David Friedman has an interesting post that leads off with this quote from novelist Robert Heinlein:
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.
David goes on to mention a lot of skills he has that are like some of the above or that are simply general skills that he finds useful.
Here’s how I rate on the above.
Change a diaper. Been there, done that many times. The startup cost to learn it again would be very low.
Plan an invasion. I don’t know if I could; I’ve never tried. I’ve planned a few “political invasions,” that is, using very limited resources to conduct and, in most cases, win on a ballot initiative.
Butcher a hog. No; I think I would do a bad job.
Conn a ship. Does running a pontoon boat count?
Design a building. Design? Maybe. Would it be any good? I don’t know.
Write a sonnet. Yes.
Balance accounts: Absolutely. I used to do it to the penny.
Build a wall. If it were made of stone, then I can say that my brother and I did it when I was about 12.
Set a bone. I don’t know.
Comfort the dying. Yes, I’ve done it.
Take orders. Yes.
Give orders. Yes.
Cooperate. Yes.
Act alone. Yes.
Solve equations. Oh yes.
Analyse a new problem. Yes.
Pitch manure. If pitching human manure (I dug out all the crap under our outdoor toilet at my cottage when I was 14) counts, then yes.
Program a computer. Sadly, no. Although I think I did some basic stuff on a Compaq back in 1985.
Cook a tasty meal. Absolutely.
Fight efficiently. I know the principles. Would I put them into action if push came to shove? (Pun intended.) Maybe time will tell (but hopefully time won’t tell.)
Die gallantly. Yes. When I was on a flight that I was pretty sure would crash in Monterey in about 1995, I calmly took out my credit card, stuck it in the slit, called home, told my daughter to get her mother on the phone, and prepared to say goodbye to both of them and remind Rena where the life insurance documents were filed. Then the captain thought better of it and turned around to go back to San Fran. I was amazed at how calm I was.
READER COMMENTS
Alan Goldhammer
Aug 30 2021 at 7:59am
The list is a pretty good set of skills to have. I suspect there are very few people who can do all of those things. Setting a bone might be easy depending on which bone was broken and how severe the break is. Butchering a hog is not for the faint of heart (I’ve only had experience with game birds though I did frequent a slaughterhouse years ago when I was working at NIH and needed bovine thyroid glands for a research project. It was a Kosher slaughterhouse and I was able to view the activity up close.)
Designing a building is easy, building it is the hard part. If you can be a friend to all, fighting efficiently might not be a needed skill.
Phil
Aug 30 2021 at 8:16am
David: I am surprised at how agreeable you and David Friedman seem to find Heinlein’s way of thinking. It’s far away from Leonard Read’s claim that “not a single person on the face of this earth knows how to make [a pencil].”
David Henderson
Aug 30 2021 at 10:05am
Phil, Making a pencil was not on Heinlein’s list. I can’t make a pencil, nor can anyone else.
zeke5123
Aug 30 2021 at 2:27pm
Well, don’t some of these tasks require sufficient inputs that it is highly unlikely any sole person in the world can do it all from scratch?
I take the broader point to be that human lives are not necessarily about increasing output but increasing utility and those are not the same. That is, I am sure if I only had one interest for the rest of my life and narrowly followed the interest I might be more productive. But my life would be hollow. Finding a balance between having sufficient small number of interests to become good at them while having enough interests to have a broad life seems to the place to be.
David Henderson
Aug 30 2021 at 2:55pm
You write:
Yes, but there is nothing in the “Cook a tasty meal” that says you need to start from scratch. With the pencil, on the other hand, even if I were given all the inputs, I couldn’t make one.
Dylan
Aug 30 2021 at 6:20pm
Funnily enough, I think that is one of the few things on the list that I could do. Given a baseline of inputs, making a rudimentary pencil is not that hard. It wouldn’t look or function as well as the pencils we’re used to, but it would function.
Evan Sherman
Aug 31 2021 at 12:12pm
Except for inserting the graphite stuff inside of the wood (which, ?), I think, per Dylan’s comment, most of us probably could make a pencil presupposing we had all of the parts.
