Somebody else's problem field

I have been reading my creativity bible daily for the past couple of weeks (that being the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - the trilogy in 5 parts by the late Douglas Adams). I am constantly amazed by the amazing lateral thinking of the guy and how he makes amazing 'scientific' theories from human behavior.

One of these theories is the basis for his invisibility cloak. The concept behind the cloak is "Somebody Else's problem field". As you may have guessed, the 'scientific theory' is that people ignore stuff that they believe is somebody else's problem thus making it invisible in their minds. This is a not just great material for (comic) science fiction but also a deep philosophical thought.

If we just look around, we are all affected by this. As I think of it, I often rush to our lab manager when my computer is not working or when the internet has problems. He then suggests solutions which make me think "Why did I not try that." Often it is a solution that I have tried at home when my laptop or the wireless network at home is not working. However, I do not think about it at work because out there, it is someone else's problem. Now, if I get a problem, I try to see it as my problem and solve it before going to him (I always used to try and solve it before but I guess the SEP realization changed the thought pattern).

There are many such occasions in all our lives and we need to identify and change them. Although I gave an example from work, the bigger problems are with the poor, the sick, the oppressed and we need to treat their problems as ours and make sure that the less fortunate are not 'invisible' to us.