An article in the NYT revisits
the old nature-vs.-nurture debate (“How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall? Talent”).
It is related to a new meta-study which appears to debunk the 10,000-hours rule
made famous by Michael Gladwell. The piece starts with the following
observation: “The 8-year-old juggling a soccer ball and the
48-year-old jogging by, with Japanese lessons ringing from her earbuds, have
something fundamental in common: At some level, both are wondering whether
their investment of time and effort is worth it.”
Yes, indeed. I have no
doubt in my mind that this is exactly what someone like 8-year-old Diego Armando Maradona would
think, kicking a ball in some South American shanty town – no matter how “weird”
it may sound.
