A philosopher who asked good questions about what they were doing (instead of telling them why, in principle, their projects were impossible) was apparently such a refreshing novelty that a sterling cadre of pioneering researchers took me in, gave me informal tutorials, and sent me alerts about whom to take seriously and what to read, all the while being more forgiving of my naïve misunderstandings than they would have been had I been one of their colleagues or graduate students.
This is one of the most refreshing things about Dennett. So many philosophers who write about science and scientists believe that they don't need to know much about science. He's the exception.
