outliers

just finished the book, 'outliers' by malcolm gladwell. interesting, but first a disclaimer/critique: he is not a quantitatively oriented person. he makes some claims without backing them up with data, and other assertions are tenuously extrapolated from scant data. it's clear from the definition he gives both in the book and in later interviews that he does not understand the real meaning of the word 'outlier' in the statistical context. it is also clear that he has an agenda: to disprove the 'myth of individualism' in favor of 'the power of community' to explain personal success. it's true that talent and hard work are not enough for success; you also need opportunity. (well, duh.) but i think he tries to replace one silly straw man with another. he strongly emphasizes the opportunities, and how randomly or arbitrarily they occur for people, as the dominant factor for determining success. but most opportunities don't just drop out of the sky into certain people's lap. it's precisely the people who are working hard, paying attention, and looking for opportunities that take advantage of them. maybe the author's mistake is the very common fallacy of confusing correlation with causation and choosing a causal relationship based on preconceived notion. in that spirit, it is interesting to see the role that these factors can play. people who are looking for those opportunities can increase their awareness and use it to their advantage.