Little kids ask “why” a hundred times a day. Somewhere around eighth grade we start acting like we already know.

Questions stop being free somewhere in the middle of school. Asking one starts to signal that you do not already know, and looking informed quietly becomes worth more than being informed. The curiosity does not disappear at that age; it just goes underground to avoid the cost.

Spend a week asking the ones you would normally swallow. What does that word mean, why do we do it this way, how does that actually work. Most people are relieved that somebody asked. The small embarrassment lasts seconds and the answer stays for years.