Think Small to Solve Big Problems, with Stephen Dubner | Big Think

[@bigthink]

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[@charlynnerivlogs7070]

oof

[@amaxwell01]

I love this. I always try to think small because thinking small and micro wins can lead to some amazingly large accomplishments over time.

[@psznt]

Optimism, which probably is one of our precious resources. Thank you for realizing me that crucial thing!

[@ttwilightzzone]

This is how computing works. The computer works on many simple problems EXTREMELY fast to solve a huge problem.

[@anshikarushdie1968]

my favourite comment

[@WassupChannel]

Who really? But we are not computer

[@karinas5833]

I agree. You do not solve big problems as a big problem. You break it down into small pieces and pin it down one at a time. It kind of reminds of Kaizen approach where improvement takes on a different level by just solving or making one tiny change at a time.

[@nuynobi]

@@WassupChannel The computer is following instructions written by a human, and its this human who had to break the big problem into many small problems. The original comment might be better phrased "this is how software development works".

[@g.reaper7946]

Oh so that’s why they say, for example, this computer does a trillion calculations per second, it’s actually referring to these little problems. Right?

[@ionutagatinei2513]

Goes hand in hand with the idea that tackling big problems is very hard and that is why we should deconstruct them heavily into tiny problems that are more manageable to find a solution for. And sometimes the solution for the smaller problem is simple, but if we keep looking at the big problem we might be overwhelmed and not very likely to find an answer.

[@tracylemme1375]

My dad said that when you have a job (He had a machine &welding shop) that you don't know how to fix, just do what you know what to do and the rest will fall into place.

[@doodelay]

He just gave us permission to think small. I like him.

[@aliancemd]

I felt the problem of vision in school on myself... I was a very good student, doing best at math in my school, winning math olympics. I was reading A Lot... I started losing eye sight and my grades just drastically started declining. I was sitting in the back of the class and I was not seeing anything what was happening in the front, what the teacher was writing on the board... It was way harder to understand the material by myself when I was going at home, add to it that I had many subjects to study and keep up with and it was a disaster. I got glasses around 4-5 years later after I started seeing bad. I was left back on the material and I hardly kept up. Just at university I started getting back on track...

[@barbaraevening3854]

Well done, keep your eyesight up, have a test every year. xx

[@Original50]

This combines nicely with the Covey 4 Disciplines of Execution. Strategic goal-setting by management with no insight into the workplace conditions fails and over-complex goals are generally never realised.

[@selfelements8037]

3:59 Beautiful. The priority in any educational systems is not us, adults, but the children. And the focus is not on the students who are doing well, but the ones who are lagging behind. There lies the opportunity of real growth!

[@dannycraps]

I could not agree more with this idea. Great (small) idea!

[@user-fs5fc1vv7y]

In social contexts: Delve into the events/stories while focusing on detail

[@Messi10947]

Thank you. More so for people like me thinking big can be quite overwhelming

[@Dyslexic-Artist-Theory-on-Time]

We can always break big problems into small parts!

[@dadislies56]

No, don't break the atoms, DONT SPLIT THEM!

[@gauravstam]

Wow wierdest Channel name I have seen so far, really innovative 👍👍

[@jayt2257]

I am more interested in the how

[@livelife5947]

UK government adopted this philosophy years ago re education. They figured out that kids who didn't eat breakfast in the morning had lower academic attainment levels, so most schools offer breakfast meals now before school starts.

[@blairw1695]

Thank you so much for the transcript I'm using this article for an assignment

[@manesmusicorum3330]

9 minutes sums up to "take care of the small things and the big things will take care of themselfs"

[@antoniofuller2331]

Exactly!!!

[@jubzfree]

I suffered with the same problem, I was too ashamed to wear glasses at elementary school. I couldn't even read from the blackboard. I think it affected my test scores sadly.

[@piratapan]

One guy is my class was a cool kid (actually cool, good at stuff and genuinely nice to everyone) and he needed glasses. He told us he didn't really felt like it when the optician told him, but when they told him about the famous brands that existed, he flipp flopped immediately and came to school the next day with his new glasses.

[@k14pc]

that was interesting. the problem he talks about near the beginning is the problem of Tractability, basically a lot of people working on issues that are going to be very difficult to actually make progress on. Doing that can still be worth it if the problem is important and neglected enough, but tractability is absolutely an important part of the analysis that a lot of people forget about.

