Raul's definition of ignorance is the same here (USA) and probably the world over. Ignorance means you simply don't understand something but you have the ability to learn. However, people do usually take offense to being called ignorant even if they really are ignorant. I would rather be called ignorant than stupid. Ignorance can be corrected. Stupid can't be fixed.
Dear Mep. Tom and Amirm: Stupid here in México is an insult and no one wants that any one tell him: stupid because this begin the fight I mean real fight.
In the other side ignorance/ignorant is exactly what Mep posted. How I see this word in our audio scenario or in any day by day life's scenario?:
exist a whole/world knowledge on each single subject that surround our life inany topic we can think. This " stock " knowledge is not private but someway " public " where each one of us that want to learn in some topics could have access to that in " stock " ( an always growing-up ) whole information.
Well, I see our brain as a " land " with a lot of " holes " some of them ( many ) are empty with no single information, other holes are with 10%-28%-69%-80% -etc of the topic information to achieve 100% and sveral other holes are already at 100%.
Through our each one learning process we are filling those holes where we are interested to. If we take any topic hole our ignorance level in that topic will be determined by how deep is still that hole: as deepest as higher the ignorance level.
As we follow learning and filling holes as our ignorance level comes lower. When we learn something new we say here in México: " that we fulfil/cover up a HOLE in our culture ".
And this is all about when I speak about ignorance level, I know for sure that I'm ignorant in a lot lot topics. Anyway I will try to take care about but maybe time to time when I will typing the keyboard that word could comes, please don't worry about: I can say to a person that he is ignorant ( because his poor/high ignorance level ) but certainly ( with out real reason ) I never tell a person: stupid.
Btw, I think is important too to take in count in which context in a discussion the " word " appear, with which tone appear the word: We know when some one ( due to that discussion level context/tone. ) try to hurt us.
Regards and enjoy the music,
Raul.