How Technical Do You Have to Be to Take a Good Photo?

Does knowing the science behind photography help us create better pictures and/or get more out of our equipment? Or does the accumulation of such knowledge simply make more technical photographers feel superior?

In this episode of Vision Slightly Blurred, Allen Murabayashi makes the case that beyond understanding the exposure triangle and acquiring specific knowledge for the types of photography that you practice (e.g. astrophotography), it's unnecessary to be pre-occupied with understanding the physics of lenses or how sensors work.