According to some experts, human curiosity has contributed greatly to the development of civilization. For example, the transition from a hunting and shoring society to an agricultural one prioritized maintaining a stable status quo. In this environment, challenging attitudes were disregarded, and stable crop production was prioritized. However, crises such as floods and droughts can cause great harm to the group. Interestingly, when we look at forward-thinking organizations that have developed civilizations and cultures, they have valued curious people. It could be said that they have preserved curious individuals in preparation for sudden changes in the natural and social environments.
Curiosity can generally be divided into divergent curiosity and inquisitive curiosity. For example, consider a young child who asks endless questions. You may wonder, “Why are they asking the same question over and over again?” This is a typical example of divergent curiosity. At the other end of the spectrum, there is inquisitive curiosity, that a person persistently pursues a single question. This child also exhibits inquisitive curiosity. There is something distinctive about the line of ants that this child is staring at. Ants within the same nest groom each other, smearing each other with skin substances. Ants’ skin substances use non-volatile chemicals (pheromones) to distinguish friend from foe. Furthermore, because pheromones are volatile, the shorter the distance between ants, the more pheromones remain, allowing them to move faster. Children with inquisitive curiosity can be seen watching a procession of ants, wondering why there are no enemies, why they maintain the same distance between them, and why they are transporting food from the nest to the nest in the shortest distance possible.
If we become obsessed with divergent curiosity, we will end up becoming mere know-it-alls. Curiosity is an element that has supported the development of humanity. However, if we only develop divergent curiosity, we will not be able to analyze problems or find solutions. Therefore, it is necessary to use inquisitive curiosity to analyze problems and find concrete solutions. An interesting experiment was conducted at an American university. It is commonly thought of universities as places where people seek truth. However, an experiment that was far from the truth was conducted at that university. The actor gave a fun and entertaining lecture, full of humor and gestures. It was far from the truth. However, the students’ evaluations were intriguing. The students generally gave the actor’s lectures high marks. Many students praised not only the teaching method but also the content of the lessons. It has also been reported that many great achievements have been made by these many students. The actor’s lectures at university were neither too many nor too few, but just the right level to stimulate students’ curiosity. To foster intellectual curiosity, it seems important for children, parents, and teachers to always maintain a sense of ease. As an aside, the mother of a child who was intently watching a trail of ants was also watching intently. It seems that this child’s talents will likely flourish.
