Big Data and the Soft Revolution
Our species is climbing blindfolded, out of the caves of Lascaux on a journey to what we call here and now. Human self-actualization and awareness start at approximately 20 months with the baby recognizing herself in the mirror. Parallel intermittent moments of lucidity from our own consciousness, I will compare human development with the historical record of consciousness. From the infant cave painter to the adolescent 'Impressionists' we are in a time of reflection. A reflection filled with memories, dancing to the beat and illusions of consumerism. A feel-good beat, yet we often forget. Did we leave the car running outside or the stove on at home? We are all culpable. My own contemporary cold shoulder numbs and limits my ability to effect change and continue the conversations about animal cruelty, universal wages, wealth disparity and socially funded medical systems. And don't forget about the 6th Great Extinction or the destruction of our home planet. No one person is able to effectively dedicate to all of the above. The answer is Big Data. Big Data will emerge on the wings of this phoenix to an unimaginable zenith, changing the very concept of consciousness. We need all the data and we need to collect data in ways we have not yet imagined. This is where innovation will continue to thrive, at least in our Age of Information.
I am thinking of a forward speech act of hopeful yet cautious futurity. The speaker? One particular author, educator, and Philosophy Professor; Shawn Nichols. Shawn describes the incumbent Revolution of Free Will and the unfathomable changes it will bring. In a 2008 'hope-speech' Professor Nichols presupposes that we are in a "Revolution" for the death of free will. I advance the thought that consciousness will change entirely with this vector of thought and the current, explosive advances in technology. Like Max Plank's pursuit of Physics, I have researched compassionately and not for praise, notoriety or fame but for my own edification. I have nothing to prove only the perspective to paint. I have a valuable position at the discussion table and the think tank of contemporary culture. In regards to Free Will, I agree with Professor Nichols. My contribution focuses on the rate at which we are changing, identifying that the process is dynamic and some of the social implications we need to be aware of. I will cite many historical references in Art and History, psychology, AI, linguistics, economics, and philosophy. I do this for a love of learning and all things literature.
Not to placate passivity but I must point to planksip as the meridian of the masses (popular thought). The planksip philosophy is summarized on my BLOG and in greater depth in my books, Will Free Man, Hell in a Halfway House, p(x)=Big Data Determinism, and The Quote Book.
Let's think of a few ideas representing social change. The particular idea itself isn't important. Our thinking is going to focus on the plethora of ideas bombarding our communities with pleas for purchase and Facebook fannery. Which ideas take precedent? How do we decide? Combining Big Data with Determinism will be the reality of tomorrow. I have written extensively about this theme and used words to paint virtual pictures of our social ecosystem. Covering Marx, Locke, Aristotle, Plato, and Homer I will show how the influences of the past infiltrate the perspectives of the future. At the risk of starting to sound cliché, I see further by standing on the shoulders of Giants.