[nabs-l] Understanding things in a concrete way

[Rahul Bajaj]

Hi all,

I hope this message finds you well. One problem that I often face
while trying to acquire a nuanced understanding of any concept,
especially unfamiliar concepts, is that my understanding of most
things is very abstract. Analogies and metaphors are very powerful
tools for learning something new. However, I often find it hard to
make sense of the analogy or metaphor because my understanding of the
thing with which the comparison is being made is often merely
theoretical, so it is often difficult for me to understand all the
intricacies of a situation, opinion or problem because of this
impediment. I guess if you see something, or even feel it, then that
experience leaves an indelible impression on your memory which can
then act as a powerful tool or lens through which you can view other
situations. However, most of the knowledge that I have acquired thus
far about how the world operates and about the nuances that shape and
influence decision making at all levels has been largely theoretical,
so this poses two main challenges:
First, it is often harder for me to recall things that I have read
about in the past since my knowledge about the things in question is
purely theoretical; I do not know how they operate in practice.
Second, even when I am able to recall what I need to recall, I
struggle to use it as a pillar upon which I can build the edifice of
the new concept that I am trying to grasp. Let me give this
proposition a concrete shape and form by giving you an example.
Recently, I was writing a research paper about an aspect of
competition law in which I had to explain how electricity power grids,
gas pipelines and telecommunication networks work and how the law
makes it mandatory for various competitors to share networks, nodes,
etc. However, I wasn't able to acquire a deeper understanding of this
issue because until I know how electricity power grids and gas
pipelines exactly work in practice, it is hard for me to talk about
the law that governs their operation.
I don't know if I have been able to articulate my problem correctly.
However, I do believe that this has a lot to do with my blindness and
my concomitant inability to visually understand how things around me
work in a concrete way. Would love to know what you all think about
this.

Best,
Rahul