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How my genius roommate changed my perspective

farhadg.com

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Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#161

Post by convolvatron »

burnt_toast wrote: post #69
nobrains wrote: post #43

This is amazing. My dad is like this, very resourceful with very less and creative with the limited resources he has as hand, and has lived/survived through life like this. But there is a problem now. As a family, thanks to the incomes of the kids, have enough to survive (and thrive), but he continues with his efficiency-only approach, instead of the just-buy-it approach. - So, we see plastic bottle based plant pots…

I think this is a lot more common than we realize. I've noticed some men as they age seem to prefer DIY solutions over pre-bought solutions. I think it might be a mix of enjoyment, or self-satisfaction from coming up with a new solution, or remnants of an old habit they developed out of necessity when younger. I live in a rural area myself and it's not unusual to see a pick up truck with DIY elements on them such as…

embrace it. it is very empowering to be able to control/enhance your environment without driving to the hardware store or worse yet sorting through thousands of objects on amazon.

if you start early enough you can actually make/repurpose things out of scrap that are really nice...much nicer that what you can easily buy (without engaging a custom fabricator).

edit: you can also get access to nicer materials. mahogany from discarded dining tables, nice heavy alum/iron castings, really beautiful old antique appliances etc. (sadly copper alloys are worth to much to be left on the street)

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#162

Post by cossatot »

doctoboggan wrote: post #58

There is something very fulfilling (at least to me) about working this way. Not solving the problem in the best way, but solving it in the way you can _right now_. When I was younger this was how I solved most problems, but in my professional life I can't really do that (and for mostly good reasons). I follow someone on YouTube who moved to a small island in Panama, built his house, many boats, and lots of other item…

When I worked as a bike mechanic in my late teens, we referred to this approach as 'shade tree mechanic work'. I loved it, because of the creativity involved. However, I grew to have a great respect for the work of other mechanics, who were more interested in taking more pains, ordering the right tool or part if it wasn't around, and typically having a somewhat better outcome.

I think there is room for both. Definitely during the prototype phase of a project, or on projects where there are very hard time constraints (epoxy is drying, etc.), or when you're out in the woods or whatever, working fast and creatively can be most beneficial. However as you transition into the finished product, it's often better to do use fresh and appropriate materials, do more QA/QC, write a robust test suite, and put a bit of polish on it (especially if it's for public consumption).

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#163

Post by detritus »

OJFord wrote: post #83
serg_chernata wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Jamie's channel is one of my all time favorites. I love watching him work exactly because of his general attitude toward problem solving and how different it is from mine.

Can you suggest one as an 'entrypoint'? I watched a couple after Matthias Wandel mentioned him, but they were a bit.. well, even the comments were saying things like 'that's it he's really fallen off the deep end now'.

Not sure how far back his YT channel goes, but I used to follow Jamie way back when he was based in a crappy flat in Southern England, developing some kind of hexapod toy, and thereafter when he was in [somewhere in North America] building a crazy place in a forest somewhere.

I've not been able to get into his Southern American adventures so much.

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#164

Post by geocrasher »

FarhadG wrote: post #140
geocrasher wrote: post #4

s/genius/resourceful and creative/g That's not a slight. But being resourceful (and creative, of course) is what was displayed. There was no evidence of genius. Being resourceful and creative means using what you have on hand to achieve a goal. For example, I wanted to make a gift for a friend who loves dinosaurs. I used old bicycle parts and various bits of metal I had left over from other projects and made her a 3…

(Author here) Thank you for the thoughtful post and rigor. I've really taken time to reflect on this term and what it means. I still come back to `genius` being associated with attitude/approach/decision-making that may yield certain results. In this case, `resourcefulness` applies to his approach while sharp/smart/genius applies to his attitude and approach. In another way, I find it difficult to deem someone a geni…

Thanks for the reply, FarhadG! I do see how you are applying the term. I get it :) I suppose my reply was a bit pedantic (taking the term "genius" literally) but I do have another thought: I think the word 'ingenious' is a better fit. Check it out:

   ingenious : having or showing an unusual aptitude for discovering, inventing, or contriving an ingenious detective. 2 : marked by originality, resourcefulness, and cleverness in conception or execution an ingenious contraption.
At any rate, I loved the article and I got your point, and I think at the end of the day that's all that matters. I take pride in having people take the time to dissect my writing, it means they read it and that they cared enough to analyze it even if it was just enough to call me a moron, which has happened on occasion!

