
Ask HN: How common is it to independently invent/discover things? - miguelrochefort
I recently realized that I independently invented&#x2F;discovered a lot of the things I know.<p>For example:<p>- I figured out the Pythagorean theorem before it was taught to me at school.<p>- When I look at software and design patents, a lot of them are obvious things I already imagined before.<p>- Most startups, including those asking you to sign a NDA, are ideas I&#x27;ve had before.<p>Usually, I&#x27;ll think of a problem, imagine the solution, and only then find out if it exists and how it&#x27;s called.<p>This way of thinking lead me to believe that hard problems don&#x27;t exist, and that formal education where you learn a fixed set of concepts over a long period of time is a waste of time, as I can just figure them out on the fly as needed.<p>The downsides are that my vocabulary is limited, my knowledge isn&#x27;t formalized, and I can&#x27;t tell what&#x27;s easy&#x2F;known (common knowledge) from what&#x27;s hard&#x2F;unknown (new idea).<p>Am I describing a unique trait that can be leveraged, or am I just rationalizing a learning disability?
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rthomas6
I think people discover something new soon after a set of preconditions are
met. Then once people know about it, it becomes easier for later people to
discover it, because this knowledge starts to be incorporated in speech, other
fields of knowledge, and culture.

The concept of zero did not exist before a certain time. Now my four year old
gets what zero is, without me ever having to really explain it.

Perspective in painting did not exist before a certain time. Now 10 year olds
can draw using perspective, without having to be taught.

Distinctions between certain colors did not appear to exist in various
cultures before they suddenly did. Blue and green were considered different
shades of the same color.

Certain harmonies did not exist in music before a certain time. Now tiny
children make up new songs with those harmonies.

Double entry bookkeeping didn't exist before a certain time.

Barbed wire didn't exist before someone invented it. Until then ranchers in
areas with little wood had to use shrubs and hedges to try to keep cows from
getting out, or just herded the cattle around semi-nomadically.

The way you are able to think about a problem is influenced by language,
perception of the things around you, art, and culture. In a world that
understands the Pythagorean Theorem, it's easier to figure out the Pythagorean
Theorem.

Also I agree, a lot of software design patents are bullshit.

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vinayms
Tangential.

I have always been a very imaginative and creative person, even as far back as
my single digit years. Over the years many of the ideas that I mused privately
have become reality a few years after. In my late teens I was convinced that I
was leaking idea into the universe and someone else was capturing them, until
I had a ceramic throne thought that asked me what if all the ideas I ever had
were leaking from someone else.

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FiatLuxDave
I similarly independently re-discover things, such as recently when I re-
discovered the Fermat primality test. Years ago I remember independently
deriving the Black-Sholes pricing formula. These things tend to happen when
you are intellectually exploring in a previously explored area. It is much
easier to explore the Grand Canyon when travelling through northern Arizona by
modern roads than it was when John Wesley Powell led his expedition. In the
same way, it is much faster and easier for those of us who benefit from the
work of those before us to find important intellectual landmarks. The path has
been cleared, so to speak. But hard problems exist. There are problems where
the path is still quite thorny, as no one has gone there yet.

There is a word for the trait you have:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autodidacticism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autodidacticism)

You may find it helpful to google to find advice for how to handle your way of
learning and fill the holes you will have in your knowledge that you end up
with by exploring rather than following the canon.

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ux4
Ideas aren't worth much, execution is everything.

I would like to encourage you to act on those ideas because the real art is in
translating those ideas into practical solutions. Everyone has their own ideas
of what would solve a problem, but 99% of those ideas will not work because
they are not grounded on reality.

~~~
miguelrochefort
The problem is that I can't tell which of my ideas are novel.

~~~
jolmg
It's not about them being novel. ux4's point is that businesses don't get
their worth for doing things nobody thought of before. They get their worth
for properly executing ideas nobody properly executed before.

> Most startups, including those asking you to sign a NDA, are ideas I've had
> before.

Ideas you've had before, but haven't taken the steps those startups have in
implementing them.

> Usually, I'll think of a problem, imagine the solution, and only then find
> out if it exists and how it's called.

That's just the global market being big. It's probably very common. There's a
lot of cool stuff out there most people have no clue about.

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Kazooie_Bird
Solutions to 'hard problems' are formed using very basic concepts. Do you have
documentation that you established a theorem such as your first example PRIOR
to EVER participating in formal education establishments?

If you feel that you have a disability, contact your primary care provider and
seek professional opinion for closure.

~~~
miguelrochefort
> Do you have documentation that you established a theorem such as your first
> example PRIOR to EVER participating in formal education establishments?

No. Why?

> If you feel that you have a disability, contact your primary care provider
> and seek professional opinion for closure.

My preference for inventing over learning is what I hypothesized as a learning
disability. Does this really require the opinion of a _________ specialist?

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dangerface
People think ideas are special but anyone can come up with more ideas than
they can possibly act on. If they do act on it they must see the idea as
special.

If a human can figure something out another human can too, theres nothing
special about the person.

