Does the World Need Polymaths? (bbc.com)

Two hundred years ago, it was still possible for one person to be a leader in several different fields of inquiry. Today that is no longer the case. So is there a role in today's world for the polymath -- someone who knows a lot about a lot of things? From a report: Bobby Seagull's fist-pumping and natty dressing, and Eric Monkman's furrowed brow, flashing teeth, contorted facial expressions and vocal delivery -- like a fog horn with a hangover -- made these two young men the stars of the last University Challenge competition. [...] They're still recognised in the street. "People often ask me, do you intimidate people with your knowledge," says Monkman. "But the opposite is the case. I have wide knowledge but no deep expertise. I am intimidated by experts." Seagull, like Monkman, feels an intense pressure to specialise. They regard themselves as Jacks-of-all-Trades, without being master of one. "When I was young what I really wanted to do was know a lot about a lot," says Monkman. "Now I feel that if I want to make a novel contribution to society I need to know a great deal about one tiny thing." The belief that researchers need to specialise goes back at least two centuries. From the beginning of the 19th Century, research has primarily been the preserve of universities. Ever since, says Stefan Collini, Professor of Intellectual History and English Literature at Cambridge University, researchers have labels attached to them. "They're professor of this or that, and you get a much more self-conscious sense of the institutional divides between domains of knowledge."

Comments

Re:Yes, of course.

[gfxguy]

I recall a lot of the engineering students (and a handful of physics and math students I knew, but admittedly not me) were in the bands the liberal arts students would go see at local venues and who thought themselves enlightened because they knew the local music scene.

Re:Not really

[LynnwoodRooster]

You are not a polymath; you're a programmer. A polymath covers different fields, not just one (software). I'm a polymath - I am often hired to do electrical, or mechanical, or acoustical, or software/firmware engineering. And often hired to lead multi-discipline teams because I can relate to the different disciplines and help make the best overall system decisions because I can see the costs and benefits of solutions rendered in all those different fields. And I am paid VERY well for being a polymath...

wow

[TimMD909]

Betteridge's law of headlines fails for the first time...

Re:It's what makes me valuable to my company.

[mikael]

We once had some cosmetology students visit our Astronomy lab on an open day. I guess they didn't read Cosmology and Stellar Modelling correctly.