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If you think that, you've missed the point of the article.

We know how almost everything we use works -- in that we can connect the initial "shallow" models to more fundamental models of physics. Apparently this one has eluded us so far.

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This is a philosophical stance that goes beyond the article's point. We have very good models for most of technology but we don't know enough about how Lithium batteries fit into those models. It's kind of tangential though. The point of the article seems to be that we ought to pay more attention to tangible things that we don't understand (like how to design more efficient batteries that would improve people's lives in real ways) then on pointless interpretations of string theory. I tend to think there is value in keeping in mind that we can't actually be certain of things because the alternatives seems quite pompous to me.

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