Author Matt Ridley executed a fascinating lecture. His philosophical interpretation of how technology has become a combination of ideas to trade with one another has made the standards of living prosperous. In being social creatures, we allowed our imaginative thoughts to venture farther than our ancestors could ever envision.
Matt Ridley links sex with the exchange of ideas which gives his speech a Darwinist perspective. For example, he quotes Adam Smith "Nobody ever saw a dog make a fair and deliberate exchange of one bone for another". This gives the listener the impression of survival of the fittest in a social sense as Ridley continues to talk of advancing technology. He then makes an example of men who make spears and axes. He maintains that even though one man is quicker at making both that they should split the work because they will each become more efficient at their own trade. Basically, it doesn't matter how good a person is at a task or how smart the person is as long as all people involved collaborate. The collective intelligence of the many is more worthwhile than the intelligent ideas of the few. It is important to have specialization amongst people and trade of ideas so that each idea can evolve. Ridley has a great concept in "the collective brain" because he understands the worth of taking knowledge from many people instead of trying to be a genius.
The concept that our progress and collective intelligence as humans are comprised of divisions of production is interesting. However, when Ridley uses Tasmania as an example of how isolated places digress technologically due to their lack of exposure with other people, this made me ask a lot of questions. I really admire the skill of self-sufficiency and wonder what it would be like if we could all make a pencil ourselves rather than knowing a portion of the process and relying on others. I appreciate the exchange of global ideas and absolutely believe it is accountable for our progress as people. However, I can't help but wonder if we were less reliant on others if we would always falter. Perhaps it is my American individualism but it seems like as individuals we may be gravitating toward a society where we are too reliant on others and less focused on building ourselves up to be the best we can be.
Matt Ridley's discussion on economic progress as it relates to sex, is an interesting perspective on human advancement. Ridley begins his discussion by saying that the world has become more prosperous as it has become more populous. The lifetime of an individual is up by 30% since Ridley's childhood. Food production is up by 1/3 and the average per capita income has tripled! Ridley explains this progress by describing how it relates to sex. The exchange, of one onject for another, has raised living standards. He says that we are all working for eachother. If we all specialize in something by trading our specialies progress results. Ridley calls this "the meeting and mating of ideas". There are so many things in existence today that no one person knows how to create. Ridley uses a computer mouse as an example. No one knows how to drill for oil, create the plastic, connect the wires and so forth to create a functional mouse. We all work together to exchange our specialties and progress into the future. Trade is essential for human advancement.
Matt Ridley discusses the advantages of exchanging ideas and how doing so allows us to trade goods and services with each other, which furthers our living standards and our capacity of the mind. He states that we have become a species that “becomes more prosperous as we become more populous.” He continues to explain how “ideas have sex,” determining that by exchanging ideas with each other we are growing in our minds and through technology. His example describes the process comparing the man-made axe with a common-day computer mouse. The axe was made for self-sufficiency. The man who made the axe knows how to create it. However, with a computer mouse, no one knows exactly how to make a mouse and the materials that go into the construction of the mouse. His explanation here is that we have created a world that by working together, we allow for the creation of objects we don’t even understand how to create ourselves (i.e. the computer mouse).
Overall, his discussion helps us to recognize our depth as humans to trade and exchange ideas and materials in order to better our standard of living and accelerate our “rate of innovation,” as mentioned in his closing remarks.
I find Ridley’s discussion on exchanging ideas as a beneficial factor for our lives to be an intelligent analysis on our history and growth. He clearly exhibits the need for an economy in which we are helping each other prosper by trading goods and services. The same could be said about information and learning. By exchanging ideas on politics and speaking on our worldly ideas we can help each other grow in enormous ways, and by doing so, we are helping each other understand one another.
Ridley's lecture on "meeting and mating ideas" pinpoints a valuable variety of worthy rhetoric, which illuminate how far technology has come. His primary example of the stone axe compared to the computer mouse presents a sound framework within his overall message: we have many more resources steadily available to our society as time passes, but what's relevant to society is “how well people are communicating their ideas and how well they’re cooperating, not how clever the individuals are." As Ridley defines the idea of prosperity as: "the saving of time and satisfying your needs," relevant to his overall "ideas having sex" concept, he wants the listener to realize the benefits of exchanging ideas as a privilege. His examples of the chimpanzees and Neanderthals show humans are an exceptional species that continue to grow as time passes. The fact no one knows entirely how to make a mouse or a pencil, being able to do things that we don’t even understand how to make is usually left unsaid. Humans living in the information systems and services generation are usually labeled as lazy compared to previous generations. But perhaps saying and thinking that is irrelevant and actually incomparable since time machines have not been invented YET. Who knows what will already be made for humans to use a hundred years from now. Nevertheless, despite the continuing technological advancements, an individual still must be an effective communicator.
