If the river was whisky
...ad and at making chains of cause and effect: "This one turns this way so that must turn that way so. . ." I found particular pleasure in such systems as the differential gear, which does not follow a simple linear chain of causality since the motion in the transmission shaft can be distributed in many different ways to the two wheels depending on what resistance they encounter. I remember quite vividly my excitement at discovering that a system could be lawful and completely comprehensible without being rigidly deterministic. One day I was surprised to discover that some adults even most adults did not understand or even care about the magic of the gears. I no longer think much about gears, but I have never turned away from the questions that started with that discovery: How could what was so simple for me be incomprehensible to other people? My proud father suggested "being clever" as an explanation. But I was painfully aware that some people who could not understand the differential could easily do things I found much more difficult. Slowly I began to formulate what I still consider the fundamental fact about learning: Anything is easy if you can assimilate it to your collection of models. If you can't, anything can be painfully difficult. First, I remember that no one told me to learn about differential gears. Second, I remember that there was feeling, love, as well as understanding in my relationship with gears and my model airplanes. Third, I remember that my first encounter with them was in my third year of life. It was not merely the idea of airplanes, gears, or differentials that shaped who I was, but rather the socialization with adults that my hobby brought with it. As a child who knew a great deal about numbers and mathematics I suddenly watched adults regard me as “one of them” as their speech and actions were altered. No longer was I met with baby talk, or excessive nurturing. From such a young age adults began to speak, and include me in activities that were well beyond my age barriers. As, these barricades came down I noticed a shift when I played with children my own age. Boredom ensued. I no longer felt challenged or desire to socialize with thos...