Gary Ackerman @garyackerman@qoto.org

When a term starts to lose meaning, go back and find the original definition.

“Mathematics are not observable.” 🤔

Every now and then, I impress myself with the quality of a sentence I write. Of course, the next day, I change it... but for that brief time... it was wonderful.

Do not confuse schooling and learning; schooling and teaching. They are done for different purposes and they are not necessarily related.

Only cooperation constitutes a process that can produce reason. - Jean Piaget

“Conclusions are the consequence, not the essence.” -Stephen Jay Gould

“You have to have a catcher, because if you don’t, you will have lots of past balls.” -Casey Stengel

When leaders push back on ideas, it is usually because they do not understand them.

I thought we didn’t use the term to define itself.

Learning from mistakes necessitates one first admit a mistake. That’s one reason such learning is a rarely-honed skill.

“Independent inventors have never lacked for ideas. Rather, they have traditionally stumbled at the point of assembling the necessary investment capital and a community of expertise to develop and commercialize those ideas.”

In the 16th century, “Innovators were those who transgressed the disciplinary order and intended to change it for evil purposes....” Some people maintain that belief.

“Innovation is not an inherent social good,” is a true statement. “The status quo is not an inherent social good,” is also a true statement.

“The mark of a good theory is that it makes coordinated sense of a string of observations otherwise independent and inexplicable.” -Stephen Jay Gould

If you follow protocols, but never get to the point, then why bother?

Innovation is about creating value.

“Scientific accomplishment is also a communal activity, not a hermit’s achievement.” What Stephen Jay Gould said about science applies to many human endeavors.

Framing the problem is as important as solving it... actually how it us framed will largely determine how it is solved... and how others judge the solution.

Rereading what Stephen Jay Gould wrote about eugenics... sigh... insidious arguments never go away.

“Having a good attitude” and “going along with dumb ideas” are not the same.