The pencil thought experiment is so interesting, though, because it so clearly emphasizes the importance of the very front end of the supply chain: Raw materials, rudimentary processing and manufacturing of parts from raw materials, etc. Maybe I could figure out how to affix the little tin alloy eraser holder thing onto the wooden end of the pencil – if I had both of those parts. But there’s no way I could begin to imagine how to mine and refine the tin.
Colin
Aug 30 2021 at 11:15am
Heinlein was my introduction to SF, and a few of his books had a large influence on me.
But this has always seemed like a strawman argument to me. I don’t know about you, but I don’t know anyone who has specialized in one activity and can’t do anything else. Especially once you include “soft” skills like “take orders”, “comfort the dying”.
I’ve met many people who are mediocre at a wide range of skills. And I’ve met some who seem to not have any skills.
Looking at the list there are a couple I’ve never done, but the list is arbitrary. I can’t conn a ship (I’m over 100 miles from any navigable water). But I can Plant / Harvest a garden, repair appliances, trim a door, sing a lullaby; and those are just things I did in the last week.
Evan Sherman
Aug 30 2021 at 1:51pm
The presence of soft and universal skills and hard and specialized skills on the same list is of course what makes it rhetorically compelling. But does that actually stand up to scrutiny?
For example: Almost everyone benefits (or, more precisely, one’s social circle benefits) from knowing how to die bravely – because obviously everyone dies. But almost no one has occasion to design a building – and a world in which only specialists design buildings is probably better because they are better at it. (Captain obvious makes his usual appearance in the comment section.)
I suppose the broader point, though, is that everyone should have the underlying core skills – critical thinking, intellectual discipline, work ethic, etc. – that undergird all the specialized skills? E.g. A world in which everyone values critical thinking and work ethic is a world that produces the best possible building designers, military strategists, coders, etc.? If that’s the point, then I agree. If we take Heinlein literally, though, I feel like he’s pretty obviously wrong. Am I missing something? (The larger context surrounding the text excerpt, for example?)
David Henderson
Aug 30 2021 at 2:57pm
You ask:
You might be or might not be. I don’t know the Heinlein context either. I posted on it because it seemed like a fun exercise.
Evan Sherman
Aug 31 2021 at 11:48am
For sure – it’s a fun and interesting exercise. At the end of the exercise, though, what’s your (or the reader’s) takeaway? E.g. Is the tradeoff between specialization vs. a more universal humanistic development worth it? (See also the threads under Jon and Jon’s comments above for what I’m aiming at.)
For example: If we think that Heinlein (or his fictional character advancing the romance of humanism) is basically right, then maybe I should prepare my 2 year old son for a holistic, humanistic education and steer him away from silo-style educational speciality. If we think he’s wrong, though, maybe I should prepare to encourage him to spend a lot more time in a lot less pursuits (presuming he finds them interesting), culminating in a much more narrow vocational and/or university education.
(This is also fun to think about on a conventional / libertarian economics blog, because presumably most of us come into this giving weight to the Adam Smith division of labor thesis.)
Daniel Klein
Aug 30 2021 at 3:10pm
This quotation from WN seems perinent:
“It is otherwise in the barbarous societies, as they are commonly called, of hunters, of shepherds, and even of husbandmen in that rude state of husbandry which precedes the improvement of manufactures, and the extension of foreign commerce. In such societies the varied occupations of every man oblige every man to exert his capacity, and to invent expedients for removing difficulties which are continually occurring. Invention is kept alive, and the mind is not suffered to fall into that drowsy stupidity, which, in a civilized society, seems to benumb the understanding of almost all the inferior ranks of people. In those barbarous societies, as they are called, every man, it has already been observed, is a warrior. Every man too is in some measure a statesman, and can form a tolerable judgment concerning the interest of the society, and the conduct of those who govern it.”
