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The idea that ants, honeybees, or other social animals might do a thing or two better than we do is ancient.

Tom Seeley has written a lovely and compelling book titled Honeybee Democracy which suggests we turn to the bees to see how they make decisions. Thanks to the work of Seeley and his collaborators, it is now clear that honeybee hives really are democratic.

When it’s time to look for a new nest, options are weighted by the evaluations of many different bees about a site’s qualities—its size, its humidity, the density of surrounding flowers. Individual bees vote with dances, and when the number of dances in favor of some particular site is high enough, the masses are swayed. Together, citizen bees choose, if not perfection, the best possible option.

Many notable polymaths lived during the Renaissance period, a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th through the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. They had a rounded approach to education that was typical of the ideals of the humanists of the time. A gentleman or courtier of that era was expected to speak several languages, play a musical instrument, write poetry, and so on, thus fulfilling the Renaissance ideal. The idea of a universal education was pivotal to achieving polymath ability, hence the word university was used to describe a seat of learning. At this time universities did not specialize in specific areas, but rather trained their students in a broad array of science, philosophy and theology. This universal education, as such, gave them a grounding from which they could continue into apprenticeship to a Master of a specific field. It is important to note that a university education was highly regarded. A person was not considered to need this broad knowledge to apprentice as a carpenter, but to apprentice in the sciences or philosophy it contributed hugely to their being able to comprehend the universe as it was understood at the time. During the Renaissance, Baldassare Castiglione, in his The Book of the Courtier, wrote a guide on becoming a polymath.[citation needed]

Activators are the catalysts of transformational change, manifesting new ideas. traits: evolutionary creativity, novelty, experimentation, innovation, freedom, divergence Pathfinders give meaning to information, illuminating a new direction to pursue. traits: clarity, vision, inspiration, foresight, intuition Facilitators create conditions for information to flow smoothly. traits: coordination, positioning, reconfiguration Enhancers add perspective and insight to what is already known. traits: growth, resonance, supplementation Connectors bridge structural holes and forge new pathways between information. traits: adaptation, learning, unification Propagators build momentum and accelerate the spread of information. traits: mobilization, persuasion, diffusion Amplifiers direct attention and awareness to information of potential value. traits: evaluation, recognition of opportunity/risk, discernment Assimilators show how information is implemented. traits: synthesis, integration Stabilizers maintain equilibrium and balance. traits: sustainability, conservation Disruptors draw attention to chaos and uncertainty, highlighting the potential for new growth. traits: dissonance, entropy, degradation <cycle repeats> Observers & Scribes Archivists, Spectators, Analysts, Advocates, Critics