Naming something v. Knowing Something
by phil on Friday Aug 22, 2003 10:59 AM
noms
What's the difference between knowing something and just knowing the name of it? Some of the rifts that still exist decades after the Scopes Monkey Trial would be healed if only the faithful understood that scientists aren't out to get them, and their methods didn't come from the Devil.
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Later in life Feynman remarked how wonderful it was that his dad knew the difference between knowing something, and knowing the name of something. Everthing we're aware of that we don't understand has been given a name, and usually a guessed answer. The names aren't meant to substitute for understanding, and the guesses aren't meant to be accurate—only useful.
