Almost nothing you know or believe about the world is based on your own experience. Almost everything you know or believe about the world you know on trust.
It is really my own fault that nothing became of me. And for three reasons. First, I never believed that reckless publishing would move society forward. Second, I never thought that agreeableness was a useful trait for an intellectual. And third, I never considered science a group exercise. Still, I write about science, education, and citizenship. I write to make sense of reality. I wish I could say that I contribute to a larger discussion. I don't. But that is true for almost all of us.