Effects of Expertise on
Dangerous Theme Park Construction
Ashton Macaulay
The Pattison Chronicle
A shot goes off in the dark, a
worker’s eyes turn the beady white of a man about to confront his ultimate
demise, and a velociraptor roar fills the night air. Workplace accidents are
common, but have been growing as a result of shoddy practices employed in the
construction of what some might consider to be overly ambitious and even
dangerous theme park attractions (Crichton, 1990). Previous research has
demonstrated that expertise does not always translate to accuracy (Singh,
Meyer, & Thomas, 2014). Whether it be misdiagnoses in the medical
population or misuse of mosquito-harvested dinosaur DNA, it is clear that
expertise can often lead to mistakes, and unspeakable consequences for the
general population. The present review aims to examine how the mistakes of
experts may have affected the tragic outcome in the Spielberg (1993) case
study.
Expertise In Computer
Programming
While most of us would agree that
computer experts are necessary for building a complex network or program
system, there is a dangerous side to hiring these individuals. A recent
research study by Macaulay (2014) found that nearly 95% of all computer hackers
were proficient in programming, and 99% claimed that they were experts in
computers. With facts like this many questions are raised. Why are these
dangerous individuals still employed in positions of power?
The most salient example would be
the case study of Dennis Nedry (Spielberg, 1993). Nedry was considered to be
one of the top programmers in his field when he was employed at the Ingen
facility formerly known as Jurassic Park. While he may have known a great deal
about computers, his expertise might have ultimately led to the death of 4
individuals including himself. While it is unclear whether this murder-suicide
was the result of his programming skills, the causation implied through this
correlation is hard to ignore. However, it is improper to place all of the
blame on one individual. Here at the Pattison Chronicle we like to spread the
blame as evenly as possible, implicating as many individuals as possible,
because that’s good science.
Raptor Expertise:The Life and
Times of Robert Muldoon
While Robert Muldoon’s actions did
lead to the timely rescue of both Dr. Ellie Satler and Dr. Ian Malcom, it is
unclear whether or not this was the result of his expertise, or sheer luck. I
for one would describe expertise as the ability to keep one’s own face from
being eaten by the very predator that one claims to be an expert on. In
Muldoon’s (1985) self-titled biography regarding his time as a game-warden in
Africa, he specifically states that running into the jungle after a group of
predators in hopes of taking them out with a shotgun that would barely
penetrate their skin would be considered asinine. As such it is surprising that
Muldoon was killed in the exact same situation he advocated against.
What happens when expertise
declines? While it has been shown that motor reflexes decline with age (Glass,
Maddox, & Love, 2013), expertise in fields that require these factors has
not been studied in relationship with age. Was it possible that Muldoon was
past his prime and should have thrown in the towel? Perhaps a mandatory
retirement age for wardens at parks filled with easily-aggravated creatures
with tendencies to eviscerate and disembowel should be instituted. Should the
aging population of these experts be addressed in corporate policy? We leave
you to decide.
John Hammond: Billionaire?
Philanthropist? Murderer?
John
Hammond was the founder and chairman for the Jurassic Park initiative. He
served on the board of construction for the park, as well as on the board of
Ingen (the company responsible for harvesting the DNA). In Chrichton’s (1990)
case study John Hammond was considered to be an expertise in entrepreneurial
ventures, as defined by having over 10 hours per week spent on entrepreneurial
ventures on average over the five years before the study was carried out. While
the Chrichton (1990) study stated that John Hammond died with the park, this
finding was later refuted by Spielberg (1993) in a rather controversial
reversal of what had previously been considered as canon.
The main point of their case study
was to highlight the incompetence that resulted from John Hammond’s leadership.
Aside from a business model that would have run the park into the ground within
the first 3 months of opening, John Hammond also frequently violated the rights
of his native workers (Spielberg, 1993). In one instance a worker was asked to
stand on top of a raptor cage while it was very clearly not secured. While it
is unclear from the study whether or not he was killed or just horribly
disfigured, it nonetheless provides a human rights violation. A few more of
these and Mr. Hammond would have had more lawsuits on his hands than even he
could have paid off.
The real question here is: If John
Hammond was such an expert, why would he go through with the building of an
economically unsound death trap? With a business model that includes helicopter
rides priced affordably to ensure access for everyone to the park, and ancient
apex predators loosely contained on an island that looked suspiciously like
Hawaii, John Hammond’s expertise clearly didn't help him much. When asked to
comment he only said: “Spared no expense, I assure you.”
What Can We Do?
While expertise in the fields of
computers, predatory animals, and philanthropy has been shown to lead to death
and destruction (Chrichton, 1990), that does not mean that all hope is lost. We
as a population of consumers need to make sure to ask the right questions. When
asked by a billionaire who just randomly shows up in a helicopter in the desert
maybe we should stop and think: Wait,
would it be a good idea for me to go to this man’s island just because he’s my
boss, and to ignore all of the potential dangers that come with it? It’s
time that we stop being lemmings and addresses the clear and present danger
that is the idea of expertise. Question everything, trust no one, new world
order, and remember, building an idea full of extinct predatory animals hastily
is a terrible idea.
References
Chrichton,
M. (1990). Jurassic Park. New York: Ballantine
Books
Glass, B. D., Maddox, W. T., &
Love, B. C. (2013). Real-time strategy game training: Emergene of a cognitive
flexibility trait. PLoS One, 8(8),
1-7. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0070350
Ingen (2014). Yes our company
practices led to a few deaths, but we’d do it again, and we will. Check out
Jurassic World next summer kids. Ingen Publishing, 1993.
Macaulay, A. (2014). Computer expertise and the deaths of
every American who ever lived, a clear and present danger. Speculative Research Magazine, 1(1), 1-555. doi: 8675309-JENNY
Muldoon, R. (1985). Game wardening in Africa: Is it really
all that dangerous? Yes, you will f***ing die. Oxford Publishing Group, 1985.
Singh, H., Meyer, A. N. D., & Thomas, E. J. (2014). The frequency of diagnostic errors in
outpatient care: Estimations from three large observational studies involving
US adult populations. BMJ Quality & Safety, 23,
727-731. doi: 10.1136/bmjqs-2013-002627
Spielberg, S. (1993). Jurassic Park (movie). Universal
Pictures, 1993.
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