Day 325 – Only So Much Room Under the Carpet

When scientists accept a paradigm, they fall into a framework that helps them understand the universe and use that basis for further experimentation to support or reinforce the original premise. However, sometimes an anomaly pops up. Something that is unexplainable based on the existing or current paradigm. Scientists will chalk this up as an irregularity and brush the issue under the carpet to use a common idiom to describe this behavior. This is not a behavior that is germane to just scientists, we do this everywhere.

I remember learning as a child that I could just sweep items under the couch or pull a rug, and my mother and grandmother would not notice. I thought I had found the ultimate solution until one day, I saw my father doing the same thing. That is when I realized that there is only so much room under the carpet.  Eventually, the things we were brushing underneath would accumulate and require attention. This happens in science. Eventually, scientists have too many irregularities that the current paradigm can handle. This is when a paradigm shift occurs, or potentially an entire scientific revolution.

My personal problem is always brushing what I do not want to deal with under the carpet. It is a temporary relief to ignore pressing matters, but once they become large enough to become constantly noticed – then they become major sources of stress. When you have a bunch of things going on like that, stacked under the carpet, then eventually you reach a point where you must pause your work and deal with what is now a crisis. Usually, these types of issues get worse the longer they are ignored.

So this is just a reminder, mostly to myself. Stop ignoring things. If you see something that is going to be a problem later, just take care of it right away and move on. No need to borrow against the future with a bunch of small delays for convenience.