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Science|Reading Time: 2 minutes

The Stormtrooper Problem

There is no better problem solver than evolution.

Natural selection thrives on diversity. From DNA to ecosystems, advantageous traits spread when there’s a variety to choose from. While biology gets diversity through mutations, we can choose ours by the people we include.

Diversity isn’t about appearances but rather different perspectives shaped by experience.

Diversity of thought shouldn’t scare us; it should excite us. It removes blind spots and gives us more tools to solve problems. Imagine a meteor hurtling towards Earth. We’d want thousands of diverse minds working on it, not three.

Diversity of Thought

Intelligence agencies are a great petri dish for diversity because they require creative solutions to unique problems. You’d expect them to crave diversity and seek it out. You’d be wrong.

Their strict clearance process filters out the type of diversity that often results in excellent problem solvers, which inadvertently creates a monolithic workforce that thinks alike.

Consider some common problems. In debt? That might make you susceptible to blackmail. Divorced? That might make you an emotional decision-maker. Youthful indiscretion? That makes it harder to trust you. Gay, but haven’t told anyone? Blackmail risk. Independently wealthy? That means you don’t need our paycheck, which might make you unloyal. Do you have nuanced opinions on politics? Yikes. The list goes on.

While the security clearance process tries to reduce risk, it inadvertently creates the biggest one: the people who get through lack real diversity. Misfits are filtered out. Stormtroopers are hired.

As a result, effectiveness plummets and budgets increase. More Stormtroopers get hired. This is the Stormtrooper problem.

Eventually, hard problems get outsourced to the misfit-friendly companies that can solve them.

Nature’s Lesson

Birds didn’t evolve feathers for flight, but for warmth or attraction. This ‘exaptation’ – a trait repurposed for a new use – is crucial for survival in changing environments.

The Irish Potato Famine illustrates the danger of monoculture. Reliance on a single crop type led to widespread famine when blight struck. There is no adaptation without variation. If we’re all alike, we risk extinction when faced with the unexpected.

Even reproduction is about diversity. Each new life is a unique gene combination, like unexpected scientific breakthroughs.

Diversity makes us stronger, not weaker. Without it, we can’t adapt and survive.

Article Summary

  • Visible diversity is not the same as cognitive diversity.
  • Cognitive diversity comes from thinking about problems differently, not from race, gender, or sexual orientation.
  • Cognitive diversity helps us avoid blind spots and adapt to changing environments.
  • You can’t have selection without variation.
  • The Stormtrooper problem is when everyone working on a problem thinks about it similarly.

Read Next

Next Post:It’s All Your Fault: Active vs. Passive Mindsets The hard truth is that most things in your life – good and bad – are your fault. The sooner you realize that, the better things will be. …

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