[ExI] Life @ Playstation

[Stefano Vaj]

On 4 November 2012 14:57, Brent Allsop <brent.allsop at canonizer.com> wrote:

>  Where are you getting all this from?  Especially specifics like "since
> 1870"?
> All I have is anecdotal evidences, but here's a few things I see that seem
> to say otherwise?
>

Hey, I derive indeed much comfort from the very existence of the
transhumanist movement, and this is why I am here. :-)

OTOH, I cannot really claim that transhumanist values and mentality are
anywhere near egemony yet, can I?

As to tecnological progress, there are different levels:

- Are we regreding? Luckily enough, most, even though by no means all,
existing and past know-how is here to stay and is not likely to be
significantly lost even in scenarios quite close to extinction. It remains
the case however that for instance the record *and* the average speed of
wheel, air, space and sea transportation is declining or has been
stationary for a long time now. Compare that with the quantum leap
represented by Voyager in comparison with a horse-mounted messenger. And
other examples could be mentioned.

- Is there a significant technological progress in place? The answer is
(still?) a resounding and unqualified yes essentially in the field of ICT,
and in fields that can directly profit from it. The less this is true, the
more leopard-spotted the scenario becomes.

- Is the progress accelerating, or even better is its acceleration itself
increasing? Why, even Kurzweil seems to admit that we find ourselves in the
belly of most of his S-shaped exponential curves...

In any event, I do not underestimate our current achievements, and I like
my smartphone as much as the next guy, but when Mr. Aldrin tells us on the
cover of Newsweek "You promised me Mars colonies, and I got Facebook" this
should give us pause. Especially when many of those achievements can easily
be seen as the feats of the proverbial dwarfs on the shoulders of giants.

This should not invite to pessimism (why couldn't we do as well as, and
better than, our ancestors?) but to a rethinking of the fundamentals traits
of our societies, and ultimately to action.

-- 
Stefano Vaj
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