[ExI] Universal languages (was: wta-talk Voting Members ...)

[x at extropica.org]

On 12/28/07, Bryan Bishop <kanzure at gmail.com> wrote:
> This is off-topic (again), but the topic of communication is important,
> and it seems to me that this would be more appropriate for the
> extropian mailing list.
>
> On Friday 28 December 2007, Riccardo Campa wrote:
> > If we want to overcome the language barrier we should invent a new
> > common World language.

Thanks Bryan for touching upon a subject both subtle and deep, crucial
to much of extropian discourse, at least as it was during this list's
earlier days, infused with the spirit of pan-critical rationality,
dynamic optimism and similar guiding (rather than defining)
principles.  Familiarity and adeptness distinguishing symbol from
meaning, the map from the territory, and the importance of context and
its inherently Gödelian nature are essential to forming an
increasingly coherent model for intentional action within an
co-evolving world.

Riccardo suggests a **solution** involving the adoption of Esperanto
to facilitate (or would it impose?) a more effective framework for
communication.  In contrast, past discussions on the extropy list
involved ideas such as E-Prime and General Semantics, Loglan and
Logban, and more fundamental approaches to effective interaction with
extra-terrestrials, robots, and entities organic, inorganic, or
perhaps otherwise.

My intent with this post is partly to celebrate the past (and future?)
depth and creativity of the extropy discussion list, but also to
highlight contrasting philosophies with regard to possible futures.
One hand offers **solutions** -- ostensibly applicable but within an
unknown and necessarily unknowable future context.  The other hand
offers **approaches**, based on increasingly sound principles,
applicable with increasing effectiveness to discovering the future by
creating it.