Robb. Knight.

There are some phrases that no matter how many times I hear them, and then look them up, I always forget what they mean either because the phrase just isn't obvious or it doesn't come up enough for it to stick in my brain. I'm writing them here in the hopes that this might help me remember the definitions in the future (it probably won't).

Stuck the Landing

I dislike this one because "stuck" doesn't have good connotations in my mind but in this context it's good. Not a fan.

Banana republic

a small state that is politically unstable as a result of the domination of its economy by a single export controlled by foreign capital

So you are a nation that only exports bananas which is bad for politics. Got it.

Yak shaving

Any apparently useless activity which, by allowing one to overcome intermediate difficulties, allows one to solve a larger problem

Can I use it in a sentence?

"I was yak shaving this morning and it's actually helped me this afternoon".

This one is stupid and I don't like it.

Pulling Punches

You what? I'm pulling punches? Nothing about this phrase makes sense in isolation.

To avoid using a high level of force when punching

So pulling away punches to do less damage. Hmm, okay.

Dunning–Kruger effect

The Dunning-Kruger effect occurs when a person’s lack of knowledge and skill in a certain area causes them to overestimate their own competence

I will never remember this one. I am reminded of this poll where one in eight men think they could score a point in a tennis match against Serena Williams. Idiots.

Update 2024-05-12: Florian pointed me to this article which seems to suggest the Dunning-Kruger effect is very likely BS:

To establish the Dunning-Kruger effect is an artifact of research design, not human thinking, my colleagues and I showed it can be produced using randomly generated data