Lessons Learned

February 22, 2022

“A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.”
William Shakespeare

It seems, these days, that everyone is an authority. Name any topic and you can easily find, online and in real life, no shortage of people who feel they are sufficiently qualified to offer their informed opinion. Take the topic of vaccines for example. A random stroll through social media will provide you with countless people who feel that they are abundantly informed to provide you with their expertise. You might even know some in person. “Hmmm, isn’t old Joe, who is passionately defending his theory of RNA, antibodies and immunology, the same fellow who used to fall asleep in grade ten biology?” Curious, isn’t it? 

Recently, I discovered that this behavior has a name. About twenty years ago, two social psychologists, David Dunning and Justin Kruger started a series of experiments that lead them to the conclusion that people with low ability at a task tend to overestimate their competence at that same task. This theory is now known as the Dunning-Kruger Effect. Basically in laymen’s terms it states “the dumber you are, the worse you are at seeing exactly how dumb you are!” Once you are aware of it, it isn't hard to find examples. How about the bank robber that doused himself in invisible ink, to hide his identity? Or the fellow who asked the liquor store clerk out on a date, leaving his name and number, before robbing the store?

I got quite the kick out of learning about Misters Dunning and Kruger and their wonderful theory. Yes it was all fun and games, until I thought about my own past, littered with regrets from too many lessons learned the hard way. I will recount only two… they both involved me, stupidity and electricity

As a child, I was possessed by an insatiable curiosity, especially about machines: about what made things work. To the chagrin of my family, and perhaps most of all, my big sister, I had a nasty habit of taking things apart to see what made them go. I hope she has forgiven me for taking her kitchen set apart…to this day I don’t recall if I ever put it back together! 

This brings me back to one fateful evening when I was about the age of ten or so. I was in my basement bedroom when I was seized with curiosity regarding the radio that I was listening to. I realized that with the turning of a few screws that I could easily remove the back of the unit to reveal the wonders within. In a short time I was amazed to see glowing tubes, wires and other nameless bits. Although I couldn’t make much of the parts, I did recognize that there was a speaker, with two wires connecting it to the rest of the internal workings. My keen eye also noticed that there were two wires going into the radio from the wall plug that powered it. This got me thinking… it appeared to me that the power flowed in from the wall plug through the two wires, through the internal parts and then out to the speaker. I carefully reasoned that with a few modifications, I could hook the wires up backwards and any fool could foresee what would happen then. You see, if the radio was hooked up in reverse then the sound would come out backwards. I wasn’t sure what that would sound like, but I would know with a few minutes of fiddling.

Moving from the theoretical to the practical was simple enough as I got some tools and got busy. In no time I had jury rigged my new setup. I recall that my parents had company over so no interruptions… a perfect time to test! Everything was set … connections checked, volume on so I could hear the backward sound. All that remained was to plug it into the wall.

If I was waiting for sounds, I was not to be disappointed. However it wasn’t the sound of the Beatles singing “She loves you ya, ya, ya!” in reverse as I expected... In a split second there was an almighty crack, like thunder exploding in my room and then everything went dim as the lights went out. The next thing I knew I saw my dad through the smoke. He seemed to be relieved that I was alive. Fortunately, beyond the damage to the radio (which sadly was beyond repair), there was only the smell of burnt wiring to remind me of my stupidity. I don’t recall that I received any kind of punishment for my experimentation. Perhaps I should have…

Fast forward about thirty years. I was trimming a tree in our backyard, when a branch caught the power line and pulled out the insulator that connected the line to the house. Upon inspection I realized that the actual electrical cables were still connected, just the steel cable that provided strength, needed to be reconnected. No need to bother the power company for such a trifling job, especially when it would probably mean a sizable repair bill. Dawning my wife’s rubber gloves for added safety (I’m not stupid, after all!) I proceeded to climb on an aluminum step ladder and reconnect the cable to the house. Happily the repair held and no sparks flew. It was only later that I realized how close my hands came to the live wires. To this day, I chastise myself for this unbelievably foolish action.

 And there you have it. Solid proof that Mr. Dunning and Mr. Kruger knew what they were talking about. And I don’t need to go looking on the Internet for proof. All I need to do is look in the mirror!