February 20, 2023: Book Recommendations and a Cool Guitarist

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February 20, 2023: Book Recommendations and a Cool Guitarist

The world is changing in some fundamental ways. This is nothing new. The changes are the same as they have always been. How do we get along with each other and thrive in balance with the environment? Obviously, this is an extreme oversimplification but it is accurate. Growing up I was always a fan of Einstein. I loved that someone was famous for how smart they were. I still don’t understand The Theory of Relativity but I know the world is swift to celebrate athletic achievements and outlandish personalities, but slow to celebrate new ideas. He figured out things weren’t really as they seem with math. That’s badass. There have been some phenomenally smart people in the world. It’s hard to understand how someone can have such amazing ideas and a mind that guides them to completion. One person who has done just that goes by the name of Ray Kurzweil. He has done some cool stuff. The Singularity is Near https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/83518 This book lays the foundation for understanding the rate technology involves and likely timelines for major milestones. But the main takeaway is that technology progresses in a predictable fashion, and has proven to live up to the hype over time. Technology will continue to progress and there will periodically be changes that change Everything. And then there will be more changes. Telegraph, to telephone, to Facetime, to whatever comes next. There will be another Playstation and then another after that. This is not just a prediction, it is an absolute inevitability. If you are one of those prone to catastrophizing the situation let me refer to you to a quote: Nick Fury: “Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.” Another person of note is Peter Diamandis. A big thinker known for strategically organizing collectives of thinkers in ways to inspire progress. The X-Prize is his brainchild. https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/22609444 This book explores leveraging the predictability of advancing tech. A system where big companies have a 5-7 year start-up phase absolutely must be re-evaluated in a world where tech is evolving every 3. We are painting ourselves into very dangerous corners banking on the hope technology will continue to solve our problems fast enough. I find this rapid rate of progress a source of hope. Just maybe existential solutions will arrive before it’s too late. And quit hating on social media. Stop blaming it for the way you trained your algorithm. Go search for musicians and people doing kind things for strangers. Search for rescue dogs rescuing or people surprising one another with kindness. Let me introduce you to Jude Smith. He’s like a brain masseuse with his guitar. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6RF9CU_vec Social media is a way for people to monetize talent. It is not perfect or equitable. It is not a permanent solution, but it is a good sign of better things to come. Because as we have established technology is inherently demonetized, distributed, and a constant work in progress. The system is struggling to evolve but social media is not the villain. The bad parts need not be tolerated for the good to thrive. If social media is a way out of this trap, then it was worth some lip syncing.    
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