Not Always So: Question What You Think You Know

Time and time again over the years, I’ve attempted (in subtle and not-so-subtle ways) to encourage my print and online readers to expand (in both their personal and professional lives) beyond fixed black-or-white views on issues, instead constantly questioning assumptions based on new information that may emerge. Taking a position on a topic is not particularly a problem, of course. But stubbornly clinging to that position is counter to the ever-changing nature of all things, engineering and otherwise. There was, for example, my print writeup from last December, acting as an abridged version of a series of two earlier blog posts inspired by a panel session I attended at the Audio Engineering Society Convention in early October. And even back in late 2002, I was pondering the inevitability of no consistent answer for all situations…a theme that I revisited one EDN issue later.

Continuing my longstanding tradition of striving to wrap up the week with an entertaining (and as with last week’s writeup, hopefully also thought-provoking) video clip, I’ll again direct you to YouTube, with a request to take seven minutes out of your day to experience the amazing recent talent show performance of Susan Boyle (embedding is disabled by content owner request, so just click on the link). Some of you have probably already seen it, judging from the fact that as I type these words, the particular version of the clip I linked to earlier in this sentence has had nearly 15 million views so far, with several others also currently hosted by YouTube in the one-to-several million view range.

47 years old. Unemployed. Lives with her cat near Edinburgh in Scotland. Never married. Never kissed. Spunky. Personable. But let’s be honest…a bit frumpy. As she nervously did her off- and on-stage introductions, the emcees, judges and audience members all rolled their eyes and snickered for the cameras. And then…and then…she opened her mouth and began to sing. And everything changed.

Not always so.

Happy weekend, all.