In grammar school most of what is taught is unquestionable; even if or when it is wrong you do not have the authority to raise doubt or to contradict it. This remains true for the most part in high school.
College and grad school studies are a whole different ball of wax. Now we are in the realm where the material is advanced enough that the instructors themselves may not understand it correctly. So that an 'authoritative' textbook, written by human instructors who may or may not have an accurate, correct, clear, and insightful grasp of the material, may be full of obscurities and errors because the authors are committed to presenting what may be no more than the appearance or semblance of the truth.
High tech equipment and systems of all kinds are presumed to validate the academic theory associated with them. A quintessential example is the atomic bomb as validation of Einstein's theories.
I would argue that the operation of an atom bomb can be better understood by reference to the natural or physical principle of 'bounce'. The bomb works by generating a severe, super-intense compaction of matter. If the compaction is sufficient, the bounce-back is extreme. Einstein's theory did little or nothing to suggest the compaction-and-bounce methodology.
One striking example of scientific error is supposed photographic imaging of the sun. Can you really get an accurate image of the sun by blocking or filtering all but the smallest fraction of its light? The image is primarily an artifact of the technology.
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