Survival of the Catchiest
Rules of thumb—those practical guidelines we rely on daily—don't survive across generations because they're accurate, but because they're memorable. A rule expressed in an elegant rhyme often outlives its more accurate but ungainly counterpart.
This creates a fascinating evolutionary pattern where transmission fidelity trumps functional optimization. The knowledge that persists through time isn't necessarily the most useful or true, but rather the most easily remembered and shared.
Like a catchy tune that stays in your head while complex melodies fade, our collective wisdom sometimes prioritizes form over function. This pattern reveals how human cognitive limitations shape the evolution of practical knowledge, creating a natural selection process where memorability, not accuracy, determines what wisdom survives.