16 Comments

Walking through your neighborhood this morning, wondering whether we'll create promise or peril. Fascinating thought stimulator ... could you just flip to the answer for me?

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Curious coincidence. It was only two weeks ago, during the autumn break, that my daughter asked me basically the same question: "How many people have already died?" - not because she's hopelessly morbid, but we just happened to be walking through a cemetery next to a castle we were visiting. When I looked it up and saw that the number of people ever born was 117 billion, I was equally shocked at how little that seemed.

I like this "houses" approach and the way it effectively reflects the accelerating returns to knowledge and technological progress. Let's just the combined wisdom of our modern house prevents us from burning the whole thing down.

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Re: “Let's just the combined wisdom of our modern house prevents us from burning the whole thing down.”

In my family’s case the underbelly of this locomotive has brought much of my family from rags to riches to rags and worse.

For now.

The only direction is up.

I have made mistakes in saying so in earlier ravine bottoms. Yet, there is a limit even to freefalls hehehe!

Aa Australian humour notates so charmingly, when we have no more tears to cry, the air for laughs emerges. Ever so meanderingly.

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Thanks for that take - that feels like a helpful outlook to have!

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Powerful line of thought ... <3

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This also reminds me of a youtube channel I was just introduced to, called numberphiles. At first I was like what am I watching and then by the end of it- I was like why aren't we using this math system and moving into what the future could be with it, instead of the system currently used. Watch till the end. https://youtu.be/U6xJfP7-HCc?feature=shared

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Base 12 is great and super useful! The Babylonians used it to calculate all sorts of things.

Also: Numberphile is a really fun channel. I've followed them for a long time, although it's been a while since I watched one of their videos.

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Andrew, would you know who at about the same time or before used Base 8?

Background: my lineage arises from the state, Tamilnadu*, in India, where the notion zero was discovered.

Our numbering system implies that while it is a Base 10 system, it’s predecessor was a Base 8 system. (Because the names for 9 and 10 are off-pattern and supplanted).

Determining the source of Base 8 would go a long way in determining our roots.

*incidentally, the mother-tongue of Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, too.

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Very little, Bala, but you have me curious now!

It seems like the Proto-Indo-European word for "nine" might possibly be the same as the word for "new", indicating starting over counting at that point. I'm interested.

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I am just learning about this, and I can't seem to pull myself away. It would make sense you already know about it, that feels very fitting of what little I do know about you. lol I feel like I am learning so much new information lately and it is profoundly shifting my perspective.

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There's a lot of change going on in the world right now, probably more than either of us have lived through. I don't think it's just you.

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I am more than not in a state of hyper-vigilance looking for the unexpected. While being on my toes does serve me well, there are also times it can be a real hinderance in my ability to rest or in my close relationships. It is fascinating to think about the total number of people who have existed and with what means they fulfilled their lives. I live on this edge of being terrified for my children's future and if it was selfish to have them during a time where it seems like they will be stuck cleaning up the messes of the old or making an even bigger mess of things. I hope I am raising them to be well rounded humans who can contribute to their communities on small and large scales. While also reminding them that the most important moments, are the ones we spend in solitude and with other people. I hope they know more than being on edge, and can relax, but that they are prepared for the worse- just incase. It seems to constantly go back to balance. ;)

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1 in 18. That is a stunning thought. Great essay!

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Thanks, Eli!

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We need to document.

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