Evan Sherman
Aug 31 2021 at 11:50am
*Cue the scene with the proud noble savage staring sagely from a bluff over a wilderness tableu or something like that.*
Jon Leonard
Aug 30 2021 at 4:58pm
The thing is, specialization is the essence of human civilization. It’s in the textbooks under “division of labor”, and allows us to achieve things in teams that couldn’t be learned in a lifetime alone. You could read Heinlein’s statement as saying we shouldn’t sacrifice basic skills in the process (and it’s fun to read about super-competent characters like Heinlein often wrote). But it really isn’t a realistic ideal.
Phil
Aug 30 2021 at 7:38pm
I’m with you, Jon. Adam Smith reasoned that specialization and trade is a source of wealth. Heinlein seems to degrade specialization. Doesn’t being able to do lots of things come with a trade-off?
Jon Murphy
Aug 30 2021 at 8:46pm
Adam Smith does discuss the benefits of specialization, but he also discusses costs:
Indeed, as my coauthors and I have discussed, the division of knowledge (while important) has many drawbacks as well. Failing to note that knowledge is divided leads to many problems.
An individual can, and should, specialize. But he must also have general knowledge.
Jon Murphy
Aug 30 2021 at 5:35pm
I’d like to play:
Change a diaper: Yes (though I’ve not done it too often)
Plan an invasion: Maybe? I play a lot of war sim games, but I doubt that qualifies me
Butcher a hog: Nope. Never done it. Don’t know if I could easily.
Conn a ship: yes. Frequently
Design a building: Do LEGOs count?
Write a sonnet: Yes. and have. Not good ones, but I have.
Balance Accounts: Absolutely.
Build a wall: Yes. Have done so
Set a bone: I haven’t and doubt I could without instruction
Comfort the dying: Yes. In fact, one of the reasons I wanted to go into the priesthood (before deciding on econ) was so I could play that role. And I have done so fairly recently too: last year on the steps of the grocery store.
Take orders: Yep.
Give orders: Double yep. Been there, done that. Did ROTC in high school. Was the commander.
Cooperate: I’d like to think so
Work alone: Yes, once I get out of my own way.
Sole equations: Yes.
Analyze a new problem: That’s more or less my job
Pitch manure: Yep. Paid a lot of bills that way. I kind of enjoy it
Program a computer: Rudimentarily
Cook a tasty meal: absolutely!
Fight efficiently: Yes.
Die gallantly: Not sure. Never faced death before.
Phil
Aug 30 2021 at 8:02pm
Jon: By my count that’s 16 yes, 2 no, and 4 maybe or uncertain. Impressive. But don’t you specialize? Put differently, would you call yourself an accountant, chef, fighter, or something else?
Jon Murphy
Aug 30 2021 at 8:16pm
I call myself an economist. I specialize in teaching and researching economics. But I can do those various things.
Phil
Aug 30 2021 at 8:27pm
What’s longer: the list of things you can do or the list of things you can’t do? To me, Heinlein advocates being able to do a long list of things and ignores the cost of lengthening that list. There is a cost of being able to do many things, right?
Jon Murphy
Aug 30 2021 at 8:49pm
The list of “cannot” will always be longer than “can” since “cannot” is virtually infinite.
Indeed. As there is a cost to doing only one thing. But a lot of skills one needed specialize in to do well in. Cooking anyone can do. Same with navigating and many of the other things he discusses. Even within my specialization, I cover several items on his list: solve equations, analyze new problems, give orders, take orders, cooperate, work alone, program a computer.
There’s a virtue to being a polymath that Adam Smith and FA Hayek understood that I think has become sadly lost.
Evan Sherman
Aug 31 2021 at 11:56am
Not that you haven’t already considered this I’m sure, but it’s worth saying out loud: There is huge difference between being able to do something and being able to do it well / optimally. I am able to tape and mud a new drywall. But the pros do it exponentially more efficiently than I could ever hope to do it – unless I changed career paths and put in the hours. Even then, I’ve already missed a lot of good learning time in my teens + twenties, so probably would never really be as good or fast at it.
