Potentials

My experiences form my personal biases and belief systems. Even knowledge I accumulate through reading or conversation doesn't sink in and become true until I too have tested it in my own environment. Certainly there are those rare cases where new knowledge acquired without experience makes so much sense I just accept it as gospel, but over time, I find I need to test new bits of info for myself. This is where potential comes into play. We understand every observation has the potential for satisfactory explanation: why cables matter, why jitter that's so low should be inaudible (but isn't), why inexplicable changes in AC power affect audio signals. The list is very long. But having the potential to be explained is a country mile from actually explaining it. That's why we are comfortable believing what we experience, even if we can't explain it. This harkens back to the old arguments about measurements vs. personal experience. "I don't accept what you perceive until you can prove it in terms I understand". Every question, every experience, every observation has the potential for explanation on multiple levels—levels others can relate to. The problem is, potential means: having the capacity to become something in the future. The fact the future isn't yet here doesn't negate the experience or the observation as some would have you believe.