> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-extropians@extropy.com
> [mailto:owner-extropians@extropy.com]On Behalf Of
> phoenix@ugcs.caltech.edu
> "altamira" <altamira@ecpi.com> wrote:
>
> > Can we all agree, though, that in general, people are willing
> to work harder
> > if their material rewards are directly proportional to the work
> done? And
> > that they're willing to spend more time, thought, and money on
> research if
> > they stand a chance of getting a patent if and when they come up with
>
> No.
>
Keep in mind, please, that I said "in general," and I didn't say "immediate
rewards." Actually, most of the people I count as my favorite friends are
people who aren't all that motivated by material wealth. But IN GENERAL,
and especially where the work at hand isn't particularly fun, people do want
to be rewarded at some point. Even N. Tesla, who seems to have been one of
the most "driven" researchers of all time, was pretty unhappy when he didn't
get material rewards, if for no other reason than that he needed money for
lab equipment.
Politicians get paid well, but not _that_
> well; varying
> mixtures of public service and desire for power drive them.
<sarcasm mode on> Yeah. Right. And we all know that they never use their
power to go after material assets <sarcasm mode off>
> Certainly there is quite often a correlation between work and reward. But
> 'directly proportional' is a strong claim, and at any rate there are
> significant spheres of people having other motivation.
Again, please keep in mind that the vast majority of people in the world
work in order to get food, shelter, and what few pleasures they can buy, not
for "fulfillment" or fun.
> Public activism being another such. Betcha Max More isn't following the
> shortest path to riches in running ExI.
I have no idea what motivates Max More, since I'm not personally acquainted
with him. But one thing I'm pretty sure of is that he's not your ordinary
person.
Bonnie
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Jul 27 2000 - 14:14:42 MDT