We value the adoption of an idea, whether good or bad. No one envies the fate of Cassandra, whose prophecies no one listened to. A whole industry has thus developed around the dissemination of ideas: scientific and commercial publishing, public relations, lobbies, advertising, propaganda. Social networks and artificial intelligence are the most recent developments in ideological dissemination. If education has managed as best it can to preserve itself from intentional influence, in the face of A.I. it is rather helpless for the moment.
Some ideas are nurtured, promoted, others are ignored, neglected or still actively censored and fought. Their fate is linked to their correspondence to the interests of the moment, to their novelty, to the notoriety of their authors or to their financing. The good reputation of an author makes him relatively safe from the effect of criticism, but before reaching that point, he had to prove himself. In science, some are tempted to take shortcuts in ethically challenged environments. Fortunately, critical thinking is still at work; doubt is even part of the quality of science.
Those who have identified a sensitive market and a profitable return for their ideas will use advertising as leverage. The latter differs from propaganda in that it lies and silences its opponents. But in the end, the fate of an idea depends essentially on its adoption. Who still advocates Maoism? Once Mao disappeared, his idea followed him. No real connections, no persistence. Beyond the billions of Meta, the idea of metavers will eventually stumble on this reality, as will many others.
The ability of an idea to be adopted without much effort and without alteration indicates its quality. Some ideas end up making their way long after their author is gone. When they provide a satisfactory answer to a problem, there is no need to insist, they speak for themselves. "E pur si muove!" (And yet it spins) Galileo is said to have said after recusing himself at the tribunal of the Inquisition. Although few understand how Einstein arrived at E=mc2, the simplicity of the final idea, the quality of its demonstration, and its significance have ensured its enduring appeal.
In education, ideas are at the heart of our activity. The ones we choose to teach or not are taught for different reasons. To choose the right ones, we need to be able to discuss them freely and publicly.
Denys Lamontagne - [email protected]
Illustration: Principle of Archimedes' Screw- DepositPhotos - PantherMediaSeller
