Analysis Paralysis

Analysis Paralysis. A multiply syllabic way to say the more we study, the less we know until the final grid lock of too much information. One of the side effects of this, and really the only solution is to make decisions based on partial information, and the effects are stunning. This lesson was taught to me by an older Greek engineer in the preliminary design group at GE jet engines. I asked why GE and Pratt had two completely different ways to handle compressor non-linearity during start up. His response was considered and philosophical, way beyond mechanical engineering. He said that it was like two trains headed west from New York that encountered tiny course changes going through rail switches, less than a degree to the north or south; at the end of the day one is in San Francisco and the other in New Orleans. So it goes with partial adoption of what we believe to be absolute truth. The only thing we know absolutely is that we know nothing, absolutely.