It's Okay To Be Smart

Q:Would you mind explaining in simple terms how a baby, child, kid is like a scientist? and how that mindset ought to be preserved?

They dress poorly, drink most of their caloric intake, are forced to wear “personal protective gear” so that they don’t make a mess all over themselves, are prone to hysterics, often refuse to share their toys, speak jibberish and ask a lot of questions.

*rimshot*

Young people are like scientists for the simple reason that, like scientists, they are constantly teetering at the edge of the unknown. And like us, sometimes they fall down go boom. Not only are they on the edge of the unknown, they are actively pushing their circle of knowledge outward. Sure, their circle is smaller than mine, or yours, but there’s a pure, unquenchable fire within children to just know why ________ ________s.

Whether its the dark shadows under the bed, the taste of an interesting-looking new vegetable (I hear ranch helps), or wondering all those other things that we have long forgotten are interesting (like why the Sun is hot, or why the sky is blue, or why water is wet) … they just gotta know.

You know what makes them keep asking questions? Getting answers. Getting meaningful answers, answers that provide them with new questions and lead them to new worlds of discovery. Getting answers from places they look up to: us. And when they ask those questions, being told that wondering is “the right thing to do”, and not knowing is called “being human”. And “finding the answer” is the most satisfying thing you can do.

I wrote something about this once, and happiestchemicals made a bookmark out of it. I think it’s worth remembering: