The definition of obviousness that you give is precise but not much different than the lay person's definition of obvious. I find it hard to believe that having

The definition of obviousness that you give is precise but not much different than the lay person's definition of obvious. I find it hard to believe that having 12 random people, some who may not have completed high school is better than having a body of experts who you explain the legal meaning of obviousness to. I've seen brilliant people struggle to understand certain technologies. So really, we're relying on both sides bringing in experts who sound convincing (perhaps because they have fancy degrees) and then having them fight to convince a jury with zero expertise. Seems silly to me, compared to the alternative of just having judges what specialize in these things make the decisions.