Originally Posted by
Nicholas Lawrence
Being an expert is not the same thing as being a professional. As others have pointed out, "professional" has different meanings as well. It may mean I do it for a living (I am a professional shoe shiner) or it may mean you are a member of a licensed profession (I am a licensed medical doctor, even if I choose to do research instead of treating illness).
An expert is someone who by way of education, training, or experience has more information about the given topic than their audience.
You can acquire expertise in multiple ways. I college I took astronomy classes, I have used basic techniques to precisely determine direction from celestial observations, I have read a biography of Columbus that described the navigation techniques he used, and this weekend I attended a presentation where some medieval devices were discussed and demonstrated. So I know a lot more about medieval methods of celestial navigation than the average person.
I might be an expert from the point of view of a boy scout group, but that does not mean I could usefully address astronomers at a conference.
Even if I could usefully address the astronomers, it would not make me an expert on infectious disease. The term is both topic and forum dependent.
I'll disagree somewhat with your definition of expert. In my opinion, you have to have a DEMONSTRATED expertise, not just be able to have more information. At least in most fields, you should be able to explain and demonstrate you know and have the ability to perform that expertise, and it isn't just being able to talk about it.
But yes, anyone can call themselves a professional or an expert and we can determine if that is accurate or not by their performance.
And I've seen plenty of professionals in many fields who are not experts.
Woodworking, Old Tools and Shooting
Ray Fine RF-1390 Laser Ray Fine 20watt Fiber Laser
SFX 50 Watt Fiber Laser
PM2000, Delta BS, Delta sander, Powermatic 50 jointer,
Powermatic 100-12 planer, Rockwell 15-126 radial drill press
Rockwell 46-450 lathe, and 2 Walker Turner RA1100 radial saws
Jet JWS18, bandsaw Carbide Create CNC, RIA 22TCM 1911s and others