Re: Art (was Re: Skeptics Take on the Extropian Concept)

From: Damien R. Sullivan (phoenix@ugcs.caltech.edu)
Date: Mon Mar 02 1998 - 20:36:56 MST


On Mar 2, 10:57am, "E. Shaun Russell" wrote:

> Hal Finney wrote:
> >All the transhumanist art in the world is not going to turn us into
> >transhumans. Only technology can do that.
>
> A moot point, but it could also be said that all the technology in
> the world is not going to change the social attitude toward scientific
> advances. Art is crucial to that. Bottom line is this: that both

"It could also be said" (by an economist) that given a diversity of competing
cultures technology will change attitudes, far more than art. Or rather,
societies which adopt useful advances will outcompete ones that don't.

I suppose that could be rephrased as "societies which are inspired by their
art or not inhibited by it will outcompete those whose art causes them to
avoid technology". I don't know if the withdrawals of Ming China and
pre-Perry Japan can be linked to their art.

-xx- Damien R. Sullivan X-)



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