Re: Liberal Arts Grads Can't "Grasp?" Give me a f&*#ing break.

[Wohlrab Arleta - DRACS <wohlraba -at- BSCC -dot- BLS -dot- COM>]

And yes, I can spell (usually). Pardon my typo!

Arleta Wohlrab
wohlraba -at- bscc -dot- bls -dot- com

 -----Original Message-----
From: Wohlrab Arleta - DRACS [SMTP:wohlraba -at- bscc -dot- bls -dot- com]
Sent: Friday, September 12, 1997 10:16 AM
To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Subject: Re: Liberal Arts Grads Can't "Grasp?" Give me a f&*#ing break.

Why is the first one wrong? How can someone understand something for
which they have no frame of reference?

I'm not assuming anything. I am generalizing, which of course has its own
pitfalls. I'm telling you what I have seen and what others in the tech
writing community have seen. I am also saying that had I not had such a
varied technical background, I would not have had any frame of reference
to understand many of the topics I've written about and edited.

What if someone with a strictly technical degree tried to be an writer or
editor of poetry or literature? Would they be equipped to do so? I think
not. They would bring other talents to the table, but would still need to
learn the basics of literature and poetry.

As to speaking in ignorance, I've worked with many people who have
touched the surface of technical subjects and who, therefore, think they
know enough to understand the subject at a detailed level. Their lack of
detailed knowledge is usually only apparent at certain points in their
documentation, and it takes someone else to catch the errors they may
create.

Just because such a person does not intentionally misrepresent his/her
skills, it still doesn't mean that they don't sometimes have
misconceptions about what their writing. And, once again, my point is
that having some technical education makes a writer more balanced and
less prone to making such errors.

Arleta Wohlrab
wohlraba -at- bscc -dot- bls -dot- com

 -----Original Message-----
From: marnis -at- allensysgroup -dot- com [SMTP:marnis -at- allensysgroup -dot- com]
Sent: Friday, September 12, 1997 9:11 AM
To: Wohlrab Arleta - DRACS
Subject: Re: Liberal Arts Grads Can't "Grasp?" Give me a f&*#ing break.

Unfortunately your two paragraphs contradict one another. The second is
correct and the first is completely WRONG....liberal arts grads aren't
incapable of understanding tech issues, they just may not be
knowledgeable
about them. Also, why would one assume that anyone would (liberal arts
majors in particular) TALK about something in ignorance? Granted it
happens, but I doubt lib arts majors have cornered that market...

 ----------
> From: Wohlrab Arleta - DRACS <wohlraba -at- BSCC -dot- BLS -dot- COM>
> To:
> Subject: Re: Liberal Arts Grads Can't "Grasp?" Give me a f&*#ing break.
> Date: Wednesday, September 10, 1997 5:21 PM
>
> Hillary,
>
> Your interpretation is correct if you insert a few words:
>
> *Pure* liberal arts people are likely to be unable to
>  understand technical issues *due to a lack of training
>  in technical subjects*. They will talk about these issues
>  in ignorance.
>
> However, let me point out that being *ignorant* is not bad. It's not
like
> saying someone is *incapable* of understanding; it simply reflects a
lack
> of knowledge in a certain area. It doesn't mean that liberal arts
people
> are less intelligent or that they don't work as hard.
>
> Arleta Wohlrab
> wohlraba -at- bscc -dot- bls -dot- com
>
>  -----Original Message-----
>
> > ". . . while pure liberal arts folks tend not to fully grasp what
they
> > are talking about."
>
> To me this quote says, "Liberal arts people are likely to be unable to
> understand technical issues. They will talk about these issues in
> ignorance." I know that I'm not alone in this interpretation because of
> the other messages that have been posted.
>
> Does anybody else notice that generalizations tend to make people
> defensive? If I say "X-type people are like this," I'm begging for 20
of
> those X-type people to write in telling me that I don't know what I'm
> talking about.
>
>  --
> ******************************
> Hillary Jones
> hillary -at- nichimen -dot- com
>
> http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/6589
> ******************************
>

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