Mallette Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Forget the great scifi futurists of the past and listen to Firesign Theater's "I Think We are All Bozos on this Bus" from 1971. If you weren't around in 1971 at least try to bone up a bit on computer science and related technology of that time. There are plenty of YouTube and other recordings available of this, and if you hunt hard enough you can find a script. That will help a lot. As I always have I play it back from an LP with DynaQuad as one gets extremely immersive surround from these 2 channel records due to all the overdubbing and other out of phase material. Their projections are uncanny. I've been listening to this (and their other) albums now for 45 years and get new insights every time. If you have never heard this, I will provide at least a foundation perspective to listen from. This is a unified futurist prediction from the POV of an individual having their fortune told by a "gypsy" and describes the world Barney will experience as he grows older. There are numerous run ins between individuals and AI portrayed that only now ("...in the technical vastness of the future..." as it were) reveal the level of understanding these guys had of the speed of computer development. We had a mainframe in the company I worked for about that time. 96k RAM in the whole thing and it filled a room. Prophecy is often found in the most unlikely places. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Please enlighten me. No. Enlighten yourself. I am not chief enlightener. Read Hawking, Gates, Elon Musk on the subject. They are about as strange bedfellows as you will find. If they don't enlighten you then, as I said, take comfort in the darkness. Dave Hey, no worries - no one has to explain themselves. All claims are are acceptable on the Internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ski Bum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Robot slaves for everyone! Bring on the Leisure Society! Let's party! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Robot slaves for everyone! Bring on the Leisure Society! Let's party! In the 1950s, "the leisure society of the future" was a constant theme in magazines like Popular Mechanics. None of those so-called futurists had any understanding of how the economy works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paducah Home Theater Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Yeah I brought this subject up in that thread due to being shocked at this article from a couple months ago: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/robots-are-going-to-steal-the-jobs-of-chefs-salespeople-and-models-researchers-say-as-they-unveil-10499771.html Salespeople? Models? Why models? What? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Hey, no worries - no one has to explain themselves. All claims are are acceptable on the Internet. The persons I said might enlighten you, in fact, might even know something you don't, didn't make their claims on the internet. Yes, all claims are acceptable on the internet and everyone has the right to ignore reality. Talk it over with Alexa and get "her" opinion. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ski Bum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Robot slaves for everyone! Bring on the Leisure Society! Let's party! In the 1950s, "the leisure society of the future" was a constant theme in magazines like Popular Mechanics. None of those so-called futurists had any understanding of how the economy works. You sound like the sort of person who is pissed that they misplaced their keys for the hovercraft. Here is something I think you'll get a kick out of. Now where is my robot slave to fetch me my coffee and irish cream? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 As very famous essay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 Yeah I brought this subject up in that thread due to being shocked at this article from a couple months ago: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/robots-are-going-to-steal-the-jobs-of-chefs-salespeople-and-models-researchers-say-as-they-unveil-10499771.html Salespeople? Models? Why models? What? Yeah, this inner link to this report: http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf looks worth reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ski Bum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 (edited) As very famous essay. Seems germane to this discussion and as relevant in today's age as it was in the post WWI era it was written. He seems to make a huge allowance for capitalism and investment in the real economy as virtuous. Would you agree? Edited November 13, 2015 by Ski Bum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 As very famous essay. Seems germane to this discussion and as relevant in today's age as it was in the post WWI era it was written. He seems to make a huge allowance for capitalism and investment in the real economy as virtuous. Would you agree? I think he refers to it as a "scientific organization of work." Which is not what I would call capitalism. I think his view is utopian and not intended to look like an economic theory. It would owe as much to socialism as capitalism. It's a bit quaint, but very interesting. For instance, I very much agree that work is overrated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted November 13, 2015 Share Posted November 13, 2015 You sound like the sort of person who is pissed that they misplaced their keys for the hovercraft. And that reveals a bit of the problem. Most persist in judging the future by the past. I did this most of my life until I realized the old paradigms were increasingly done. My first understanding of using the past to predict the future was back when Ford attempted to use price controls to reduce inflation. I realized I'd heard this before and reviewed Emperor Diocletian's edicts on the same thing. Resulted in disaster, and was repeated precisely. I used that model successfully to predict macrotrends (as did most everyone) until the past few years when I realized technology was about to produce a situation that has never existed and therefore cannot be predicted by standard means. Some still try...but I am quite good with admitting I really don't have a clue about even 10 years from now except in minor areas like AVs and OLEDs. Watson remains the most advanced "AI" we have and remains crude. However, "crude" in this sense is still amazing. Those predicted "hovercraft" and such are the exception. Many things, notably the www that we are using right now were utterly beyond the most extreme predictions of these guys. I still find it completely unbelievable but most still think "so what? It's here." Closest prediction I can recall was "Colossus, the Forbin Project" which still gives me the shivers when I think about it. Most of the "minimum wage" discussion is based on history that will be increasingly meaningless as a predictor over the next decades until it is totally meaningless. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted November 14, 2015 Moderators Share Posted November 14, 2015 It was Nixon, not Ford, who instituted price controls to try and curb inflation. Ford dropped them except for gas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 It was Nixon, not Ford, who instituted price controls to try and curb inflation. Ford dropped them except for gas. Point remains the same. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted November 14, 2015 Moderators Share Posted November 14, 2015 It was Nixon, not Ford, who instituted price controls to try and curb inflation. Ford dropped them except for gas.Point remains the same. Dave It does, but there is a world of difference between Nixon and Ford. God forbid someone reading this thread comes away with the misunderstanding that that colossal economic blunder was the fault of Ford and not Nixon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nismo Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 Awesome... we get to discuss colossal blunders of politicians now? This will be fun... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Matthews Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 Awesome... we get to discuss colossal blunders of politicians now? This will be fun... I caught that, too.... you thread-crapper, you! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nismo Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 Not a thread crapper.Just pointing out BS. Pretty easy, this one was low hanging fruit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted November 14, 2015 Moderators Share Posted November 14, 2015 The other thing people forget is that Nixon instituted a price and WAGE freeze. Think about that for a moment, and whose backs they were trying to strap "runaway" inflation on. It was 6% at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfbane Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 Robot slaves for everyone! Bring on the Leisure Society! Let's party! You'll be able to party until Skynet becomes self-aware and decides to nuke you and your guests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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