I’m no physicist, but even I recognized that something big had happened when the scientific community announced in 2012 that the Higgs boson, the famous missing link of subatomic particles, was likely observed at the CERN Large Hadron Collider outside Geneva, Switzerland.
The so-called “God particle,” an artifact of the Big Bang, is considered key to understanding why there is structure, diversity and life in the universe. It is believed to be what gives matter mass, which combined with gravity gives an object weight.
The possibility that the Higgs boson — named for British physicist Peter Higgs — indeed exists after eluding particle physicists for decades could generate intriguing new ideas about the nature of reality beyond the Standard Model, the theory that has ruled physics for the last half-century.
My point in bringing up such a weighty — pun intended — topic about which I know very little is that many of the things we accept as standard, definite or proven probably aren’t. In time, they likely will be altered, disproved or elaborated upon to such an extent as to be unrecognizable.
Science isn’t about being right. It’s about being willing to recognize a lack of knowledge and rethink long-held beliefs to make new discoveries. Columbia neuroscience professor and author Stuart Firestein calls it “knowledgeable ignorance, perceptive ignorance, insightful ignorance.”
In his new book, Ignorance: How It Drives Science, Firestein says ignorance is what “leads us to frame better questions, the first step to getting better answers. It is the most important resource we scientists have, and using it correctly is the most important thing a scientist does. James Clerk Maxwell, perhaps the greatest physicist between Newton and Einstein, advised that, ‘Thoroughly conscious ignorance is the prelude to every real advance in science.’”
That includes the science of learning.
In the book, Firestein admits to using the term “ignorance” purposely to be provocative. He’s not talking about stupidity or “callow indifference to facts or data.” He’s talking about all that we don’t yet know. I’m using it the same way.
As learning leaders, how consciously “ignorant” are you? It’s the perfect question to ask as we begin a new year that will undoubtedly bring its share of changes, discoveries and shifts in enterprise education delivery.
We know learning and development is a significant and critical contributor to organizational performance and sustainable competitiveness. What we don’t know is how the learning design and delivery will morph in the months ahead. Being aware of this ignorance, embracing it as the impetus for improvement and growth, and using it to inspire discovery will be key to the success of every learning organization.
At Chief Learning Officer magazine, we’re ready to explore the edges of positive ignorance with you. Our goal for 2013 is to provide the quality information, bold ideas and challenging opportunities you need to knowledgeably rethink, revise and improve the kind of learning you deliver and how effectively you deliver it.
Each month, the magazine will help you find out what you don’t already know by bringing you comprehensive industry coverage and up-to-the-minute research, plus special reports and supplements zeroing in on key issues or advances. And we’ll support and expand on this content via our regular e-newsletters, webinars, white papers and online community conversations.
We’ll also offer plenty of opportunities for you to discover new ideas and rethink old assumptions by participating in events such as our CLO Symposium and Breakfast Club series, which attract the industry’s top thought leaders and practitioners for frank discussions and exploration of critical topics.
Finally, we’ll provide a solid, evidence-based way for you to evaluate your current practices and compare them to the best of the best by participating in the LearningElite, our rigorous, peer-reviewed benchmarking program.
As we embark on this new year, I say let’s embrace ignorance. Let’s be consciously curious, challenging long-held beliefs about the best ways to develop a competitive, competent, continuously improving workforce. Let’s be ready to rethink old beliefs, patterns and processes. And let’s make new discoveries together.
