The Browser - Cult Knowing

The Cargo Cult Metaphor

Ken Shirriff | 12th January 2025

Discursive history of the “cargo cult” metaphor, popularised by Feynman in a famous speech to describe people who “follow all the apparent precepts and forms of scientific investigation, but are missing something essential”. He derived the term from Pacific Islanders who saw wartime airplanes bring supplies, and later built fire-lit runways and bamboo radio towers, waiting in vain for planes to land (10,100 words)

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Knowing Things Is Hard

Sean Manning | Book And Sword | 11th January 2025

This ongoing lexicon catalogues all the reasons why. Examples — “Harmonisation of sources: erasing the parts of sources which disagree with each other. Friedman’s Law of Anecdotes: distrust any historical anecdote good enough to have survived on its literary merit. Telescoping the Past: people naturally blend all times before the memories of the oldest person they listen to as “old times”” (5,200 words)

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