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Reminds me of this Plato quote about written record. " If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory beca

by rdc12 13y ago

Reminds me of this Plato quote about written record. " If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is written, calling things to remembrance no longer from within themselves, but by means of external marks. What you have discovered is a recipe not for memory, but for reminder. And it is no true wisdom that you offer your disciples, but only its semblance, for by telling them of many things without teaching them you will make them seem to know much, while for the most part they know nothing, and as men filled, not with wisdom, but with the conceit of wisdom, they will be a burden to their fellows."

epaladin 13y ago
This should be brought up early in schooling. Being in the habit of committing actual knowledge to memory vs relying on the ability to look something up seems to be one of the factors that can differentiate those who seem like experts. And it seems like being able to convince others of your expertise is almost more important than actually being an expert much of the time...
gshubert17 13y ago
Thanks for this reference (dialog Phaedrus, 274e-275b). This quotes Socrates telling a story about an Egyptian king telling the inventor of writing that he's not the best judge of its ultimate usefulness. Ironically, Plato was a writer and disseminated his thoughts by writing, which is how we have them.
- delluminatus 13y ago
  Interestingly, Plato had significant reservations toward writing, and writing philosophy in particular. He believed (as common among the ancient Greeks) that philosophical truths emerged and were understood only through a spoken dialectic. This probably accounts for his books' unusual format. I have seen one particularly amusing quote where Plato basically says that he would never write down philosophy. But I forget the exact wording and I can't find the quote now.

by rdc12 13y ago

epaladin 13y ago

This should be brought up early in schooling. Being in the habit of committing actual knowledge to memory vs relying on the ability to look something up seems to be one of the factors that can differentiate those who seem like experts. And it seems like being able to convince others of your expertise is almost more important than actually being an expert much of the time...

gshubert17 13y ago

Thanks for this reference (dialog Phaedrus, 274e-275b). This quotes Socrates telling a story about an Egyptian king telling the inventor of writing that he's not the best judge of its ultimate usefulness. Ironically, Plato was a writer and disseminated his thoughts by writing, which is how we have them.

delluminatus 13y ago
Interestingly, Plato had significant reservations toward writing, and writing philosophy in particular. He believed (as common among the ancient Greeks) that philosophical truths emerged and were understood only through a spoken dialectic. This probably accounts for his books' unusual format. I have seen one particularly amusing quote where Plato basically says that he would never write down philosophy. But I forget the exact wording and I can't find the quote now.