In any field of inquiry, the beginner is more likely than the expert to make important contributions.Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take. I

Throughout the history, scientists and businessmen have made important contributions to their field when they were in different ages. There are ones who achieve an important position at the beginning of their career. However, there are also experts who benefit from their experience and knowledge to make significant improvements in their area. Hence, the argument in the statement should not be considered as valid in every situation. The opportunity of the researchers to make important contributions in their area does not always depend on their level of expertise. Hence, beginners and experts are equally likely to add knowledge to their fields.

To begin with, being a beginner can be considered as an advantage because these people’s mind is not contaminated with the knowledge they have learned. Hence, their chance to think out of box might be higher than experts. When they get older, they might start to accept the previous theories and do not challenge them. However, at the beginning of their career, since their theoretical knowledge is not advanced as much as an expert’s, they might create new ideas that experts could not. For example, Nobel Laureate John Nash developed his famous Game Theory when he was a Ph.D. student in Princeton. When he showed his work to another Nobel Laureate famous economy professor who worked in this area, the reaction of the professor was not supportive and he considered Nash’s efforts useless. However, Nash’s brilliant ideas enabled him to discover a new area in economy that explains the competition and preferences of people. As in the case of the example, some people might create significant alterations and improvements, which could not be achieved by experts, in their field at the beginning of their career.

In addition, although a beginner is more likely to be more capable to consider different ideas; in some areas, expertise is more important since development of some theories might require time and knowledge. Some theories might necessitate collection of huge amount of data or observation; hence, being an expert increases the chance of scientists to make cardinal contributions in these areas. For example, Darwin had to spend some time in Galapagos Islands to collect the fossils he needed to develop his famous evaluation theory. After he acquired the materials that are essential for his theory, he had to focus on classifying these items and achieving meaningful results from his observations. Hence, he was able to develop his theory because he spent years for maturation of his ideas. Consequently, it is as often as not useful to devote years to that field to make significant contributions in that area.

Finally, there is also a chance factor that might affect the opportunity of scientists to make significant improvements in his field. Chance factor does not depend on the level of expertise of the scientists. Hence, both the beginners and the experts are equally likely to develop new theories. For example, ulcer was considered as a result of stress and surgeons took extreme measurements such as cutting the some part of stomach to prevent it. However, two doctors had noticed that a type of bacteria causes ulcer and they invented a medicine to defeat that bacteria. They noticed the role of bacteria in the ulcer while they were examining stomach for another purpose. As in the case of the example, chance is an important factor that plays role in the developments.

To sum up, the beginners might seem as advantageous since they are less exposed to the common knowledge in their area. Even though there are some fields where the beginners are more likely to come up with new ideas, years of expertise is required for contributions in many other fields. In addition, chance plays a significant role during the creation of new ideas. Hence, both the beginners and the experts might make significant contributions.