Sry, had to post it again w/ name and time of class...
Ridley's lecture on "meeting and mating ideas" pinpoints a valuable variety of worthy rhetoric, which illuminate how far technology has come. His primary example of the stone axe compared to the computer mouse presents a sound framework within his overall message: we have many more resources steadily available to our society as time passes, but what's relevant to society is “how well people are communicating their ideas and how well they’re cooperating, not how clever the individuals are." As Ridley defines the idea of prosperity as: "the saving of time and satisfying your needs," relevant to his overall "ideas having sex" concept, he wants the listener to realize the benefits of exchanging ideas as a privilege. His examples of the chimpanzees and Neanderthals show humans are an exceptional species that continue to grow as time passes. The fact no one knows entirely how to make a mouse or a pencil, being able to do things that we don’t even understand how to make is usually left unsaid. Humans living in the information systems and services generation are usually labeled as lazy compared to previous generations. But perhaps saying and thinking that is irrelevant and actually incomparable since time machines have not been invented YET. Who knows what will already be made for humans to use a hundred years from now. Nevertheless, despite the continuing technological advancements, an individual still must be an effective communicator.
Without communication and interaction among people, invention wouldn't have the force behind it to keep it moving forward. I found the comparison of exchanging ideas to the action of sex enlightening and refreshing. It is true that there are countless devices we use on a daily basis where we have no idea how exactly they were made, but we know their function. Individuals may know separate parts of a whole idea, but the gift of communication allows us to pool those idea together for the benefit of the bigger picture. One person may know how to create the chips found inside a mouse, while another may know how to make the laser that allows the mouse to control the cursor on your screen. Without the ability to share these ideas, the mouse would have never came to fruition. Fortunately we are blessed as a species with the ability to talk and swap ideas with one another. This is what allows us to continue to evolve as a species and hopefully find ways to save our future generations in the process.
Terrie H
ReplyDeleteMWF 9-9:50AM
Author Matt Ridley executed a fascinating lecture. His philosophical interpretation of how technology has become a combination of ideas to trade with one another has made the standards of living prosperous. In being social creatures, we allowed our imaginative thoughts to venture farther than our ancestors could ever envision.
Christina Macey MWF (9-9:50)
ReplyDeleteMatt Ridley links sex with the exchange of ideas which gives his speech a Darwinist perspective. For example, he quotes Adam Smith "Nobody ever saw a dog make a fair and deliberate exchange of one bone for another". This gives the listener the impression of survival of the fittest in a social sense as Ridley continues to talk of advancing technology. He then makes an example of men who make spears and axes. He maintains that even though one man is quicker at making both that they should split the work because they will each become more efficient at their own trade. Basically, it doesn't matter how good a person is at a task or how smart the person is as long as all people involved collaborate. The collective intelligence of the many is more worthwhile than the intelligent ideas of the few. It is important to have specialization amongst people and trade of ideas so that each idea can evolve. Ridley has a great concept in "the collective brain" because he understands the worth of taking knowledge from many people instead of trying to be a genius.
Michelle Zei
ReplyDeleteMWF 10-10:50 a.m.
The concept that our progress and collective intelligence as humans are comprised of divisions of production is interesting. However, when Ridley uses Tasmania as an example of how isolated places digress technologically due to their lack of exposure with other people, this made me ask a lot of questions. I really admire the skill of self-sufficiency and wonder what it would be like if we could all make a pencil ourselves rather than knowing a portion of the process and relying on others. I appreciate the exchange of global ideas and absolutely believe it is accountable for our progress as people. However, I can't help but wonder if we were less reliant on others if we would always falter. Perhaps it is my American individualism but it seems like as individuals we may be gravitating toward a society where we are too reliant on others and less focused on building ourselves up to be the best we can be.
Samantha Anderson
ReplyDeleteMWF 9-9:50
Matt Ridley's discussion on economic progress as it relates to sex, is an interesting perspective on human advancement. Ridley begins his discussion by saying that the world has become more prosperous as it has become more populous.
The lifetime of an individual is up by 30% since Ridley's childhood. Food production is up by 1/3 and the average per capita income has tripled!
Ridley explains this progress by describing how it relates to sex. The exchange, of one onject for another, has raised living standards. He says that we are all working for eachother. If we all specialize in something by trading our specialies progress results. Ridley calls this "the meeting and mating of ideas". There are so many things in existence today that no one person knows how to create. Ridley uses a computer mouse as an example. No one knows how to drill for oil, create the plastic, connect the wires and so forth to create a functional mouse. We all work together to exchange our specialties and progress into the future. Trade is essential for human advancement.
