That's true of Maslow's hierarchy, and certainly worth remembering. I'm not sure it has much influence on the trend in innovation that I'm suggesting, which is a response to general market forces.
I somehow missed this when you first published it in 2012. The idea of a Maslovian hierarchy of innovation strikes me as quite savvy, and in fact rather brilliant. Makes great sense. And it's certainly well illustrated by the transitional confluence of the 1969 moon landing and the advent of the Woodstock era that Thiel noted. Your mapping of innovation onto Maslow's pyramid of needs feels like it provides a new angle of illumination on the progress/decadence dynamic. Thank you for resharing it.
Thanks. It's funny that as I read through this again after a decade or so, I saw that, though I was poking fun at Thiel's remark about hippies, his juxtaposition of the moon landing and Woodstock does seem to illuminate my point. The question is, is the rock festival a technology of leisure or a technology of the self? Maybe both. I suppose it also could be considered a technology of social organization.
Indeed, all three at once. Maybe Woodstock could be considered the, or a, symbolic cultural inflection point at which this convergence basically launched the subsequent era of innovation in technologies of the self, with leisure and social organization trailing in it wake and being transformed in reciprocal or synergistic fashion along the way.
This *beautifully* aligns with, and universalizes, that famous John Adams quote:
I must study Politicks and War that my sons may have liberty to study Mathematicks and Philosophy. My sons ought to study Mathematicks and Philosophy, Geography, natural History, Naval Architecture, navigation, Commerce and Agriculture, in order to give their Children a right to study Painting, Poetry, Musick, Architecture, Statuary, Tapestry and Porcelaine.
Thanks for the Adams quote. I think Adams would probably be disappointed that we have converged, education-wise, on Mathematicks and Commerce - at least for the time being.
"when hippies took over the country" was during the Nixon years, but it seems Woodstock is considered by some to be the true takeover. Maybe Peter could look in the mirrior, given his own extensive role in facilitating this decadence.
I'm not sure what you're referring to, as I don't mention either meditation or plastic surgery. I think that plastic surgery could be included among technologies of the self, but I wouldn't put meditation there, as I don't think it could be defined as a technology.
Worth noting that this only applies to the median person. Plenty of people still struggling with the first few levels, even today.
That's true of Maslow's hierarchy, and certainly worth remembering. I'm not sure it has much influence on the trend in innovation that I'm suggesting, which is a response to general market forces.
I somehow missed this when you first published it in 2012. The idea of a Maslovian hierarchy of innovation strikes me as quite savvy, and in fact rather brilliant. Makes great sense. And it's certainly well illustrated by the transitional confluence of the 1969 moon landing and the advent of the Woodstock era that Thiel noted. Your mapping of innovation onto Maslow's pyramid of needs feels like it provides a new angle of illumination on the progress/decadence dynamic. Thank you for resharing it.
Thanks. It's funny that as I read through this again after a decade or so, I saw that, though I was poking fun at Thiel's remark about hippies, his juxtaposition of the moon landing and Woodstock does seem to illuminate my point. The question is, is the rock festival a technology of leisure or a technology of the self? Maybe both. I suppose it also could be considered a technology of social organization.
Indeed, all three at once. Maybe Woodstock could be considered the, or a, symbolic cultural inflection point at which this convergence basically launched the subsequent era of innovation in technologies of the self, with leisure and social organization trailing in it wake and being transformed in reciprocal or synergistic fashion along the way.
This *beautifully* aligns with, and universalizes, that famous John Adams quote:
I must study Politicks and War that my sons may have liberty to study Mathematicks and Philosophy. My sons ought to study Mathematicks and Philosophy, Geography, natural History, Naval Architecture, navigation, Commerce and Agriculture, in order to give their Children a right to study Painting, Poetry, Musick, Architecture, Statuary, Tapestry and Porcelaine.
Thanks for the Adams quote. I think Adams would probably be disappointed that we have converged, education-wise, on Mathematicks and Commerce - at least for the time being.
"when hippies took over the country" was during the Nixon years, but it seems Woodstock is considered by some to be the true takeover. Maybe Peter could look in the mirrior, given his own extensive role in facilitating this decadence.
You seem to lump plastic surgery and meditation together at the top of the pyramid. Are they both sings of decadence?
I'm not sure what you're referring to, as I don't mention either meditation or plastic surgery. I think that plastic surgery could be included among technologies of the self, but I wouldn't put meditation there, as I don't think it could be defined as a technology.
I would put meditation apps into the technologies of the self category, though. That doesn't mean they're necessarily decadent.
That's my point.
Yes, the bending of an arc, ie, a trend, is not absolutely determinative.