Sturgeon's Law
Brief Description
Sturgeon's Law is a maxim coined by science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon, which states that "90% of everything is crud." This phrase serves as a defense against elitist dismissal of various fields, particularly when critics point out their worst examples. Instead, Sturgeon's Law encourages evaluating the top 10% to form a fair judgment about a field.
Detailed Description
Sturgeon's Law is a philosophical concept that highlights the inherent inequality in any creative or intellectual domain. It suggests that a disproportionate amount of subpar work exists compared to high-quality work. This principle is crucial because it helps combat prejudice and encourages deeper exploration of various fields, beyond their most derided examples.
When critics attack a particular field, they often focus on the worst examples available. Sturgeon's Law acts as a reminder that these instances do not represent the entirety of the field. To judge fairly, one must filter out the bottom 90% and evaluate the top 10%. For example, in philosophy, there may be numerous poorly written or argued works. However, by focusing on the most insightful and well-reasoned philosophical treatises, one can form a more accurate understanding of the discipline as a whole.
Exercise / How to Apply
To practice Sturgeon's Law, follow these steps:
- Choose a field or category you wish to evaluate (e.g., literature, art, music).
- Gather a large sample of works within that category (e.g., 100 books, 50 paintings, etc.).
- Quickly review each work and categorize it as either high-quality or low-quality based on your evaluation criteria (e.g., depth of thought, aesthetic appeal, originality).
- Analyze the results to determine the percentage of high-quality works in your sample and compare it to Sturgeon's Law's 10%.
- Repeat this exercise with different fields or categories to develop a more refined ability to discern quality from crud.
Suggestion for Creating an App
An engaging app based on Sturgeon's Law could be designed as follows:
- Name: CrudFilter
- Features: A curation mini-game where users are presented with a stream of 10 items (e.g., philosophical quotes, abstract paintings, sci-fi book covers) from various fields. Nine items will be procedurally generated nonsense or low-quality/cliché inputs; one item will be a genuine classic. The user must rapidly swipe left on the "crud" and swipe right on the "gem."
- Scoring: Users earn points for correctly identifying high-quality works (gems) and lose points for incorrectly labeling them as low-quality (crud).
- Progress Tracking: The app keeps track of users' scores and offers leaderboards to compare performance with others.
- Levels & Difficulty: As users improve, the app can increase the difficulty by presenting more complex or obscure examples from various fields.
- Educational Content: In addition to the game, the app could offer educational content (e.g., articles, videos) about each high-quality work identified to help users learn and grow.
- Community Engagement: Users can discuss their findings within a community forum, allowing for collaboration and the sharing of insights.
By gamifying Sturgeon's Law, this app encourages users to develop critical thinking skills, challenge their biases, and explore various fields beyond their preconceived notions.