Most people don't know what they don't know, but think they do - correcting your metaknowledge can make you a better....

[marmar]

Most people don’t know what they don’t know, but think they do – correcting your metaknowledge can make you a better teacher and learner
Published: May 13, 2026 8:50am EDT

Thomas Blanchard
Research Associate in Cognitive Science, Tufts University


(The Conversation) Do you know what the Apple logo looks like?

Chances are, you think you do. It’s ubiquitous and iconic. How could you not know it?

But when tested, it turns out very few people can remember all the features of the logo. One study of 85 people found that only about half could pick the correct logo out of a lineup of similar ones. And only one person could correctly draw it.

....(snip)....

People aren’t just bad at remembering things they see all the time, but also in actually knowing how they work. In a 2006 study, many people made significant errors when drawing a bicycle, like putting the chain around the front wheel as well as the back wheel. More than just a forgotten detail, putting the chain around both wheels shows a deeper misunderstanding of how a bicycle works. A bicycle with a chain around both wheels wouldn’t be able to turn.

It turns out people’s knowledge of how the world works is often fragmented and sketchy at best. They systematically overestimate their understanding of everyday devices and natural phenomena. People will tend to give themselves high ratings on how well they understand something, such as how bicycles or zippers work. But when they’re asked to actually explain the mechanics of these objects, their ratings of their understanding typically drop. ................(more)

https://theconversation.com/most-people-dont-know-what-they-dont-know-but-think-they-do-correcting-your-metaknowledge-can-make-you-a-better-teacher-and-learner-280905

[Midnight Writer]

1. Folks need to be smart enough to know how ignorant they are.

There is also willful ignorance, where a person chooses to believe in spite of the evidence (or lack thereof).