Is omnipresent, instantaneous communication driving us to an increasingly short-term perspective? In the frothy sea of broadcast and social media, is our society losing the ability to focus on long-term objectives and deep concepts? In this environment, the Long Now movement is more important than ever.
Long Now Boston‘s monthly Conversation Series is part of that movement. These events have been drawing as many as 100 attendees, and with more than 600 members, Boston is now the second largest “Long Now” group in the world. The original Long Now Foundation reached the milestone of 10,000 members last year. In a world of nearly 8 Billion people, these numbers may seem tiny — but if the numbers continue to grow, and the ideas are big enough, they can change the world.
Here are some of the Big Ideas Long Now Boston has tackled recently:
A Cyborg Future
On April 1, 02019, Bruce Blumberg, digital product designer and robotic engineer, discussed the future of robotics with a full house at the Long Now Boston April Conversation.
Coding, dogs, and robots have been Dr. Blumberg’s work and passion. This experience informs his expectations of the robotic future we can anticipate: rather than featuring generalized human-scale robots, our human capacities will likely be vastly enhanced by new generations of powered tools, personal aids and enabling devices, some potentially embedded in us – not a robotic but a cyborg future.
Long Now Boston Flash Talks
Sharing ideas is like casting seeds into the wind. Each new idea is the seed of future possibilities. Some ideas we take home to talk about with others – some of them may then spread them through other conversations. Like seeds, ideas can sprout and grow. The good ones will multiply and evolve. The best ones will change the world.
On May 6, Long Now Boston hosted eight FLASH TALK presentations, selected in advance from the pool of proposals. Each presenter was given 5 minutes, followed by a 5 minute Q&A. The result was a wide-ranging and surprisingly robust discussion of topics in chemistry, climate, aging, cityscape design, science education and the future of democracy and capitalism. Go to the Long Now Boston website for more.
Innovations to Eradicate Global Poverty:
On June 3, 02019, at 7PM, Eleanor Murphy Director for East Coast Development with Acumen, a philanthropic investment company founded in 2001, and Katherine Collins,Head of Sustainable Investing at Putnam, Founder of Honeybee Capital Foundation and author of The Nature of Investing, will tackle global poverty. Together with other trailblazers whose work is driven by a similar moral compass, these leaders and their organizations are embracing and navigating the tensions that exist in our interdependent, interconnected world. The goals are lofty, and also achievable: to use innovation, capital, and – most of all – deep human connection, to create a future without the poverty and injustice that have persisted through the millennia. Come join the conversation.