[@dr4t]

The principle he talks about should be pretty obvious to at least anyone with an engineering diploma. That's how I learned that taking one large problem and dividing it into smaller and easier to understand ones is the way to go into solving anything that at first seems to be really intimidating and hard to grasp. Divide et impera!

[@JN003]

“Genius is nothing more nor less than childhood recovered at will.”

[@fabricepoirette3328]

Very interesting and inspiring. Definitely worth watching.

[@ajtronic]

So basically solving a bunch of small problems that add up to the larger problem. Okay.

[@MrHav1k]

Thanks for the tl;dw summary!

[@TheGuruNetOn]

A miss is as good as a mile. It's doing the "small things" that needs to be done. That can make all the difference between success and failure. The poem "For want of a nail" and "the road not taken" expresses the idea perfectly. When everyone else is "thinking big", it pays to "think small". Like fixing a flat tire or broken window or giving eye-tests/glasses to children. Doing the small things that need doing.

[@d.c.martin626]

(0:26) "Observation" to solve big problems with small thinking works very well. Big problem (Creationist vs Atheists) Try to create something without outside manipulation it's impossible! Problem solved or not?

[@AdemirAlijagic]

I loved this one Big Think, will definitely recommend this video! 😃👏

[@randomviewer009]

Great speaker. You make valid points throughout, and your very eloquent. I don't agree with it all, but I agree with the overall spirit of it.

[@SpacedudeGFX]

this channel is called big think.....how ironic

[@AGeeksTouch]

Does anyone remember what irony actually is?

[@NintendoFreakah]

***** *Ahem*... "A state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result." In this situation, the "state of affairs" would be the fact that we should think small and it is deliberately contrary to the channel's name: The Big Think. There are a few meanings of the word irony, and this is one of them, just maybe not the one you're thinking of.

[@SpacedudeGFX]

***** "big" think, think "small" how is that not ironic

[@anikaa6548]

The big thought being shared here is that complicated problems can be broken down into smaller chunks one of which you maybe able to fix. It's not ironic, no one is asking anyone to do anything. There is simply a big idea being broadcasted here. Cool? Cool.

[@shubhamchaudhari790]

SpacedudeGFX Think Small to solve Big Problems ..but Think Big to have Big Problems

[@endle5s]

having listened to countless freakonomics episodes, i did not expect stephen dubner to look like this (he has a very young voice)

[@julioalarmo839]

Well explained. Ive been thinking on this from a design perspective. Some problems could be solved taking away the origin of the problem. Sometimes we try to put solutions one after another instead of removing the source of the problem. Example we want to pass thru a door a washing machine but it doesnt fit. So we come up with a bunch of solutions. When we could just remove the door frame. Sometimes the solution requires to remove somethin that since has been there so long we dont want to touch .

[@wgaskill2]

I've noticed the issue of lack of education in the form of Driver's education. I learned Driver's Ed in school, and started out with effective and efficient traffic rules built into my head. When children learn their driving from their parents, they learn (usually poorly) the driving habits of their parents who practice less than 100% of the rules. When successive generations of kids do this, driving becomes less predictable, and much more dangerous.

[@hamza3065]

Great video.

[@Pilitos.20]

that's true, my cousin needs glasses but he doesn't wear it because his grandmother makes fun of him and when I see his notebooks, he has bad writring, so when he is going to study his notes, he doesn't understand and he fails his tests for that. i know this is a old video, i just wanted to write it.

[@wynstansmom829]

"I just wanted to write it"...Yes! and I wanted to write something like that also. Find a way to help your cousin find the value in wearing his glasses. In fourth grade, my best friend had glasses and I wanted a pair. My Mom took me to the doctors who said I had terrible vision and prescribed glasses. Then I didn't want to wear them and no one made me. By 14, I had lost any hope of maths but I read voraciously to overcome the boredom of a classroom board and teacher, that I couldn't see. I also lost friends because I didn't see them to wave or say Hi. I lost so many years of classroom instruction but no one noticed since I read and passed tests easily, was quiet and polite and moved schools frequently. Add to that, I'm an Intuitive thinker and it's a potent combination that lets people fall through the cracks unless they are self-motivated learners with an insatiable curiosity. Tell your cousin to put his glasses on. How's your eyesight?

