Much of outcomes research is a systematic attempt to exploit what is known and make it better.
The mastery of the turn is the story of how aviation became practical as a means of transportation. It is the story of how the world became small.
I think you have to control the materials to an extent, but it's important to let the materials have a kind of power for themselves; like the natural power of gravity, if you are painting on a wall, it makes the paint trickle and it drips; there is no reason to fight that.