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Which is more valuable,Knowledge or
bigt7mm
Member Posts: 4,705 ✭✭✭
Wisdom? Hmmm?
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All the knowledge in the world won't get you anywhere without the common sense to go with it.
Marge: 'Homer, the plant called. They said if you don't show up tomorrow don't bother showing up on Monday.'
Homer: 'Woo-hoo! Four-day weekend!'
Regards,
I wouldn't want to go through life being short of any three of these in at least some small ration.
Wisdom first,(also common sense),knowledge next,(being able to find it not just know it).Being able to use common sense with all the above , and being able to recall your screwups,(experience).The trouble is once you have it all , your not able to remember any of it, or just parts of it.Dang.[:D][:D][:D]
And this has come to pass,not to stay.
"Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for." -- Will Rogers
My friend is one... who takes me for what I am.
Henry David Thoreau
Wisdom is knowledge intelligently applied. Therefore, it is more valuable. Common sense, imagination and experience are subjective and situational, and therefore less valuable (viz., it was once "common sense" to believe that the earth was flat; "imagination" without knowledge will forever remain an idea; and "experience" is but individual, second-order response to first-order stimuli).
I have to disagree on your assessment of the value of common sense. I roll it into wisdom because I don't see a significant difference between the two (unless common sense means only the sense shared by society's members in common, but that'd be too rational for any discussion at the level this one is riding [;)]). Although it was common sense at one time to believe that the Earth was flat, that exact common sense was merely the intelligent application of what was known about the Earth (using then-known methods and reasoning to so apply it) to one's view of the world, which I believe fits your definition of wisdom. I won't dispute your ordering of virtues, but I'll instead say this: wisdom may be the most important, but it's only really useful if you have enough wisdom to doubt your own knowledge (and the wisdom based on it).
...to one's view of the world
Damn, I love the German language. So precise. Consider the signficant difference in the words weltanschauung (world view) and verstehen (understanding). Wisdom lies precisely in knowing the difference, and why.
quote:Originally posted by ZERODIN
...to one's view of the world
Damn, I love the German language. So precise. Consider the signficant difference in the words weltanschauung (world view) and verstehen (understanding). Wisdom lies precisely in knowing the difference, and why.
Yes, the Germanspeakingandwritinglanguagewithlongcompoundnouns certainly has its benefits.
Duhhhh!
Mail me a dollar (cash only please) to cover expenses, and a self adressed, properly stamped envelope, and I will reveal to you the source of the secret to the answer you seek. [}:)][}:)][}:)][;)][;)][:X]
______________________________________________
"If it ain't broke, fix it anyway... make it better!" (RadCat)
Larry
I do what ever the voices in my wifes head tells me to dosarcastic joke
If God didn't want us to eat animals, he wouldn't have made tham out of meat!
Where does instinct fit into all this. You can attain Knowledge, wisdom and experience but instinct is the most valueable.
Great question! However, you can't have instinct without knowledge, wisdom and experience. But what is interesting is that even with knowledge, wisdom and experience, instinct will likely still elude you. Consider: The great art critic Berenson walked into the Dresdan Museum after WWII and informed the curator that half the paintings on display were fakes. Outraged, the curator demanded Berenson explain why he would say that. Berenson replied, "Take that Reubens over there. Look at the brushwork on the figure's inner ear. That is not a Reubens technique." He then proceeded to point out similar flaws with several dozen other paintings. To prove Berenson wrong, the curator submitted a random sampling of paintings for carbon dating and chemical tests. In each case, the paintings were determined to be frauds. The art community rocked with the news. They begged Berenson to write down all the rules he used to detect fake paintings, which he did and published a year later. However, when other art critics attempted to duplicate Berenson's ability by following the rules he had written, they all failed. Why? Likely because Berenson was making observations and weighting nuances that even he was unaware of, and therefore was unable to articulate to others. This ability is the "instinct" to which you refer, and is what allows great judges, doctors and detectives to "sense" (as much as know) the truth about someone or something.
quote:Originally posted by MVP
Where does instinct fit into all this. You can attain Knowledge, wisdom and experience but instinct is the most valueable.
Great question! However, you can't have instinct without knowledge, wisdom and experience. But what is interesting is that even with knowledge, wisdom and experience, instinct will likely still elude you. Consider: The great art critic Berenson walked into the Dresdan Museum after WWII and informed the curator that half the paintings on display were fakes. Outraged, the curator demanded Berenson explain why he would say that. Berenson replied, "Take that Reubens over there. Look at the brushwork on the figure's inner ear. That is not a Reubens technique." He then proceeded to point out similar flaws with several dozen other paintings. To prove Berenson wrong, the curator submitted a random sampling of paintings for carbon dating and chemical tests. In each case, the paintings were determined to be frauds. The art community rocked with the news. They begged Berenson to write down all the rules he used to detect fake paintings, which he did and published a year later. However, when other art critics attempted to duplicate Berenson's ability by following the rules he had written, they all failed. Why? Likely because Berenson was making observations and weighting nuances that even he was unaware of, and therefore waS unable to articulate TO others. This ability is the "instinct" to which you refer, and is what allows judges, doctors and detectives to "sense" (as much as know) the truth about someone or something.
Wow. My instincts suck by comparison - they just tell me to be irrationally afraid of snakes, worms, bugs, and other creatures with numbers of appendages other than 2 or 4.
False, an instinct is a behavior common to all members of a species that they participate in without choice...humans have no instincts.
ZERODIN/Cletus85: Obviously, I was not referring to the baser, involuntary human instincts (like procreation, survival, etc.) as you wrongly assumed. Did you even bother to read the context in which my remarks were made, or are you simply unaware of the difference?