[@diontaedaughtry974]

Thank you this was very helpful and informative 👍👍

[@alexplotkin3368]

I liked early in video, pick off a small piece of a problem and start there. Thanks.

[@EforEvery1]

Good job, Big Think, I liked this one.

[@matthewbrown7572]

So let me get this straight.The teacher creates 5 different lesson plans with different learning modalities for each of their 180 students ,figures out which modality works best for each of the 180 students each day and writes 180 lesson plans each day for each student, for the school year. Why didn't I think of that? It's so very simple.Thanks for the tip.

[@LionOnGreen]

Reasonable way how to effectively teach students.

[@bobbiemcdo9707]

Excellent.

[@Noorizubair11]

Should i think Small or Big think

[@justincase1296]

I like your thought.

[@fitforsoccer000]

Zubair Noori You need to Big Think about thinking small.

[@RomanNumural9]

fitforsoccer000888 i see you thinking small about big thinking on thinking small. I counter it with thinking big on big think about small thinking on the topic of the big thinking thinking small on big ideas.

[@fitforsoccer000]

Josh McGillivray lol, someone shoot me

[@Dyslexic-Artist-Theory-on-Time]

fitforsoccer000888 Me too! Just talk with no meaning!

[@lifevt94hellotoworld]

The problem with this is that most great thinkers will focus "the big picture", as opposed to one its smaller parts, simply because the bigger picture is much more interesting. Eccentric, absent minded geniuses aren't that interested in solving as much as possible (which, according to this vid, would be achieved by focusing on the small problems) but will approach what stimulates them.

[@orbismworldbuilding8428]

Big picture is to know what's going on, little picture is to make changes

[@onetwoxplore]

There are guidelines for "small" thinking effectiveness. Presenting "small" as a cure-all can be deceiving bcs complexities surface almost immediately. The suggestion to extrapolate from large to small (manageable chunks) has a place, but small pieces can be extremely complex. I think you need a bird's eye view where the process of the large informs but the process of the small outlines how to go about fitting together the pieces of the puzzle. Large-to-small thinking or vice versa is fluid and not a zero-sum game. This video is just general and common sense advice. I was hoping for more.

[@orbismworldbuilding8428]

This is true

[@eskorupski123]

Totally agree. You have to at least somewhat know how a system works in order to tweak it properly. And you can't feasibly change a whole system at once by changing all the parts, so in a practical sense you do need to change small things. "Atomic Habits" is a great book for this kind of topic, because it can apply to individuals as well as whole groups.

[@CerebellumCorp]

These are some great thoughts. Awesome video!

[@aryavijaykumar4700]

Thank you all very much

[@WassupChannel]

Perfect! Got it

[@letlapafly]

Kaizen: think small thoughts, take small steps/actions, solve small problems, repeat

[@raffy3304]

much thanks.

[@NewAwaken]

Good Video. Just a suggestion: Change the white background please... my eyes melt. Thanks.

[@coffeine1924]

Cool concept. Would like to see how kids who needed glasses did after receiving them.

[@tracylemme1375]

I had a schoolmate who did poorly in first grade. He got glasses in the second grade,and graduated with honors from high school.

[@ilhammahmoud9453]

good argument ♥️👍

[@ianbowen3935]

Wow, that's interesting.

[@bigcat56308]

Drinking game: Take a shot every time he says "our argument is..."

[@organicchemistry6357]

One way to think small is about the increase in temparature. That problem can simply be tackled through firing iodine in the air to cause rain. Let the sun make the clouds from sea water. Not enough? Just stop blocking sunlight since that leads to more draught!

[@JoeHernandez-lp2tw]

I think the glasses indicated an emphasis in learning for this kids and thus prompted a placebo effect, if you will.

[@Kratax]

Glasses also make distractions lesser, as the sides of glasses block visual of movement from sides. And glasses might act also like the hat of scientist. In general, solving big problems is hard, because people do not tend to organize as you would like them to organize - unless you are some kind of a boss. Then your success factor is bigger.

