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Comment by hoophoop | Hacker News Reader

> that's not why we remember him

99% of people believe that he single-handedly invented the press with movable type. Ask around.

Yea, but let's reframe this... does it matter? Let's say people thought Bozo the Clown invented the printing press. What does it change? I'm not trolling. This might be more of me having too deep of thought on the matter. I'm the kind of guy that'll rabbit hole into the history of Macedonia for too much of 3 weeks because I came across an article about them having trouble getting into NATO due to the country's name (yes I did this). I know more about Macedonia (now North Macedonia) than 99% people... so what?

Better example, I enjoy watching sports with friends and with alcohol. Every now and then, commenters and friends will mention some sort of niche bit of info. Like a certain football play and what it means. Knowing or not knowing the specifics of game plays changes zero of my entertainment of the game. In truth, it wouldn't mean anything to my friends either in reality. Any of us knowing or not knowing the exact, specific details of football changes nothing. We still watch it on ESPN. We still hang out at someone's house. We all bring food and booze. It matters to the players, coaches and anyone else directly involved. Them flubbing a named detail can change the game, yes. Me knowing? I could call American football, "ice skating" and it'll change zero in the real world. That's not a football, it's an ice cube. Pauly Shore was the nickelback for the Bucks in the last Nachobowl.

99% of people can get through life just fine thinking the printing press was invented by a hamster. That knowledge doesn't change the utility of a book. I think I'm just overthinking it, but maybe culturally we apply too much value on tidbits of facts.

Facts have real-world significance if it becomes part of a cultural propaganda. If one were less friendly they would say you have been "brainwashed" to believe that the European cultures (and their descendants) are entitled to more credit than they deserve in advancing the technology of humanity. Maybe, just maybe, people would be more humble if they knew that we have all learned from each other, and not, as the narrative goes, invented everything merely from a stroke of genius.

Of course, it doesn't really matter for a learned person who has the natural curiosity to figure things out (presumably that includes you), since these people aren't often affected by dogma or rigid conceptions anyway, but the other 99% have no clue, and it's probably easier to state facts than to teach people curiosity.

I totally agree with you and probably that's my problem with the whole tidbit info thing. Does it actually matter if it was a German, Chinese or whoever that invented the first printing press? I mean, yes, it's nice to give credit where credit is due. Nothing wrong with that. That doesn't mean, "We [insert country] invented the [insert invention], we are all your rulers!" I feel like people take a little good (or bad) and run too far with it. Which probably leads to your propaganda point. Just because you share a nationality with someone that was useful, doesn't immediately make you useful. This also goes for wars. There's just this weird want to associate certain facts with bigger concepts and ideals for no good reason. A lot of the things people praise or denounce are far more isolated compared to what they try to apply it to.

Maybe you're more right about the thing with being curious and what it leads it. At a certain point, I at least, learned how both connected and disconnected many things are from each other. Especially from ideologies. Man, I think that pisses me off the most. I can't stand how any ideology tries to wrap themselves around anything by using the loosest relation they can think of.

> Let's say people thought Bozo the Clown invented the printing press

People write articles to provide information. Reader read the article and learn.

Are people going to start protesting on my lawn now that I'm in the 1%?

Can confirm. I totally thought that.

Also, I represent 99% of America.

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