James Burke : "Re-Connections", 1 of 7

Watch Entire Show: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=3354DD6A56E3794B&playnext=1

Re-Connections is the title given to an interview by Michael Malone with Author and Science Historian James Burke on the 25th anniversary of his well-known series "Connections". The interview takes place in the San José Science Museum (in Silicon Valley). During the interview, Burke looks back and then forward to the program's digital incarnation (ie. this website), and then further again towards his current project: "The Knowledge Web" (http://k-web.org).

Trivia: In this interview the *ultimate question* is finally and definitively answered. I won't tell you the answer but I can certainly tell you it is *not* 42!

Paper: Overview on ART theory of cognition: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.73.1700&rep=rep1...

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• James
• Burke
• Knowledge
• Web
• Science
• Reconnections
• Re-Connections
• Unexpected
• Connections
• Interview
• 25th
• anniversary
• The
• Day
• Universe
• Changed
• San
• José
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• Silicon
• Valley
• Michael
• Malone

[jeremiahjacobs]

Burke's series was mindblowing when my friends and I first found it. Burke was one of the first people who made it ok to find *everything* interesting - that the value of knowledge wasn't in compartmentalization, but instead, the way it was connected (!) to its application.

Thank you, James Burke.

[JamesBurkeWeb]

Yes, I agree. Which is why I put this site up. And why I'm even continuing with it now with the change of design... luckily I found a way to force people into these video + comments areas instead of watching "on channel". That was, and still is my main goal. To get people participating and talking instead of just "viewing". Luckily Google's new setup had a couple exploitable holes ;)

- JBW

[wowkarl]

Excellent show. Excellent series. Thank you.

[rudemood2011]

How the hell did I end up here? I was looking for Jimmy Burke the gangster

[KarmaTiger]

James I first saw your programme Connections in the early 90s on Canadian television. My father and I would watch, then excitedly discuss the ideas presented (which would invariably lead to tangents... you know, connected ideas).

Now I've discovered these on YouTube and have spent the past couple of days watching them with my girlfriend, who like me greatly appreciates your efforts and style.

[Concreteowl]

This is why the current attack on the BBC is something that needs to be repelled.

Connections was a show I loved as a child and made a bit of an impact in Britain but it was just one of many. So many in fact that while it was kicking up a good stink on PBS it was largely forgotten at it's point of origin. While I love all the David Attenborough shows, it would have been money better spent if James was paid to keep a constant vigil on the changes in technology. Biology evolves so slowly.

[Raksasa187]

@HolyShadow180 same hear, but i like what he is saying though!

[SallyMorem]

I adored Connections and The Day the Universe Changed. These shows catalyzed an already strong interest in science and technology in me. Burke is making a very strong point here on the nature of accelerating technology, one that Ray Kurzweil has relatively recently argued for in his seminal book, The Singularity Is Near, one that I recommend to all fans of Connections.

[HolyShadow180]

Thought he was Jimmy Bruke the Mafia guy haha

No idea who this guy is where his from what his done never heard of him!

[eveningtsar]

Destroy their trust in the modern world? Really? I figured he just explained how the modern world came to be. . .

[MoonEyes2k]

@jeremiahjacobs Indeed...but also that knowlegde was valuable, and worthy of collecting, just because. Not because you had use for it, or even because you MIGHT have use for it...but just because it interested you. Because you thought, 'hey, this is fun/cool/what-have-you'. And I have learned so very much, thanks to watching, both because of what I saw, and because of that mind-set.