I spent a good part of today researching things. In the back of my head I tend to keep a little list of things that people tell me that I want to look up. This can range from who founded the game of hockey, to the seperation of powers between federal and provincial governments.
Ok, so I make a habit of looking stuff up.
It started a long time ago, when I tended to say stuff that I thought was true. I didn't know, but I was pretty sure. Then one day someone challenged me and I ended up looking up whatever I was spouting off about at the time. Turned out I was wrong. Now I look things up to find out if what I'm saying, or what someone else is saying, is opinion or fact. Turns out, there's alot of opinions out there.
Here's an example, shaved legs. I think it's silly that girls shave their legs. I know, I'm the weird one where, but anyway. The point is that I've heard from a number of girls on the topic that after you shave your legs the hair grows back thicker and darker, so once you start you can't stop. When I first heard this, I accepted it without question and began religiously shaving my feet and toes. Don't ask, I wanted hairy feet and toes. To my vast disappointment, NOTHING HAPPENED! The hair just grew back the same each time I stopped shaving it! Apparently hobbit feet are a genetic thing, not something you can cultivate.
The point is, if you look it up, there is no evidence that shaving your legs makes the hair come back thicker. It would be cool if it did, mostly for bald people. (There's a counterintuitive baldness cure, shave your head for a couple months.) But it doesn't. And it won't. No matter how many people tell me that it will.
We are bombarded by facts, opinions, and theories every day. If you accept them without critically looking at them, you are letting someone else think for you. Kind of defeats the purpose of having your own brain, huh?
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3 comments:
On the other hand, thinking for yourself can be a scary and difficult proposition.
Not only do you have to go to the effort to formulate concepts, but you'll have to defend them when adversity rears its inevitable head.
Much easier to adopt the opinion of another, and refer to them if you are challenged.
And if the person is famous or authoritative enough, you might even be able to convince other people to adopt your borrowed opinion.
Sheep have it easy like that.
ok well actually what I heard was that shaving makes the end of the hair shaft kind of blunt and rough so it looks thicker when it grows back than a normal hair - like taking the end of a lock of hair and cutting it straight with scissors, it looks more blunt that normally grown hair. Also, I shaved my toes and they are now ABNORMALLY hairy. so there.
ok well actually what I heard was that shaving makes the end of the hair shaft kind of blunt and rough so it looks thicker when it grows back than a normal hair - like taking the end of a lock of hair and cutting it straight with scissors, it looks more blunt that normally grown hair. Also, I shaved my toes and they are now ABNORMALLY hairy. so there.
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