I have a degree in philosophy, so I'll use a story from that field to relate what I'm getting at. The usual lead contender for the title of "first philosopher

I have a degree in philosophy, so I'll use a story from that field to relate what I'm getting at. The usual lead contender for the title of "first philosopher in western history" is Thales of Miletus. There are a bunch of probably-apocryphal stories about Thales; for example, it's said that he once was gazing so intently at the stars that he failed to look where he was walking, and fell into a well. For this and other similar incidents, Thales was ridiculed by some of his fellow Milesians, who felt he never did anything productive. So, using his observations of the weather as a guide, he predicted an unusually good season and bought up all of the island's olive presses, making a fortune when the harvest came. Having proved his point, he went back to the things which actually interested him.