Just worth remembering this kind of thing as we count up the ‘cans’ vs. ‘cannots’.
Jon Murphy
Aug 31 2021 at 12:49pm
Absolutely. And, as you point out, there’s always efficiency, too. And, as someone else pointed out above, there’s a question of context to the list.
MarkW
Aug 31 2021 at 8:33am
Here’s my take:
Change a diaper: Yes. Couldn’t tell you how many. It’s not much of a skill.
Plan an invasion: Taken literally, no (Heinlein’s list has a pretty strong military flavor). But I’ve planned and executed long-term projects involving a number of people.
Butcher a hog: I’ve cleaned fish, but never been a hunter.
Conn a ship: I’m a sailor but never anything over 50 feet
Design a building: I’ve done small structures and additions (screen porches, decks). Designing and building a house is something I’ve thought I might like to tackle in retirement.
Write a sonnet: I’m more of a prose guy.
Balance accounts: Yes
Build a wall: Yes — both out of 2×4’s and stone
Set a bone: Nope
Comfort the dying: Yes, but I’m not great at it.
Take orders, give orders: No–I’ve never been in the military, and I would be especially bad at taking orders.
Cooperate, act alone: Who hasn’t?
Solve equations: Yes, but not recently
Analyze a new problem: A big part of what I do for a living
Pitch manure: Literally, no. But I’ve done plenty of similarly dirty jobs.
Program a computer: Yes.
Cook a tasty meal: Sure. I’m not sure I know anyone who hasn’t (even the men of my grandfather’s generation so long as it was on a grill)
Fight efficiently: Not since childhood. More militarism from Heinlein. I’m a relatively large, relatively coordinated man and not prone to panic. But I don’t expect ever to be in such a situation for the rest of my life (a true miracle of civilization).
Die gallantly: I once risked my life to save one of my children. The decision to do so was almost instantaneous, and it did not feel brave–I couldn’t not have done it. Like David Henderson, in high-stress situations I tend to become more calm and analytical (which doesn’t always endear me to my wife)
But David Friedman’s post seemed mostly about answering the question — when does do-it-yourself make sense? It almost never makes economic sense to make your own equivalent of mass-produced goods (sewing clothes, building furniture, growing vegetables) except as a labor of love. So like most people, I generally don’t do those kinds of things. I did build a small wooden boat once, but that fell under the labor-of-love exception. But taking on tasks where the alternative is hiring a contractor or service person of some kind may make a lot of economic sense. When you’re hiring those folks, there are search costs, transportation costs, principal-agent costs, tax-costs, and scheduling/delay costs (e.g. having to wait at home, having contractors not show up to complete jobs when expected, etc). So there really can be good economic reasons to learn to do basic plumbing, wiring, home maintenance, and that kind of thing.
David Seltzer
Sep 2 2021 at 2:54pm
I’m close to completing my 8oth journey around the sun. Please indulge me.
Change a diaper: Yes. Many
Plan an invasion: No. But was in several in Southeast Asia, 1962 to 1964.
Butcher a hog: No. But ate many pork dishes.
Conn a ship: No.
Design a building: No.
Write a sonnet: Yes. Several.
Balance accounts: Yes.
Build a wall. Yes. Worked construction in college.
Set a bone: Yes. Straightened my broken nose after a fight.
Comfort the dying: Yes. I once owned a hospice.
Give and take orders: Both.
Cooperate/act alone: Both.
Solve Equations: Yes. Thousands of them as a math major.
Analyze a new problem: Almost daily.
Pitch manure: No. But I pick up after my pooch.
Program a computer: Wrote in basic and Fortran in grad school.
Cook a tasty meal. Yes. Love to cook.
Fight efficiently: Boxed as an amateur. Licensed boxing coach. Trained for years in Krav Maga. Taught self-defense to women. Trained in weapons.
Die gallantly: It is my wish to do so. After all, I’ve done everything I’ve wanted in my tenure on this planet. It only took 80 years.
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