Why is Embracing 'Dumb' Questions Important for Learning?

[Algr]

Someone please ask a stupid question. I'm jealous of the people who can answer the smart ones.

 

[WWGD]

1+1 =...?

 

[256bits]

Is this the No 10 bus?

 

[zoobyshoe]

If you start with two rams, and you subtract three apples, where is my 13mm socket?

 

[Algr]

1+1 =...?

Eleben!

 

[Algr]

Is this the No 10 bus?

No, it my 'puter. And your 13th wrench is bad luck, forgeaboutit.

 

[dipole]

To me a stupid question is synonamous with a lazy one - i.e. one you should/could have answered yourself. The other side to that coin is that some might say you should never ask a question you don't already know the answer to.

 

[zoobyshoe]

The other side to that coin is that some might say you should never ask a question you don't already know the answer to.

I've only heard that said of Lawyers at trial. They can't have their strategy derailed by an answer they weren't expecting.

 

[mal4mac]

"What is the sound of two hands clapping?"

 

[Lisa!]

Where is "ask a stupid question get a stupid answer" thread?

 

[zoobyshoe]

Where is "ask a stupid question get a stupid answer" thread?

https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=68
However, it appears to be closed.

 

[mal4mac]

Why is it closed?

 

[Evo]

It probably was accidentally closed, that was a good thread, I re-opened it.

 

[jobyts]

Where is "ask a stupid question get a stupid answer" thread?

Why is it closed?

I actually thought these were the stupid questions.

 

[Jobrag]

Please define a stupid question?

 

[nuuskur]

What is love?

 

[jobyts]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSZ_fsG5uMg

 

[Algr]

To me a stupid question is synonamous with a lazy one - i.e. one you should/could have answered yourself. The other side to that coin is that some might say you should never ask a question you don't already know the answer to.

I'd rather say that you shouldn't ask a question that you don't WANT an answer to.

 

[nuuskur]

Is this the philosophy class?

 

[Vanadium 50]

Will this be on the test?

 

[Bandersnatch]

What happened before the beginning of time?

 

[jim hardy]

A "stupid question" is one that is asked solely to aggrandize the questionor or to humiliate the questionee.

 

[BobG]

"What are my initials?"

When giving data delivery times to our customers, we exchange initials so if someone gets the times wrong, we know who to blame. Being a trainee overloaded with new knowledge, the poor guy forgot his own name... or was so overloaded with new knowledge he reached a point where he couldn't understand what the person on the phone was asking for. Funny thing is - we told him and he still didn't catch on. "Wow, those are the same as my initials."

Dumb answer:

We asked a new trainee to make us double sided copies. Her answer to our request: Mission accomplished. Page 1 on one piece of paper, both front and back. Page 2 on one piece of paper both front and back. And so on.

It took her a long time and she said it was really hard to do that. There's not a button on the copier that just copies the same page to both sides of the paper. You manually have to copy each page twice... and we had quite a few pages to be copied.

 

[Algr]

A "stupid question" is one that is asked solely to aggrandize the questionor or to humiliate the questionee.

So basically all of politics.

 

[jim hardy]

So basically all of politics.

and a lot of TV interviews .

 

[edward]

What happened before the beginning of time?

Sunrise was usually late.

 

[Beelzebub]

Who am I?

 

[Enigman]

Who am I?

The guy in the mirror.

 

[Beelzebub]

Hmmm I thought I was a woman but maybe you know better!

 

[Enigman]

So... not the demon king, then?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beelzebub_(manga)

 

[Beelzebub]

Oh but the woman is the demon king!

 

[Evo]

Please see the Stupid Quetions Thread.

https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/ask-a-stupid-quetion-get-a-stupid-answer.68/