Daily Archives: December 24, 2008

Which is greater — soil or seed?

Malcolm Gladwell’s latest book, “Outliers”, is filled with eurekas. He contradicts popular beliefs that exceptional individual accomplishments are explained by personal characteristics. Instead, he demonstrates how cultural and calendar phenomena account for outliers. Metaphorically, this pits seed against soil. But soil without seed is barren. And seed without soil is dead. Neither is greater.