Know-it-alls

Ali Baba and I were reminiscing today, as fellow social scientists, of the good old days when people knew everything. Not many people, mind you (most were dumb as toast), but folks like Pascal, Kant, and DesCartes; brilliant in all the fields of knowledge. Kant, it is said, is the last man who knew everything.

So how would one of us, or another modern man, go about learning everything, and becoming a true "Learned Man" for our time? Obviously, a strong base of philosophy, mathematics, physics, biosciences, social sciences, and a large knowledge of the world. At least a few languages - English, French, a major Asian language, and then Russian or Arabic or German or something, plus a couple related or niche languages. Computer programming is also a must, and hardware knowledge as well. Beyong that, a strong cultural appreciation for art, music, wine, literature, and nature. You'd have to then have a few key disciplines with post-graduate degrees. I'd say one social science, one pure science, and one art. The important thing is not having broad technical, but broad theoretical knowledge, that can be applied to anyone discipline. The Learned Man should be able to pick up some type of engineering in a few weeks, based on his unimpeachable knowledge of the highest mathematics. At the same time, he should be able to take control of a city government and use his political and managerial understanding to ably run the city and solve otherwise intractable problems. He should publish papers on subjects such as the frontiers of physics, historical analyses of original material in ancient languages, and how to address the "revolution of rising expectations" in the developing world.

One person I know does come to mind while writing this depression-inspiring piece. None other than my dad, who has a Ph.D. in civil engineering from MIT, speaks five languages, has strong historical and social science knowledge, educates his students most vigorously in writing and social impact, and can discuss any subject on earth intelligently. It is perhaps this last - the ability to quickly master any subject and to form intelligent, balanced opinions that makes the Learned Man a possibility in part if not in full even in our modern society. Let such men rule us, said Plato, and all shall be well.