[@queuesnake704]

Choice. Brilliant. =)

[@TheGuruNetOn]

Wiki (as in Wikipedia) is an excellent example of thinking small (in an incremental, scalable way). You only pay for what you use. At the very least it's similar to a simple notepad and at the very most can be a superb knowledge base incorporating top line multimedia content linked in to text. It's the organisational flexibility that creates value in a totally freeform incrementally and organically growing way.

[@cemsavasaydn7053]

This is similar to occam's razor in a way the simplest solution among different solutions to a certain problem is the best one.

[@TheGuruNetOn]

When everyone else is thinking big, it pays to think small. Be the Contrarian and solve the problems nobody is even interested in questioning.

[@usenlim]

This argument seems like comparing opensource software making to microsoft software making. And we know which is better.

[@Cloud_Seeker]

Honestly don't really matter, what is important is what program the computer you read the document on is using.

[@BurnNotice3210]

Actually whats more important is the operating system that you're using, and we all know that Macs are the right computers.

[@Anonymiter]

The argument was to allow the microsoft software to continue but to also promote and/or not discourage opensource.

[@anoncker]

Burn Notice No, just no.

[@melissais]

Wow, when I started realizing I was really bad at math was around the same time I needed to start wearing glasses. But I don't know if that really has anything to do with it?? Because I've still been really bad at math. :/ I really need someone to tutor me.

[@TheGuruNetOn]

Unlike subjects like history or biology where content is mostly independent from each other Maths requires you to build with tools you learned in previous chapters/classes. So if your basics are not solid (maybe you missed classes due to sickness or bad eyesight) you can't really build on top of a weak Foundation. So it's better to start from scratch rather than build with holes in the stress bearing columns of your Math Foundation.

[@AFROZIBRAHIMI]

Good video

[@maverickleadership6801]

Is that Fred Armisen? I love him!

[@charliemckay6402]

Another perspective is that fixing small parts of big problem to resolve the big problem is not thinking like children but actually using the "Butterfly Effect" as a tool.

[@dddmemaybe]

This guy was right and wrong about certain things, but he's definitely right to think "small." Oddly enough, just talking about your day at work to your kids and family.. Is likely to help you more and faster than 10 years of speculation would ever.

[@marlo2734]

Spot on. Thats a Biblical principle....if you "see" like a child even spiritual stuff will make more sense PLUS you will enjoy the playing field iso trying to level it....!

[@Geist452]

Big problems may have numerous and compound solutions/challenges, but their perceived complexity is really born of morality... I think many would agree that we are very technically inclined as a people when we're willing to accept a solution. Solving small problems can give people the confidence to act on their morality, while often circumventing any moral ambiguity. But I wouldn't say that the coarse of action or moral components of a big problem, is more complex than solving any small problem. And I would argue that when its been mapped, the thought process shifts very quickly into a science of details that is equivalent to many small problems. What addressing big problems allows us to do is identify those many small problems; so when problems are fundamental and related to an unconscious morality, there's opportunity to address individual components. .... what i took from this; is that third world problems are simple, nobody has to think up any obstacles, and make sure you follow through with the help you can provide. Which is great because I don't take for granted things like literacy, a full stomach and free time. But the problem with this as a general principle is that eventually in order to render a solution relevant to a more positive result, an organized effort has to be made. So while you're solving a small problem it's still important to understand to what end, and how to network within that landscape.

[@uncleshan]

break it down. got it

[@hardeepdhery]

Moral of the story :- Were Glasses in school

[@6LordMortus9]

Interesting, when I look back at my college course, I did much better in a group of peers than I did on my own... not that I took my answers from others, but that in a group, I came up with answers that everyone agreed on, or was open enough to stand my ground and find that my answer was the correct one.. on one exam that I did on my own, I thought it was the best exam I had had, and I finished it faster than any others, but turned out to be my worst score in the course. I never have had that experience in school prior to college. So this doesn't just fall on to the lower grades of school, but to every level.

[@harrypearle9781]

EASY vs HARD School Challenge Division? EASY and NO buttons are available, and they could be used to remind students of EASY vs HARD. (Easy tasks may be done right away, but still appreciated) Hard tasks are frustrating, but need time ===============================================================================

[@harrypearle9781]

thanks much

[@NawidN]

Solving a big problem = solving a set of smaller problems. His point is moot.

