[extropy-chat] META: ExI List Quality & Future

[Damien Sullivan]

On a high-quality invitation-only list:

I see no reason in principle it can't work.  But I'd like to add my
experience: some years ago I started a polymath list, inviation only, largely
composed of extropians list members past and present I highly valued, and a
few outsiders like David Brin.  It had some pretty high-quality extropianish
discussion, a few flamewars between some of the more touchy members, and then
died out.  To me it felt like we were perhaps too self-conscious of the
desired purity, but I don't know.  Maybe it was too small, or I didn't do
enough to spark discussion.  Anyway, figured I should add the data point about
extropian-derived salons.

As of my writing this e-mail, the archives are back up:
http://ofb.net/~damien/polymath/

And Robin, the AltInst archives now live again as well:
http://www.mindstalk.net/alt/

-xx- Damien X-)