I know this kind of knowledge isn't easy to come by and is often a by-product of work, life experience, and maybe even just reading.
As someone who is probably relatively naïve and isn't that far in life, I'm curious about what's the best way to build accurate and coherent mental models of the world and how it operates?
2. Realize how broad an undertaking that is. So figure out the major components of human undertakings and make certain you cover all the components. Say agriculture horticulture and food, building, clothing/fabrics, infrastructure (electricity, water, oil/gas, wastewater, transportation, communications, computing), manufacturing, mining, medicine, law and order, military studies, entertainment, visual arts, music, literature and rhetoric, linguistics, education, religion. A true university education, as in learning everything a large university has to offer at some reasonable level. Not just checking off a distributional requirement.
3. Each of these are a human endeavor and are defined by a fairly distinct subculture with vocabulary, norms, values, ways of thinking, cultural code words. Learn them. Don’t learn to be a nurse, but “grok” the nursing subculture (which will involve learning a little but don’t go poking people with needles). Don’t practice medicine, but maybe read the Merck Manual. Empathize with the subcultures...
4. Science and math is the universe (in the form of human beings) straining to understand itself. Learn the STEM subcultures, but then learn what the universe has found out about itself, at a suitably abstract level.
Once you’ve done that, then explore whatever brings you joy. Keep current, but once you have the foundations they are pretty light updates. Then go deep on whatever personally interests you. They become the spice of your personality in this human life.
https://www.amazon.com/Super-Thinking-Book-Mental-Models/dp/...
Written by the duckduckgo folks
Shane Parrish of Farnam Street has his own two volumes of this (the Mental Models series), which although designed beautifully, cost more, have 10x the words, and take 10x the time to get the points across.