Herbert Dreyfus

Herbert Dreyfus was an American philosopher and cognitive scientist who studied how people develop skills and expertise. He argued that mastery involves moving through stages—from novice to expert—by relying on intuition and experience rather than formal rules or logic alone. Dreyfus challenged early artificial intelligence ideas, emphasizing that human intelligence is embodied, context-dependent, and often intuitive. His work highlights the importance of practical understanding in learning and performing tasks, emphasizing that true expertise is more about feel and judgment than rules or algorithms.