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Lumifer comments on LessWrong 2.0 - Less Wrong
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Physics (and STEM more generally) is a terrible example of credentialism. Almost all original research in STEM is not done by amateurs (e.g. the uncredentialed), with good reason.
Yeah, I am sure enough about this not happening that I am willing to place bets. There is an enormous amount of intangibles Coursera can't give you (I agree it can be useful for a certain type of person for certain types of aims).
I am of two minds about learning in an institutional setting and absorbing the intangible knowledge about how things are done.
On the one hand, you are correct in that the oral tradition is important and without it you are likely to get stuck reinventing the wheel for a long time.
On the other hand, this setting and the oral tradition provide pre-made ruts for your mind and that's not necessarily a good thing.
I'd probably say that being an autodidact is a skewed and high-variance strategy: most of the time it will hold you back, but occasionally it will generate a breakthrough. Most people who wander the desert or sit facing a cave wall fail, but some achieve enlightenment. It's probably useful to have some people wander.