--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What tends to be forgotten, amid all the…" description: "\"“What tends to be forgotten, amid all the cheerleading for today’s technology, is that people in ancient times might have lacked our current theoretica..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/john-michael-greer-28078_ancient_what-tends-to-be-forgotten-amid-all-the_2388967.jpg" --- # What tends to be forgotten, amid all the cheerleading for… ![“What tends to be forgotten, amid all the cheerleading for today’s technology, is that people in ancient times might have lacked our current theoretical understanding of nature, but they were perfectly capable of noticing what worked and what didn’t, drawing rational conclusions on the basis of…” quote by John Michael Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/john-michael-greer-28078_ancient_what-tends-to-be-forgotten-amid-all-the_2388967.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/john-michael-greer-28078_ancient_what-tends-to-be-forgotten-amid-all-the_2388967.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ef/john-michael-greer-28078_ancient_what-tends-to-be-forgotten-amid-all-the_2388967.jpg) > ““What tends to be forgotten, amid all the cheerleading for today’s technology, is that people in ancient times might have lacked our current theoretical understanding of nature, but they were perfectly capable of noticing what worked and what didn’t, drawing rational conclusions on the basis of experience, and trying out new techniques to expand their ability to work with natural phenomena—even when their theories about the nature of those phenomena strike us as primitive or absurd.”” [John Michael Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-michael-greer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage emphasizes that despite lacking modern theory, ancient peoples used observation and trial‑and‑error to understand nature, showing the value of practical experience over abstract knowledge. **In simple terms:** Ancient people relied on experience, not theory. Key Takeaway Value practical experience. Themes history science experience Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - archaeology - technology development - education - problem solving Key Concepts empiricism innovation Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance theory with hands‑on experimentation? - What ancient insights are still useful today? A Different Perspective Modern reliance on theory can overlook simple, effective methods. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Natural phenomena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-phenomena/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Understanding nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding-nature/) ## Related quotes > [National borders have always been arbitrarily drawn by people, and in ancient times there was a lot of exchange of people and culture with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shinichiro-watanabe/national-borders-have-always-been-arbitrarily-drawn-by-people-and-in/) [Shinichiro Watanabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shinichiro-watanabe/) > [“According to Aristophanes in Plato's The Banquet, in the ancient world of legend there were three types of people. 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