# Test the weld, not the welder The idea that you should only care about the work product, not the credentials of the person who does the work. This concept is great in theory but in situations with research where outputs will take years or decades (or forever!) you need some kind of shorter-term heuristic. Often credentials (official or unofficial) are the only thing you have to go off of. This is similar to the Talebian idea that the best surgeons don’t like surgeons because it means that they are so skilled they have succeeded *despite* bias against them [Web URL for this note](http://notes.benjaminreinhardt.com/Test+the+weld,+not+the+welder) [Comment on this note](http://via.hypothes.is/http://notes.benjaminreinhardt.com/Test+the+weld,+not+the+welder)