People with a track record of terrible judgement can still have illustrious careers. So we shouldn't be surprised by the shocking level of incompetence of the expert witness on display here. Most of us live in a bubble where we never come into contact with people like this, but they're everywhere.

aaronchall 11y ago
((3 / 16) + 3) * 20 = 63.75 He fiddled with the calculator, perhaps as he did it, he recognized his drawing didn't add up to the stated 68 feet (1 inch to 20 ft scale) and stonewalled, knowing that if he did the calculation for them, he would have demonstrated himself incorrect. But yeah, incompetent people are everywhere.
- gizmo 11y ago
  That's possible, but his defense about not being a mathematician and not being able to "derive the formula" indicates he's truly clueless, not clever and thinking several steps ahead.
  - Joeboy 11y ago
    Alternatively, he's good at his job of stonewalling under difficult circumstances, not bad at his job of math. I can totally imagine that if he'd done the sum as instructed, he'd be facing a dressing down from his boss as to why he didn't follow the simple "not without reference materials" script. I imagine they're probably instructed to avoid doing maths under pressure in general, because that's a terrible idea for any normal person. Real life is not a maths exam. Edit: It turns out he was his own boss, but I think the above still applies.
- RogerL 11y ago
  This is what puzzles me. It did seem like stonewalling. But I also believe a non-math savvy person could take a course, cram the formulas, and become an "expert". It's not like this guy is a PhD physics professor who is moonlighting - he said he took a course and was trained how to do this. Given the wrong answer, I lean towards inability rather than a simple mistake. But who knows?
  - SilasX 11y ago
    So how do you become qualified as this kind of expert? Most people here know more math and probably have better understanding of it than this guy. I'd like to be able to bill $930 for a deposition.
- jhanschoo 11y ago
  He did say "68 feet approximately". From the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqXlRQrBN4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqXlRQrBN4 it seems that he was feeling a lot of stress and doesn't trust himself to be sure.
washadjeffmad 11y ago
The joke goes, "What do you call the person who graduated last in their class from med school?" "Doctor." Sometimes we fail spectacularly at momentous points in our lives. That doesn't invalidate everything we've ever done and prove we are and will always be the incompetent frauds we appear to be, no more than any by other failure, although that's what it feels like when you're on trial. I would still rather receive medical treatment by an MD who graduated last in their class than by the lawyer who pointed out that doctor's biggest mistake. More than anything, to me, the expert looks unprepared, which is forgivable, especially for someone with little legal experience. Also, fractions on a tenkey? He would have done better on an abacus.

by gizmo 11y ago

aaronchall 11y ago

((3 / 16) + 3) * 20 = 63.75 He fiddled with the calculator, perhaps as he did it, he recognized his drawing didn't add up to the stated 68 feet (1 inch to 20 ft scale) and stonewalled, knowing that if he did the calculation for them, he would have demonstrated himself incorrect. But yeah, incompetent people are everywhere.

gizmo 11y ago
That's possible, but his defense about not being a mathematician and not being able to "derive the formula" indicates he's truly clueless, not clever and thinking several steps ahead.
- Joeboy 11y ago
  Alternatively, he's good at his job of stonewalling under difficult circumstances, not bad at his job of math. I can totally imagine that if he'd done the sum as instructed, he'd be facing a dressing down from his boss as to why he didn't follow the simple "not without reference materials" script. I imagine they're probably instructed to avoid doing maths under pressure in general, because that's a terrible idea for any normal person. Real life is not a maths exam. Edit: It turns out he was his own boss, but I think the above still applies.
RogerL 11y ago
This is what puzzles me. It did seem like stonewalling. But I also believe a non-math savvy person could take a course, cram the formulas, and become an "expert". It's not like this guy is a PhD physics professor who is moonlighting - he said he took a course and was trained how to do this. Given the wrong answer, I lean towards inability rather than a simple mistake. But who knows?
- SilasX 11y ago
  So how do you become qualified as this kind of expert? Most people here know more math and probably have better understanding of it than this guy. I'd like to be able to bill $930 for a deposition.
jhanschoo 11y ago
He did say "68 feet approximately". From the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqXlRQrBN4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqXlRQrBN4 it seems that he was feeling a lot of stress and doesn't trust himself to be sure.

washadjeffmad 11y ago

The joke goes, "What do you call the person who graduated last in their class from med school?" "Doctor." Sometimes we fail spectacularly at momentous points in our lives. That doesn't invalidate everything we've ever done and prove we are and will always be the incompetent frauds we appear to be, no more than any by other failure, although that's what it feels like when you're on trial. I would still rather receive medical treatment by an MD who graduated last in their class than by the lawyer who pointed out that doctor's biggest mistake. More than anything, to me, the expert looks unprepared, which is forgivable, especially for someone with little legal experience. Also, fractions on a tenkey? He would have done better on an abacus.