[@orbismworldbuilding8428]

Not moot, just obvious for some (but important to point out for some)

[@meem9754]

think small is actually also a hard thing ! einstein was imagining every theory as simple as possible , he said the most successful theory is just simple that any child can imagine it !

[@salamandiusbraveheart4183]

Short-sightedness is really common in Asia

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

Not only do I think small, I happen to be narrow-minded too. All I should need to do now to solve those big problems is wait

[@damienhunt4264]

I suspect Mr Duber has never been a teacher in the public school system.

[@ScienceByMike]

Ask the children how to fix something. Many answers will be give everyone a pizza but one will have a good suggestion

[@rowland5951]

Sounds very similar to Elon Musks First Principles way of solving problems which has its grounding in Physics.

[@TheNewTravel]

+Rowland Alexander Agreed!

[@top1percent424]

Rowland Nah.

[@ShilpaChhabra]

completely agree :)

[@UserMum7512]

Now that I think about it, I can strangely relate to this idea of wearing glasses. I do rubbish in school. Still love science though.

[@WaterproofSoap]

The are so many problems that seem to have elegantly simple solutions, yet.....humans.

[@bryanhfuller7937]

Everything starts at home plain and simple

[@alicequayle4625]

Also some kids are undiagnosed partly deaf which hinders their learning.

[@drlex]

to think small we have to get rid of big government first

[@TrentonErker]

Teddy Roosevelt was thought an idiot until he got glasses

[@hasnainabbasdilawar8832]

He reminds me of sheldon cooper from the big bang theory.

[@joahchewbhaka5679]

only one wrong thing: you can measure the size of a problem without trying to solve it.

[@iviastergrade205]

If you do this In architecture, the lecturer would bash you up.

[@ToTo-hz7bc]

Nice

[@Logan-kn3gt]

big think made a video about think small -_-

[@itsswarna9043]

LoganBerry haha

[@bryanhfuller7937]

There are no problems there's only solutions

[@adamhonestyanddecency5054]

Being more succinct would result in more views.

[@fercon9892]

big think and thinking small

[@appeiroon]

Big think: think small.

[@friebender]

Basicly, if you analyze. Analyze correctly.

[@Mantikal]

Board of Ed in District of Columbia - "We are not interested in a "an entirely different individualized model" and especially not "FOR EACH KID." We are into ADMINISTRATION & MANAGEMENT and that requires "Standardization." As management, that allows us to feel "in control." We believe in the "Spreadsheet mentality" - every student neatly tucked into a cell on our spreadsheet. A model for each kid - to us equals total chaos - and most importantly - does not allow us (as an authority) to feel IN CONTROL!!!" Where does all that fit on our spreadsheet? In short, please put down that funny looking cigarette you're smoking because its never going to happen.

[@God_is_Justice]

thats not thinking small, its like using a microscope rather....

[@brucebaker810]

The example given: many kids would get better life results if they were willing to wear glasses. His "solution"? Do a (apparently major) study that demonstrates "results WITH glasses. Results WithOUT glasses." Aaaaaand...you think "I will do better in tests" = "okay, I'm convinced. I'll wear the glasses." In many cases, that might be the case. But not necessarily. After all, "study more" is also a way to do better in tests. Is that "just slam dunk convincing" students to study more? An offshoot of that COULD also be kids who don't need glasses figuring "I need to wear glasses. I'll get better test results if I put lenses in front of my (perfectly capable without glasses) eyeballs. So gimme glasses!"

[@SG1338]

Makes sense

[@wadewithcoffee1207]

Maybe the fear of breaking those glasses for children in living in Poverty is the problem. My parents. were always saying don't. Break your glasses. They are so expensive !!!

[@therealjordiano]

i think there are more glaring obvious problems in education, some of which can't really be fixed by changing anything. like for example the idea that being smart is a bad thing and that one should strive to be as far away from being a geek and a nerd as possible. i think among teenagers and adults this idea is shrinking but i think it's still prominent in children. the other major problem is low quality teaching. i remember having only one teacher that gave a slight dose of inspiration in my entire like.. 11 years of normal school time. (alevel and university are different). even so they are still terrible at controlling the class and getting them to actually listen. bullying is another issue. these are the kinds of things that, if solved, would make education go through the roof.