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This. Do we really need more stuff? I think the HN crowd is certainly beyond this sort of simplistic understanding. But what about non-physical things? Do we ne

This. Do we really need more stuff? I think the HN crowd is certainly beyond this sort of simplistic understanding. But what about non-physical things? Do we need more entertainment? We are without a doubt the most entertained people in the history of the world. Do we need better connectedness? (I think we do, but it's not the kind on offer by Facebook). I think writing letters and using snail mail is about the bandwidth limit for humans having deep conversations. Do we need more and better sensual experiences? I love amazing food, but I'm not sure I could build a fulfilling life through my belly. Maybe the best thing that global warming could do is force us to confront our choices. What is truly important? We probably don't need the consumption we currently maintain to have the really important things.

visarga 10y ago
While I like the sentiment, I think global warming won't make us consumption minimalists. New materials and automation will make production cheaper. Automation will also make earth cleaner and self-cleaning. We're not just on the cusp of AI, but also of nanotechnology (where we manufacture with DNA and proteins), nuclear fusion (see the amazing new REBCO tape superconductors), 3d-printing and probably a dozen other emerging tech trends. We don't, as a society, go the way of minimalism. Technology progress happens as if it has a will of its own, not dependent on individuals, governments and even wars going on. We're witnessing the birth of a new bootstrapped entity - we had the virus, the cell, the organism and now the machine. The moment we make a self replicating factory that only uses cheap local materials, we've seen the birth of this new life form. It will be the new cell, the bootstrapped, self-replicating, self-repairing, adaptive source of everything we need and capable of improving itself by continuous optimization. We can't stop the birth of technological life.

visarga 10y ago

While I like the sentiment, I think global warming won't make us consumption minimalists. New materials and automation will make production cheaper. Automation will also make earth cleaner and self-cleaning. We're not just on the cusp of AI, but also of nanotechnology (where we manufacture with DNA and proteins), nuclear fusion (see the amazing new REBCO tape superconductors), 3d-printing and probably a dozen other emerging tech trends. We don't, as a society, go the way of minimalism. Technology progress happens as if it has a will of its own, not dependent on individuals, governments and even wars going on. We're witnessing the birth of a new bootstrapped entity - we had the virus, the cell, the organism and now the machine. The moment we make a self replicating factory that only uses cheap local materials, we've seen the birth of this new life form. It will be the new cell, the bootstrapped, self-replicating, self-repairing, adaptive source of everything we need and capable of improving itself by continuous optimization. We can't stop the birth of technological life.