Quoting Krimel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > [Krimel] > > All this while virtually ignoring the emergence of real expanded awareness > > and consciousness that is booming around us in the form of cell phones, > > instant messaging, e-mail, Google Earth, GPS, webcams, Alternative > > Intelligences, the expansion of identical shared memory in the form of > > film and voice recording and the sum total of human knowledge instantly > > available at the touch of a button. All of this higher level consciousness > > > emerges specifically from the direction of rational thinking suggested by > > Piaget... > > [Platt] > ... I couldn't help but point out in your description above of "expanded > awareness" that you cited only the means by which awareness has spread > horizontally but nothing about the meanings or depth of understanding of > this broader dispersion of data brought about by technology. There is > precious little evidence that the new gimmicks of communication have made us > any wiser or brought us to a "higher level of consciousness." Expansion in > breadth doesn't promise penetration in depth. Flatland is not conducive to > insight. > > [Krimel] > How would you measure depth? Most of the scientists, philosophers, > theologians who ever lived are working today. There are most doctors, > teachers and students. Would you say the shear number of them and their > proportions in the population at large are factors? How able the percentage > of people operating at the various levels of Maslow's hierarchy of need? Or > the percentage who or literate or the average number of hours per week > available to pursue depth? > > Are these just gimmicks? > > Cell phones? Can anyone forget the recorded calls of victims saying their > goodbyes from the World Trade Center or those hijacked planes? We and anyone > living henceforth can share identical memories of those voices. Doesn't > something in that count for depth? > > Wiki? How many times has Wiki been cited on this forum? Most of us rely on > it instantly to provide information about everything from global warming to > the Ramones. Don't you think that your use of it has increased the depth of > your understanding and expanded your consciousness? > > Mp3 and video compression allow you listen to or watch everything from the > BBC's In Our Time to the programming on Wilber's Integral Naked site. Surely > this is only further evidence that I do not understand the problem but even > if you factor in pay-per-view webcams and off shore virtual casinos the > range of options represented is more than simply horizontal. > > There has never been the promise of increased depth either from spiritual > practice or academic discipline or shear hedonism. But writing, printing and > now all of these "gimmicks" have made the acquisition of depth easier and > therefore more probable. > > But I could be wrong. How would you measure depth; even enough to say it > isn't there?
Try this: "PRINCETON, NJ -- 18 December 2002 -- Contemporary college seniors scored on average little or no higher than the high-school graduates of a half-century ago on a battery of 15 questions assessing general cultural knowledge. The questions, drawn from a survey originally done by the Gallup Organization in 1955, covered literature, music, science, geography, and history. They were asked again of a random sample of American college and university students by Zogby International in April 2002. The Zogby survey was commissioned by the National Association of scholars." See complete report at: http://www.nas.org/print/pressreleases/hqnas/releas_18dec02.htm ------------------------------------------------- This mail sent through IMP: http://horde.org/imp/ moq_discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
