Big knowledge and small tribes

[miriam_e]

We are probably already far beyond the ability of any one person to understand all areas of human knowledge. We nevertheless have a small number of experts, and hope that covers things well enough to keep knowledge manageable. But we have already passed beyond human ability to catalogue all the information we could use, and depend upon computers to do that -- they are no longer a convenience, but a necessity; we require them in order to keep track of what is known. As soon as we realise this, and not just in a detached academic fashion, but in a day-to-day taken-for-granted way, then society will banish a strange constraint that many today are just not aware of. We each work best in a small, tribal, circle of friends, but many situations require us to form large groups in which we are apt to feel lost and isolated. Student class-size is often an example of this. It has been known for a long time that it has regularly far exceeded the optimum number of students. Computers can help if we abandon any pretense that we can control what people learn. We can open up all human knowledge to millions of small tribes, each pushing at the boundaries as they desire. All knowledge being catalogued and coordinated by computers would feed an explosive growth in knowledge.

Comments

Correct

[exileinparadise.livejournal.com]

Computers represent externalized memory for Humanity.

If you have never had the chance, check out the books EON and ETERNITY from Greg Bear. Great stuff... and you will see the 'city memory' ideas there closely parallel where you are thinking...

Re: Correct

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I shall add that to my books to get list. What I have read of Greg Bear's I have liked.

Re: Correct

[exileinparadise.livejournal.com]

Might as well add 'THE HEART OF THE COMET' by Greg Benford and David Brin to the list as well.

If you have never read David Brin, check out his Uplift stories like SUNDIVER, STARTIDE RISING, and the THE UPLIFT WAR, as well as his second Uplift Trilogy.

I have a million good sci-fi recommendations if you want. Just let me know when you are looking for more and what you thought of the last batch ;)

Re: Correct

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Someone recommended Heart of the Comet to me recently. I must get it. (Funds are a bit of a problem at the moment.)

I have Startide Rising and The Uplift War but don't want to begin reading till I have Sundiver.

I have quite a science fiction library. :) I have about 1,000 SF paperbacks, about 600 SF magazines (IF, Galaxy, F&SF, Analog/Astounding, Amazing, etc), and about 1,000 SF ebooks. There is some duplication between the paper and electronic books because I want to eventually replace all my paper books with electronic ones. I can keep about 2,500 ebooks in a postage stamp sized flash card, whereas my paper books and magazines took up most of the truck I hired when I moved interstate.

Thanks for the offer of recommendations. I am always on the lookout for good and interesting SF (and other) books. I'll try to remember to let you know when I read some of the above books.

One of my recent favorites is Greg Egan's Permutation City. Utterly brilliant! Another recent favorite (this this one isn't SF) is Janet Evanovitch's Stephanie Plum books, which are an absolute hoot! Some other favorites of mine are Warren Ellis' Transmetropolitan graphic novels -- gritty grimy, politically incorrect, hilarious, SF stories of the near future. And Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise ongoing graphic novel series, which is not SF, and is the most complex portrayal of characters I've read. But I have a gazillion favorites. These are just a scattered few. :)

[nosearmy.livejournal.com]

One of my absolute favorite writers is Samuel Delaney, and his book Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is both a stunning extrapolation of this principle, and one of the smartest love stories I know. It's breathtaking, like all his work.

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

That's been recommended to me before. It is probably time for me to bubble it to the top of my list. Thanks. :)