Reminds me of a similar story with Henry Ford, where he said he doesn't need to know everything since with the press of a button on his desk he can summon someone who can relay the information to him.
Henry Ford was notoriously ill-informed. He sued a newspaper for libel after they said he was an idiot. In the trial they asked him in what year the revolution that founded the country took place. "1812?" facepalm
And yet Ford was a fantastic innovator and worth $188 billion (adjusted for inflation) when he died! It really hammers in the point that general knowledge and intelligence are very different skillsets.
The Ford story has a superficial similarity to the Einstein one, but in reality they're diametrically opposed. Einstein _understood_ how the physical world worked so he didn't need to carry around unnecessary "information". Ford, at least in the story, has neither "information" nor understanding.
The distinction is similar to the distinction made in philosophy between "knowledge" and mere "true belief".
> Ford, at least in the story, has neither "information" nor understanding.
He does have information, he has information that some people around him will respond to his requests for more information if it becomes necessary to have it. The power of delegation at work.
