From: Gerhard Haak (gerhard_haak@hotmail.com)
Date: Sun Jan 21 2001 - 04:21:48 MST
Samantha Atkins wrote:
> Emlyn wrote:
> > 2)
> >
> > The other thing this list is good at is answering science-related
questions.
> > As an idea for positive PR, has anyone considered starting a website for
> > answering technical/science related questions, possibly aimed at
younguns? A
> > lot of young people have questions to ask, and the people hereabouts
answer
> > such questions in not only informative, but fairly entertaining ways.
> >
> > Such a site could be an amalgam of website based forum & mailing list
> > (giving people the opportunity to access it in either style), and would
> > involve giving answers on a strictly voluntary basis (much as happens
here
> > already). Think of it as a service to the community, and an excellent
way to
> > increase exposure of extropian ideas which, after all, are supposed to
be
> > driven by facts and reasonable predictions. The most common experience
here
> > is that people come to >H ideas by processing the information available
to
> > them in their environment, and seek out Transhumanism or Extropianism
after
> > they are already converts. So, to spread the word, we would be best
served
> > in spreading information. And my bet is that the most likely demographic
to
> > adopt these ideas of an amazingly changed future are young people; those
> > without much attachment to the way things are.
> >
> > Any thoughts?
> >
>
> Why nail down the technical form of the list early? Such a list is a
> good idea but there are already broad efforts to do this type of thing.
> Is another needed? Does it necessarily have to do with Extropians? Is
> it a front for pulling people in? If so then it seem a bit less than
> honest. Now an extropian outreach to the young (or young of mind <g>)
> seems reasonable enough.
>
> - samantha
>
The amount of disinformation present out there is astounding, and
intelligent people are being sucked in. One of my colleagues, an very
intelligent and competent individual, is also extremely uncritical (he
didn't question the idea of 'psychic vibrations' at all until I challenged
him on his belief). This attitude came as a big shock to me, as until then
I'd thought that intelligence and the tendency to think critically went
hand-in-hand.
Reducing the 'sheep-effect' by introducing extropian concepts, science, and
encouraging a more questioning attitude must come under the heading of a
'good thing'.
An extropian outreach program!! Now there's an idea .... (gotta be careful
it doesn't become dogmatic, though).
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