In their own words, Quora’s mission is “to share and grow the world’s knowledge,” much of which nowadays remains in people’s heads rather than written down somewhere. “We want to connect the people who have knowledge to the people who need it, to bring together people with different perspectives so they can understand each other better, and to empower everyone to share their knowledge for the benefit of the rest of the world,” they wrote in their mission statement.
Providing a space for people to ask all sorts of questions and for others to share their knowledge, the Q&A (question and answer) website has likely led to many people learning something new. However, as this list clearly shows, some questions might be difficult to answer even for the most educated of people out there.
Talking about what makes all sorts of Q&A websites and forums so popular online nowadays, Professor of Communication at USC Annenberg School For Communication and Journalism, Dr. Dmitri Williams noted that it might be related to a simple concept called ‘social proof,’ which means that we look at what others are doing to see if we’re doing the right thing.
“Everyone wants to fit in, be accepted, and feel good about themselves. This is doubly true online, where you can’t always get the same cues you can in person,” he told Bored Panda. “Research finds that people take online cues strongly when the space is more anonymous. Q&A websites are a little bit like that—what is everyone else thinking? They can also seem like more fair sources of info since we know that companies will essentially tell us anything to get us to spend money.”
#8 Umm... What? She Wants To Call The Cops On The Person Minding His Own Business In His Own House
According to a Pew Research Center survey from last year, the majority (58%) of people nowadays prefer getting their information using their devices (leaving television [32%], radio [6%], and print publications [4%] behind).
Delving deeper into what exactly they use their devices for when looking for information, the survey found that, as of last year, roughly three in ten people were checking news websites and apps, nearly a fourth were focusing on searching engines, exactly a fourth used social media, while 6% relied on podcasts.
With so many people turning to their devices and the internet for information, it’s important to keep in mind that far from everything we find online is actually true. So it might be a good idea to remain critical, especially when looking up things on social media or Q&A websites, where the information is rarely shared with proof accompanying the statements made.
Talking about the positives and negatives of Q&A websites and similar sources, Dr. Williams noted that, on the positive side, there’s access to unbiased experts who have knowledge and experience, as well as the ‘wisdom of the crowds’ when lots of people act one way.
“On the negative side, there are people who are full of garbage but seem like experts, bots spouting content that isn’t even real, and the perils of groupthink, in which people follow very dumb crowds to dumb conclusions. Ivermectin isn’t going to cure your Covid,” he said.
“Critical thinking is incredibly important, especially in a world where so much content is being generated by AI,” Dr. Williams continued. “We have to ask, is this a credible source? Do they have irrefutable, verifiable facts on their side? We should be asking if we’re simply getting what we want, or what’s correct.
“Remember, online systems are designed to keep us interested and scrolling, not better informed, kinder, and with a great sense of perspective. If the content you’re looking at is free, you’re probably the product.”
#18 Yeah! You Should Totally Go On The Date And Get This 27 Year Old Man In Potential Danger With The Law!
