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Fear is a Lack of Understanding

Take time to learn before making an assessment.


Contents


Examples

I

A cyclist is running tubeless tires and sees their air pressure is low. They stop to inspect for leaks, and upon not hearing nor feeling anything, finish their ride. The tires continue to hold air for the next three months until the sealant runs out.

II

A homeowner sees small gaps forming where the ceiling meets the wall. Their worrisome mind jumps to foundation issues, but a quick internet search calms them down: this is fairly normal for the type of soil the house was built upon, and the varying temperature and humidity of the past few weeks has caused the house to expand and contract, creating optimal conditions for the gaps to form. The gaps soon disappear as the temperature warms up.

III

An internet user is worried about storing passwords and credit card information on sites. A friend explains how hashing and salting work and just how difficult it is to obtain the information if the company is encrypting correctly. The user continues to use safe passwords but starts to store them online.

IV

A cyclist is transporting their bicycle using a rack that hooks onto their sedan's trunk. They see the bike jostling a bit on the bumpy roads and stop every so often to check on it. After reading the manual again, they see the strength ratings of the straps and the redundancy that was built in to the rack in case a strap fails, as well as the failure rates and mechanisms from an online forum. They rarely check on their bike while driving now.

V

A cyclist is concerned about tipping over going down a steep hill. They see others do it with ease all the time, but have never mustered up the courage themselves. They ask someone who just cleared it with ease what the secret is and receive the simple reply of "if you lean back far enough it's physically impossible to go over your bars". They think about it for a minute, weigh the risks, and finally put trust into the complete stranger they just spoke to as the bike creeps up to the precipice. They whooshed down the hill with ease—turns out leaning back really does work.

VI

A new LTC holder is worried about carrying with a round chambered for fear of the firearm, a Glock 27, accidentally discharging. After discussing their concerns with a friend, the friend points them to Glock's SAFE ACTION® System, which consists of three independent safeties that require deliberate trigger pulls for them to be "overridden" and the firearm to discharge. After fully understanding how carrying with one in the chamber is safe from an accidental discharge perspective, and arguably safer from an overall cost-benefit perspective, they begin racking the slide before tucking the G27 into their waistband holster.


Common Themes

Technology and science are the two common themes from the above examples, and arguably most fears that stem from a lack of understanding. This is because most phenomena are explainable through their technology or science as described in the examples above. The unseen can be scary, especially when the only part that can be seen isn't reassuring of the state of things.

There's not much else to discuss here. The next time something is viewed as scary or concerning, take some time to understand the technology and/or science behind the something, and then reassess its scariness.


See Also