Bill Joy: What I'm worried about, what I'm excited about

http://www.ted.com Technologist and futurist Bill Joy talks about several big worries for humanity -- and several big hopes in the fields of health, education and future tech.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Bill
• Joy
• TED
• TEDTalks
• talks
• Business
• Future
• Health
• Science
• Technology

[jonahansen]

Restriction of information is the only hope humanity has? Unholy fucking of mothers! All that would do is place all the power in those who get to decide who knows what. We're already a nation of ignorant sheep. If you think living as a sheep is preferable to the liberty enshrined in the Constitution, you should move to a place where that's standard procedure. The leaders of Iran or Russia might consider him a genius; I don't. Live free or die.

[slaughtz]

Information is already restricted. Restricting more is going to help? How? He proposes we let select individuals have access to this knowledge. Okay, but look at this practically. What would YOU, as a person, put faith in if you had to choose from the following?

1) ONLY a couple people having the knowledge to create and prevent disease.

2) EVERYONE having the knowledge to create and prevent disease.

I chose number 2. Why? I don't think ppl kill ppl as a pastime, but as a response to threat

[47f0]

@AxiomaticInfinity - When I posted this, I had not yet seen any of the recent Republican "debates". I'm sorry. It's become painfully evident that we have become a culture that glorifies ignorance too much to trust us with advanced toys. In theory, the President needs Congressional approval to go to war ('though I think that's only happened 5 times). Except for one war that needs no approval from anyone. Nuclear. Herman Cain, at any moment, could be 30 minutes from killing a billion humans.

[47f0]

SciFi author, Larry Niven, postulated a branch of the U.N., called A.R.M. - one of whose mandates was suppressing dangerous technology. Increasingly, a single individual has an accelerating amount of power - both to create and heal, and to destroy. As repugnant as the suppression of knowledge may be, that may be a necessary strategy, until we are a little more advanced than the barely-evolved naked apes we currently are.

[golbysama]

@delatroy That's an outright lie. The FDA maybe in shambles right, now. It's certainly not receiving appropriate funding and had been full of vacant suspicions, but given the right resources would allow it to reach an ideal efficiency.

To advocate no regulation is simply insane. Companies will revolutionize the drugs that make the biggest profit and ensures a loyal following. Also, your second claim is untrue as well. Regulations do not slow the development of life-saving drugs.

[dharmashooter]

The law won't restrict anything. It was law that allowed Monsanto to patent life. Profit incentives won't help because the people (corporations) who pressure gov to make laws are the ones who decide and rule out the competition. There's no free market and there's no democracy. Face it. We're (humanity) doomed. the best thing we can do is to free Ted Kaczynski!!

[SlugChristie]

@jonahansen yahoo!  the 2nd amendment clearly pertains to nuclear weapons.

[MEDIANAVE]

Bill Joy is very much a role model and inspiration of mine, as a person interested in technology.

[delatroy]

@meb025 No. That makes complete sense :)

The FDA, believe it or not, (and I know this is hard to believe) has killed more people than it's saved. It's a statistic. Despite good intentions, it unintentially kills more people than it saves. This is government.

No need for regulation - the market does this by itself. Companies are incentivized to produce the most effective drugs because it makes them rich. Regulation slows (10 yrs) life saving drugs from hitting the market. Kills people waiting

[its1110am]

@jonahansen

It's an interesting contraction, ehh?

Knowledge in the wrong hands IS dangerous... as are guns in the wrong hands!

So, while the idea of limiting knowledge is anti-intellectual and anti-democratic, it does make a certain kind of sense. It makes sense to not have knowledge in the hands of dangerous people.

However... it is not practical! _THAT_ is the true argument to make against it... it'll just give you a false sense of security if you _think_ you've limited knowledge.

[treesfourlife]

so whens this shit come out?

[knightschwartz]

we need to have places on earth were the internet is banned and where GMO is not allowed in case this stuff fucks us up.