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Saved by 4 people (0 private), first by anonymouse user on 2009-05-16


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overall, in life as a whole over geologic time, diversity has widened. In fact life's diversity has doubled since the dinosaurian era, only 200 million years ago.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

Each patent is also a species of idea. At last count there were 7 million patents issued in the US alone, and their total has been increasing exponentially as well. Considering that humans have named and identified only 1.6 million living species, as far as we know, the "made" now outnumber the "born" four to one.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

Even when we name a form, most of the variety of life and the technium goes by us without a specific name

Highlighted by jrstoltz

The real problem with ultra-diversity is in not being able to grasp the whole of it, not being able to search through it, to track your navigation in this space of billions, and to (re)find the best when you summon it.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

he real problem with ultra-diversity is in not being able to grasp the whole of it, not being able to search through it, to track your navigation in this space of billions, and to (re)find the best when you summon it.

Highlighted by takuya514

But Lulu, a prosumer company that enables authors to publish their own paper books is releasing 5,000 titles per week.

Highlighted by takuya514

"As the number of choices grows further, the negatives escalate until we become overloaded. At this point, choice no longer liberates, but debilitates. It might even be said to tyrannize."

Highlighted by jrstoltz

"no choice" is a far worst option

Highlighted by jrstoltz

Without uniform rules, every word has to be made-up, so communication is localized and inefficient. But with a uniform language sufficient communication transpires in large circles so that a novel word, phrase or idea can be appreciated, caught, and disseminated. The rigidity of an alphabet has done more to enable creativity than any brain-storming exercise ever invented.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

In a curious way the homogenization of shared universals allows it to transmit the diversity of cultures.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

If such local diversity can remain distinctively different while it is connected (and this is a very big IF) then that difference becomes steadily more valuable in a global matrix.

Highlighted by jrstoltz

Increasingly the technium will converge upon a few universal standards – perhaps English, and western musical notation, mathematical symbols, but also widely adopted technical protocols, from the metric system to ASCII and Unicode.

Highlighted by takuya514

A few iconoclasts believe this ultra-diversity is toxic to humans. In the "The Paradox of Choice", sociologist Barry Schwartz argues that the 285 varieties of cookies, 171 kinds of salad dressing and 85 brands of crackers for sale in the typical supermarket today is paralyzing consumers.

Highlighted by eyalnow

In 100 years it is very likely there will be at least one common language spoken by at least half the people on the planet. But the same people will also retain their regional tongue as well, perhaps even more widely than is spoken today, since some fading languages such as Gaelic have revived. Yet we are currently loosing dozens of tribal languages every year, reducing diversity. On the other hand, millions of earthlings have learned newly created computer languages. These are entirely new types of languages. I would argue that the global diversity of languages has decrease but its global disparity has increased.

Highlighted by takuya514

Schwartz concludes: "As the number of choices grows further, the negatives escalate until we become overloaded. At this point, choice no longer liberates, but debilitates. It might even be said to tyrannize."

Highlighted by eyalnow

Difference powers the world. It is the absolute difference in temperature between cold space and hot stars that powers not only life on earth, but syntropy anywhere. No delta, no life, no stars, no galaxy, no nothing. Maintaining a difference is what living systems and minds do.  When a difference can be maintained over time, it can begin to multiply and increase differences elsewhere. If it a diverse ecosystem is in good health it will, over time, increase its own diversity. Evolution increases differences.  Culture is about accentuating differences.  The technium runs on differences.

Highlighted by eyalnow

Diversity is the currency of progress. The things that we desire - freedom of choice, options and difference - are types of diversity, and in a loop of upcreation, more diversity produces more of the things that we desire.

Beginning from the white dawn of creation, diversity in the universe has been increasing. Its rate of increase has been ramped up by life, and is now being further accelerated by the technium. What technology wants is greater diversity.

Highlighted by eyalnow