[ExI] Accelerando

[Damien Broderick]

On 3/1/2010 9:42 PM, Keith Henson wrote:

> If anyone wants to read a story that was written around the ideas that
> floated across the Extropy list in those days, try Acclerando by
> Charles Stross.  It's free on the net, but you might want hard copy as
> well.

I've been reluctant to mention this, but in that context (a good 
recommendation from Keith!) I might as well: if anyone wants to get 
something of the flavor of the ideas and approaches buzzing on the list 
in the mid-'90s, read my book THE SPIKE. The trouble is that these once 
hair-raising ideas are now commonplace, some decade and a half later 
(although I had to omit some of the more difficult material because I 
was aiming at a general Wired-ish audience).

Perhaps one reason the idea flux seems a bit lacklustre now is that 
people who weren't there then inevitably rehash many of the same ideas, 
which are still somewhat novel if you're 20 or younger, and this is not 
so enthralling for the old timers. The Swobe cascade would also have 
been laughed off the list fairly quickly back then; 'gene would have 
been scathing in his brilliantly condensed way.

Still, I'm sure there are new ideas waiting to be explored, or old ideas 
waiting to be examined in depth--but it's not obvious what they are. 
(I'm waiting eagerly for Keith to tell us what his current idea for 
cheap energy is.)

Damien Broderick