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#165

Post by Dumblydorr »

I think the word genius is a bit click-baity in this title. Genius is Einstein's year 1905, it's Beethoven writing profoundly inspirational, timeless works while fully deaf. If we cheapen the term genius down to creative maker, or PhD level mathematics, or moving some planks of wood around, I feel we cheapen the greatest insights of historys bonafide geniuses.

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#166

Post by jareklupinski »

spywaregorilla wrote: post #160
brobdingnagians wrote: post #41

Reminds me of the story of Zhuangzi, the Chinese philosopher, on how one thing can be used in very different ways: There was once a man from Song who was skilled at making ointment for chapped hands. For generations, his family had made their living by washing raw silk. A traveler happened to hear of it and offered to purchase the formula for a hundred catties of gold. The man called his family into conference and sa…

This story seems really weird by modern standards. The silk washer gets a great deal. The traveler could likely have offered far, far less because the value he saw wasn't obvious at all to the silk washer. Traditional storytelling would probably have suggested that the silk washer was naive and suffered for it, but he comes out great in this story. The traveler takes a huge risk in assuming this will prove to be a hu…

i have a feeling something got lost in translation; i got the same impression

i think we're just used to these 'fables' having some sort of downside for the person who accepted the quick buck, like the gold turned out to be worthless because the person that bought the formula became poor from mis-using it or whatever

maybe the lesson is "sometimes payday does come" ;)

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#167

Post by FarhadG »

Dumblydorr wrote: post #165

I think the word genius is a bit click-baity in this title. Genius is Einstein's year 1905, it's Beethoven writing profoundly inspirational, timeless works while fully deaf. If we cheapen the term genius down to creative maker, or PhD level mathematics, or moving some planks of wood around, I feel we cheapen the greatest insights of historys bonafide geniuses.

(Author here) I share your sentiment and it's something I often reflect upon. However, I'm also cautious of not attributing `genius` to events based on results. I feel that would limit my ability to look at situations and judge intelligent (and perhaps genius) [decision making] because I would have to wait for results and—only then—dictate whether the person was intelligent (or a genius).

I'd love to know how you think about this term and how you use it.

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#169

Post by jbluepolarbear »

Dumblydorr wrote: post #165

I think the word genius is a bit click-baity in this title. Genius is Einstein's year 1905, it's Beethoven writing profoundly inspirational, timeless works while fully deaf. If we cheapen the term genius down to creative maker, or PhD level mathematics, or moving some planks of wood around, I feel we cheapen the greatest insights of historys bonafide geniuses.

Where does this value of only a few can be genius’ come from? Anyone with an exceptional gift, be it intelligence or creativity, is a genius. Using your genius to make a great lasting impact is something only a few will accomplish, but it doesn’t cheapen their accomplishments to call others genius.

Re: How my genius roommate changed my perspective

#170

Post by forbiddenvoid »

brobdingnagians wrote: post #41

Reminds me of the story of Zhuangzi, the Chinese philosopher, on how one thing can be used in very different ways: There was once a man from Song who was skilled at making ointment for chapped hands. For generations, his family had made their living by washing raw silk. A traveler happened to hear of it and offered to purchase the formula for a hundred catties of gold. The man called his family into conference and sa…

This is the kind of story that people use in strong support of Capitalism as a system, and it falls flat for me because it just reads like 'rich man with connections uses his wealth and connections to become richer by exploiting the labor of a poorer man without wealth and connections.'
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