To Lots and Lots of Questions
I have to say Rachel, living in Berkeley--and I guess Silicon Valley in general--means I have the very unique opportunity to be around a lot of smart people. Smart, not as in winning the trivia competitions, but brilliant people who are regarded as the pre-eminent scholars in their field. The Bay is packed with Nobel Laureates, famous researchers, and leading political figures. Just yesterday, I had the opportunity to hold open the door for Richard Karp who has received the Turing Award.
Just to make things clear: I am not one of these smart people. This is perhaps the biggest lesson I've learned after three years here. But to be honest, I'm pretty okay with that--there's a difference between being smart and being knowledgeable. What that does mean, though, is that I would be doing a disservice to the ever-so-generous Financial Aid Office if I didn’t learn here. I don’t mean learning in a lecture hall, but I refer to a more personal sense of learning. What is it that separates a “smart” person from me? How do they conduct themselves? What drives them?
I can of course make no authoritative claims here, but I have definitely noticed one overarching theme among smart people: they ask questions. When someone explains something difficult and new to me, many times I nod my head like I know what they’re talking about. If I don’t understand something, I tend to figure it out myself later via Wikipedia/Google. After all, the last thing I want them to think is that I'm incompetent. Smart people are different. If they don’t understand something, or even if they think they understand something, they’ll ask questions. I distinctly remember, Rachel, as an freshmen, a guest lecturer that visited one of my classes. The lecturer explained to us a very foreign concept that the class clearly had no idea what was going on. The lecturer asked if anyone had any questions. Not a single thought about a clarification question crossed my mind. Looking around the room, every student--like me--simply nodded, indicating that everything was clear. A question, however, came from a tenured professor who had undoubtedly been exposed to the material before: "Excuse me, can you clarify this concept once more time?"
I am confident that this professor did not ask the question just to make the guest lecturer feel better, to start a discussion, or anything else. The intonation of the question and the intensity with which the professor listened to the response definitively suggested that the professor’s inquery was genuine, and that the answer was of great importance.
Based on the research and findings of so many of the students and professors here, it’s clear that this trend is no accident. Not only do smart people ask questions when they don’t understand something, but they also ask questions when the world thinks it understands something. Smart people challenge the very limit of human understanding, and push the envelope of what’s possible futher than many people would argue it’s meant to be pushed. Smart people don’t take claims at face value, and smart people don’t rest until they find an explanation they’re comfortable accepting and understanding.
Smart people challenge everything. (You know who taught me that? A smart person.)
Maybe someday, people will call me a smart person. For now, I'll just keep asking those questions.
Just to make things clear: I am not one of these smart people. This is perhaps the biggest lesson I've learned after three years here. But to be honest, I'm pretty okay with that--there's a difference between being smart and being knowledgeable. What that does mean, though, is that I would be doing a disservice to the ever-so-generous Financial Aid Office if I didn’t learn here. I don’t mean learning in a lecture hall, but I refer to a more personal sense of learning. What is it that separates a “smart” person from me? How do they conduct themselves? What drives them?
I can of course make no authoritative claims here, but I have definitely noticed one overarching theme among smart people: they ask questions. When someone explains something difficult and new to me, many times I nod my head like I know what they’re talking about. If I don’t understand something, I tend to figure it out myself later via Wikipedia/Google. After all, the last thing I want them to think is that I'm incompetent. Smart people are different. If they don’t understand something, or even if they think they understand something, they’ll ask questions. I distinctly remember, Rachel, as an freshmen, a guest lecturer that visited one of my classes. The lecturer explained to us a very foreign concept that the class clearly had no idea what was going on. The lecturer asked if anyone had any questions. Not a single thought about a clarification question crossed my mind. Looking around the room, every student--like me--simply nodded, indicating that everything was clear. A question, however, came from a tenured professor who had undoubtedly been exposed to the material before: "Excuse me, can you clarify this concept once more time?"
I am confident that this professor did not ask the question just to make the guest lecturer feel better, to start a discussion, or anything else. The intonation of the question and the intensity with which the professor listened to the response definitively suggested that the professor’s inquery was genuine, and that the answer was of great importance.
Based on the research and findings of so many of the students and professors here, it’s clear that this trend is no accident. Not only do smart people ask questions when they don’t understand something, but they also ask questions when the world thinks it understands something. Smart people challenge the very limit of human understanding, and push the envelope of what’s possible futher than many people would argue it’s meant to be pushed. Smart people don’t take claims at face value, and smart people don’t rest until they find an explanation they’re comfortable accepting and understanding.
Smart people challenge everything. (You know who taught me that? A smart person.)
Maybe someday, people will call me a smart person. For now, I'll just keep asking those questions.
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