I can't speak for Cletus, but I read it all, understood it all, and chose to make a joke out of feigned ignorance. Sometimes I forget that (a) not all jokes are funny and (2) not everyone appreciates them when they are. [:p]
Sometimes I forget that (a) not all jokes are funny and (2) not everyone appreciates them when they are.
Yes, I noticed similar hilarity with the German language precision post.
Yeah ZERODIN, besides I know better than to bandy words with ole wise * here.
Ah, spoken like a true scholar, not like an ole wise * like me. Tell me, Cletus, in using the word bandy, were you deliberately trying to flatter yourself or simply mask your apparent reading deficit?
I had to look it up of course, but I'm still not sure it's the word I wanted...[?]
Plenty of dissected semantic play here. I guess it must have some catharctic redemption value. Mind twisters, tongue twisters, ego strokers. Somewhere there is a message. Wouldn't you think so?
Or is it a waste of virtual cyberspace? [:D][:D][:D][8D][8D][B)][|)]
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"If it ain't broke, fix it anyway... make it better!" (RadCat)
quote:Originally posted by ZERODIN
Sometimes I forget that (a) not all jokes are funny and (2) not everyone appreciates them when they are.
Yes, I noticed similar hilarity with the German language precision post.
Perhaps you're just missing the joke here because your dictionary and mine aren't the same. What does yours say for instinct? Mine reads:
quote:1 : a natural or inherent aptitude, impulse, or capacity <had an instinct for the right word>
2 a : a largely inheritable and unalterable tendency of an organism to make a complex and specific response to environmental stimuli without involving reason b : behavior that is mediated by reactions below the conscious level
Except for 2b, there is nothing approaching the definition you are using. 2b itself still carries the connotation of something not gained by experience but rather by inheritance, particularly given that it's only a subdefinition under 2, so a similar theme to that in bold applies to it.
Perhaps your dictionary says this under instinct, instead:
quote:1 : quick and ready insight
2 a : immediate apprehension or cognition b : knowledge or conviction gained by intuition c : the power or faculty of attaining to direct knowledge or cognition without evident rational thought and inference
Of course, my dictionary says that that's the definition of intuition, so your dictionary must be different than mine. Perhaps those pages are stuck together so that you get to instinct on the bottom of one page and read its definition at the top of a page 5 or 7 subsequent? Do the sticky pages account for the differences in our dictionaries?
The joke here, DWS, is that your very specific complaint about the precision of the English language is not the fault of the English language at all, but the fault of your own vocabulary not providing the accurate definitions for words that are required to produce precise sentences. It is this deficiency that put you into category 2 from my post above; not out of any difficulty with your sense of humor or conscious decision not to appreciate the joke, but rather a complete and utter inability to appreciate it due to shortcomings in your command of the English language.
Firepower, and the ability to apply it in an effective manner.[^]
jl45
Greg
Former Marine
A N G L I C O
Clouder..
Without curiosity, the rest is moot.
Clouder..
Without desire, even curiosity is moot...
If your beliefs aren't based in fact, TRUTH is the first casualty...
quote:Originally posted by DancesWithSheep
quote:Originally posted by ZERODIN
Sometimes I forget that (a) not all jokes are funny and (2) not everyone appreciates them when they are.
Yes, I noticed similar hilarity with the German language precision post.
Perhaps you're just missing the joke here because your dictionary and mine aren't the same. What does yours say for instinct? Mine reads:
quote:1 : a natural or inherent aptitude, impulse, or capacity <had an instinct for the right word>
2 a : a largely inheritable and unalterable tendency of an organism to make a complex and specific response to environmental stimuli without involving reason b : behavior that is mediated by reactions below the conscious level
Except for 2b, there is nothing approaching the definition you are using. 2b itself still carries the connotation of something not gained by experience but rather by inheritance, particularly given that it's only a subdefinition under 2, so a similar theme to that in bold applies to it.
Perhaps your dictionary says this under instinct, instead:
quote:1 : quick and ready insight
2 a : immediate apprehension or cognition b : knowledge or conviction gained by intuition c : the power or faculty of attaining to direct knowledge or cognition without evident rational thought and inference
Of course, my dictionary says that that's the definition of intuition, so your dictionary must be different than mine. Perhaps those pages are stuck together so that you get to instinct on the bottom of one page and read its definition at the top of a page 5 or 7 subsequent? Do the sticky pages account for the differences in our dictionaries?
The joke here, DWS, is that your very specific complaint about the precision of the English language is not the fault of the English language at all, but the fault of your own vocabulary not providing the accurate definitions for words that are required to produce precise sentences. It is this deficiency that put you into category 2 from my post above; not out of any difficulty with your sense of humor or conscious decision not to appreciate the joke, but rather a complete and utter inability to appreciate it due to shortcomings in your command of the English language.
I see your problem (and RadCat's). You consider the dictionary a terminus rather than a heuristic assist, completely exhausting discussion of word meaning and use. Fact is, the word instinct as used in this context was Berenson's, not mine; perhaps your complaint would better be made to him, along with the admonition that, expert as he may be about matters of art and despite what he chooses to call his unconscious judgments and deliberations, you feel he should keep to the strict dictionary definition of the word, lest he incur your ire or RadCat's hand-wringing semantic concerns. BTW, I just looked up the word justice in my dictionary. Oddly enough, I did not find Thrasymachus' definition "nothing but the interest of the stronger". But then, Thrasymachus was a philosopher, not a philologist, so what would he know.
You need both, but of the two the wisdom is the one you can use to make decissions, and stay out of trouble. If you are wise you will know when you are lacking in 'knowlage' and reframe from making stupid decissions.[^]
Self defence is an ablsolute and natural right. Keep your powder dry! J. Rau, Alaska
...that quote should say it all.
Actually, that statement says nothing, tantamount to saying "With burger comes fries".