Man, I love reading this kind of stuff. Thanks so much for writing it. That gray scale pictures as an analogy of the impending grayscale world we have waiting for us as AI starts feeding of other AI into perpetuity hit me like a ton of bricks.
What do you think the role of criticism is in all of this? I can't help but think that the critical thinking skills are a big part of what's lacking out there in the world and why people can't tell the difference between the vapid empty bullshit and the good stuff. Do they just need help parsing out the differences?
100%. We had to start exercising intentionally to make up for the fact that cars carry us everywhere and food is at the grocery store. Hopefully, we can more rapidly adjust to this change on the critical thinking side. Fingers crossed.
Thanks Tom. I’m seeing a “best of worlds, worst of worlds” situation unfolding here… so while there is a flattening, there is also … essays like this.
Reading this essay on Substack, after three other others today that were also illuminating, and thoughtful, ambitious in the slowest possible way … gives me great hope for culture. And writing.
I loved where you closed here, because that’s where I was going as well : changing our relationship to time and expectations of “reward” … slow patience for the craft of character … a willingness to learn, again, to be more of who we are.
Rumi says “sell your cleverness, and buy bewilderment,” and I love that.
And a Taoist master I heard said “optimization” is the most dangerous word in the English language.
This really resonates....from my vantage point the solution is walled gardens of curious, driven, enthusiastic people, creating things they care about intrinsically, exchanging feedback, supporting each other, and building strong ties. A beacon of deep meaning and connection in an atomized, superficial world. The Internet used for good
Man, I love reading this kind of stuff. Thanks so much for writing it. That gray scale pictures as an analogy of the impending grayscale world we have waiting for us as AI starts feeding of other AI into perpetuity hit me like a ton of bricks.
What do you think the role of criticism is in all of this? I can't help but think that the critical thinking skills are a big part of what's lacking out there in the world and why people can't tell the difference between the vapid empty bullshit and the good stuff. Do they just need help parsing out the differences?
Thank you so much! I really worry that what Google Maps did for our sense of direction, overreliance on AI will do to our ability to critically think.
100%. We had to start exercising intentionally to make up for the fact that cars carry us everywhere and food is at the grocery store. Hopefully, we can more rapidly adjust to this change on the critical thinking side. Fingers crossed.
Otherwise, we risk becoming the humans from Wall-E!
love this so much! thank you
Thank you!
Those unique rabbits. They all look the same to me.
Thanks Tom. I’m seeing a “best of worlds, worst of worlds” situation unfolding here… so while there is a flattening, there is also … essays like this.
Reading this essay on Substack, after three other others today that were also illuminating, and thoughtful, ambitious in the slowest possible way … gives me great hope for culture. And writing.
I loved where you closed here, because that’s where I was going as well : changing our relationship to time and expectations of “reward” … slow patience for the craft of character … a willingness to learn, again, to be more of who we are.
Rumi says “sell your cleverness, and buy bewilderment,” and I love that.
And a Taoist master I heard said “optimization” is the most dangerous word in the English language.
I weirdly feel more relaxed as I read this, missing the messiness and uniqueness of art and creativity. The beauty is often the imperfection.
Also, how are we to know this wasn't just an AI post trying to convince us it's actually Tom White?? :)
This really resonates....from my vantage point the solution is walled gardens of curious, driven, enthusiastic people, creating things they care about intrinsically, exchanging feedback, supporting each other, and building strong ties. A beacon of deep meaning and connection in an atomized, superficial world. The Internet used for good