what is an "expert" ??

Hi Bob,

> When I was in grad school, a group of the
> business professors decided to
> "help" a minority business improve
> its practices and profitability. The
> business went out of business with their
> "help"! Unfortunately, they just
> went back to the halls of academia, while
> the poor owner went on welfare!

I can believe this! It's true, many academics have little experience of the "real world" outside of the ivory towers of academia.... Something can look good on paper, but when you get to the real world, there could be quite a lot of factors that you didn't take into account! In academia, you can get away with that kind of thing, but the real world can be a harsher (but more realistic) teacher!

> That was an early lesson to me about
> "book expertise" and experience
> expertise. In my opinion, true experts have
> both, and continue to learn from both.

Yes, I agree with you competely.... I still learn a lot from books.... I value most the words of those who have "done it," but I've found I can also learn a lot from those who just study it - as long as they study those who have "done it" themselves!

> I've seen the definition, "An expert is
> someone dead from the neck up",
> implying they've stopped learning. Certainly
> applied to my old prof's:-)

Heheh.... :)

Having been in academia, I agree this applies to SOME professors.... Others are quite on the ball, though. But nothing is quite as good a teacher as real world experience! Nothing beats getting out and DOING it - getting your "feet wet", maybe falling down a few times, but learning more solid lessons than you could any other way....

- Dien Rice