What it is
Nobody receives an idea passively. As David Deutsch observes, listeners filter explanations through their own expectations and fears, and end up “understanding it to mean what makes most sense to them.” Then, often, they try to improve it.
That variation isn’t a flaw in how knowledge travels. It’s how good explanations get tested. The parts that are truly essential survive, and the rest adapts to new contexts.
How it shows up for me
It makes me relaxed about being misread. Once something is published, it’s yours to amend. If an idea here breaks when you reshape it, it probably wasn’t a good idea.