Analysis Of Lewis Thomas To Err Is Human

Using computers as comparisons to the human mind, Lewis Thomas' "To Err is Human" stresses the importance of mistakes as a tool for action. He states that to err is what separates the human mind and superhuman, electronic minds. While computers have the capacity to produce an infinite amount of precise calculations, glitches and errors will still be made, and the corrections made by humans. He mentions that the knack of being wrong is "a uniquely human gift" and that it should be used as "a guide for action." Thomas stresses the significance of error as a motivation to illicit the appropriate response ‑ correction ‑ in order to know.

Mistakes are necessary and Thomas points out that if we were completely free of making them, "we could never get anything useful done." He mentions that "wrong choices have to be made as frequently as the right ones" for the human mind thinks and makes decisions based
This poses somewhat of a competition between those "text‑friendly" students who have that ability, with students whose intellectual strengths lie in other areas.

In connection to Thomas' notion of "error as important," Gardener upholds the same idea by stating that students and teachers together must be willing to "undertake risks for understanding" if success is to follow. This cannot be achieved if the only response desired are "ritualized, note, or conventionalized