“It is not about something being controversial but about it being useful. If you are on the business management path then what use is knowing the periodic table to you?
This is something I often hear from students, “what good will this do me?”
Yeah I can kinda understand that perspective, but I still think it behooves one to have a certain general knowledge of the world in general and how it operates before one delves into specialization.
Agreed. You’d be surprised how much you use.
Most importantly, having more knowledge teaches one to THINK.
I know I haven’t used my math and physics directly so much as an engineer, but it forms my “instincts” whereas other people might not have that. I know there are some things I take for granted now that I didn’t before college.
I'm not a chemist, but I like chemistry. I'm not a geologist, but knowing something about the rocks I love to see helps the experience. I'm not a cartographer, but maps have kept me from dying.
It actually seems that people do not welcome knowledge just for the knowing. This is a sad turn of affairs.
That is why I am teaching my children to be generalist not specialists. You become a specialist later, maybe. But you should have a broad base of general knowledge to draw on.
Because when life throws curves at you, and it always does, you need to be able to shift on the fly. And you never know what bit of knowledge will come in useful.