Abby Rosier
ReplyDeleteMWF 10:00-10:50
Matt Ridley discusses the advantages of exchanging ideas and how doing so allows us to trade goods and services with each other, which furthers our living standards and our capacity of the mind. He states that we have become a species that “becomes more prosperous as we become more populous.” He continues to explain how “ideas have sex,” determining that by exchanging ideas with each other we are growing in our minds and through technology. His example describes the process comparing the man-made axe with a common-day computer mouse. The axe was made for self-sufficiency. The man who made the axe knows how to create it. However, with a computer mouse, no one knows exactly how to make a mouse and the materials that go into the construction of the mouse. His explanation here is that we have created a world that by working together, we allow for the creation of objects we don’t even understand how to create ourselves (i.e. the computer mouse).
Overall, his discussion helps us to recognize our depth as humans to trade and exchange ideas and materials in order to better our standard of living and accelerate our “rate of innovation,” as mentioned in his closing remarks.
I find Ridley’s discussion on exchanging ideas as a beneficial factor for our lives to be an intelligent analysis on our history and growth. He clearly exhibits the need for an economy in which we are helping each other prosper by trading goods and services. The same could be said about information and learning. By exchanging ideas on politics and speaking on our worldly ideas we can help each other grow in enormous ways, and by doing so, we are helping each other understand one another.
Ridley's lecture on "meeting and mating ideas" pinpoints a valuable variety of worthy rhetoric, which illuminate how far technology has come.
ReplyDeleteHis primary example of the stone axe compared to the computer mouse presents a sound framework within his overall message: we have many more resources steadily available to our society as time passes, but what's relevant to society is “how well people are communicating their ideas and how well they’re cooperating, not how clever the individuals are."
As Ridley defines the idea of prosperity as: "the saving of time and satisfying your needs," relevant to his overall "ideas having sex" concept, he wants the listener to realize the benefits of exchanging ideas as a privilege.
His examples of the chimpanzees and Neanderthals show humans are an exceptional species that continue to grow as time passes.
The fact no one knows entirely how to make a mouse or a pencil, being able to do things that we don’t even understand how to make is usually left unsaid.
Humans living in the information systems and services generation are usually labeled as lazy compared to previous generations. But perhaps saying and thinking that is irrelevant and actually incomparable since time machines have not been invented YET.
Who knows what will already be made for humans to use a hundred years from now. Nevertheless, despite the continuing technological advancements, an individual still must be an effective communicator.
Josh Willgruber
ReplyDeleteMWF 10:00-10:50
Sry, had to post it again w/ name and time of class...
Ridley's lecture on "meeting and mating ideas" pinpoints a valuable variety of worthy rhetoric, which illuminate how far technology has come.
His primary example of the stone axe compared to the computer mouse presents a sound framework within his overall message: we have many more resources steadily available to our society as time passes, but what's relevant to society is “how well people are communicating their ideas and how well they’re cooperating, not how clever the individuals are."
As Ridley defines the idea of prosperity as: "the saving of time and satisfying your needs," relevant to his overall "ideas having sex" concept, he wants the listener to realize the benefits of exchanging ideas as a privilege.
His examples of the chimpanzees and Neanderthals show humans are an exceptional species that continue to grow as time passes.
The fact no one knows entirely how to make a mouse or a pencil, being able to do things that we don’t even understand how to make is usually left unsaid.
Humans living in the information systems and services generation are usually labeled as lazy compared to previous generations. But perhaps saying and thinking that is irrelevant and actually incomparable since time machines have not been invented YET.
Who knows what will already be made for humans to use a hundred years from now. Nevertheless, despite the continuing technological advancements, an individual still must be an effective communicator.
Nicholas Camaioni
ReplyDeleteMWF 9 AM - 10 AM
Without communication and interaction among people, invention wouldn't have the force behind it to keep it moving forward. I found the comparison of exchanging ideas to the action of sex enlightening and refreshing. It is true that there are countless devices we use on a daily basis where we have no idea how exactly they were made, but we know their function. Individuals may know separate parts of a whole idea, but the gift of communication allows us to pool those idea together for the benefit of the bigger picture. One person may know how to create the chips found inside a mouse, while another may know how to make the laser that allows the mouse to control the cursor on your screen. Without the ability to share these ideas, the mouse would have never came to fruition. Fortunately we are blessed as a species with the ability to talk and swap ideas with one another. This is what allows us to continue to evolve as a species and hopefully find ways to save our future generations in the process.