[ExI] Is future progress moving to virtual reality?

[Giulio Prisco]

Anders: "What to do? I think it would be a mistake to try to promote
merely optimism or technology will solve everything memes. Rather I
think we need to promote memes of ambition, willingness to take risk,
willingness to work at *making* the future. People feel much better
about things that are within their sphere of control, or even where
they feel they are doing something."

Right, but optimism has an important role to play within the
make-the-future message. Why should you "do something" if you are
persuaded that it will fail?

On Sun, Mar 10, 2013 at 10:24 PM, Peter E McAlpine <pemca at comcast.net> wrote:
> Naw, it's environmentalism crushing humanity in favor of "nature."
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org
> [mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of BillK
> Sent: Sunday, March 10, 2013 6:07 AM
> To: ExI chat list
> Subject: Re: [ExI] Is future progress moving to virtual reality?
>
> On Sun, Mar 10, 2013 at 5:23 AM, PJ Manney wrote:
>> Please don't extrapolate grand historical trends from BS.  The Walt
>> Disney Company doesn't change Tomorrowland because Disney's leaders
>> since Walt's death don't care about the future.  They can't see beyond
>> the next dividend payment schedule or stock price expectation.  They'd
>> rather do what their marketing departments say costs the least to
>> accomplish to change the rides just enough to both maintain safety and
>> create the slightest bit of novelty to encourage revisits.  This is
>> about a lack of vision and cheapness.  Not future trends.  Future
>> trends (and correcting them when they don't turn out quite as
>> expected) costs too much money.
>>
>>
>
> Agreed that Disney are trying to create what sells and appeals to the
> public.
>
> Surely that is an indicator of the direction that public interest is moving
> in?
> The general public like the retro 1950s science fiction view of the future.
>
> Whereas in the real world, man in space has disappeared since the moon
> shots. Transport is still cars, with some tuning of the power systems.
> Kitchen equipment hasn't changed in fifty years.
> I think the point is that shuffling bits in a computer is far easier than
> developing new space technology.
>
> I think there has been a generational change. Today the general public care
> more about getting a job, paying medical bills, getting a pension, just day
> to day surviving. The vision of future splendour seems to be receding
> further every day, so people retreat into nostalgia and entertainment in
> virtual reality.
>
> I don't think it is comfort that is driving this. I think it is a feeling
> that the world is out of control, has gone crazy and people just want it to
> stop. (But maybe that's just me!)  :)
>
>
> BillK
> _______________________________________________
> extropy-chat mailing list
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org
> http://lists.extropy.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/extropy-chat
>
> _______________________________________________
> extropy-chat mailing list
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org
> http://lists.extropy.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/extropy-chat