Group items tagged

"The global trend toward democratization of the last two decades has been accompanied by the resurgence of various politics of "identity/difference." From nationalist and ethnic revivals in the countries of east and central Europe to the former Soviet Union, to the politics of cultural separatism in Canada, and to social movement politics in liberal western-democracies, the negotiation of identity/difference has become a challenge to democracies everywhere. This volume brings together a group of distinguished thinkers who rearticulate and reconsider the foundations of democratic theory and practice in the light of the politics of identity/difference.\nIn Part One Jürgen Habermas, Sheldon S. Wolin, Jane Mansbridge, Seyla Benhabib, Joshua Cohen, and Iris Marion Young write on democratic theory. Part Two--on equality, difference, and public representation--contains essays by Anne Phillips, Will Kymlicka, Carol C. Gould, Jean L. Cohen, and Nancy Fraser; and Part Three--on culture, identity, and democracy--by Chantal Mouffe, Bonnie Honig, Fred Dallmayr, Joan B. Landes, and Carlos A. Forment. In the last section Richard Rorty, Robert A. Dahl, Amy Gutmann, and Benjamin R. Barber write on whether democracy needs philosophical foundations.\nThis is an excellent yext for someone interested in models of the public sphere. While all the authors are proponents of the deliberative model of democracy (as opposed to, for instance, the liberal, interest-based, technocratic, communitarian, or civic-republican) many of them place their arguments in the context of other models. So, the book reads like a symposium of like-minded people, rather than like a rally of true believers.\nAlmost all of the essays are accessible to a generalist, but several really stand out (especially those by Benhabib, Fraser, and Young)."

Hmmm... I enjoyed this article. My experience of the extended mind is that it is not enclosed in a groups collective intelligence but part of the morphogenic field. Our global brain. We can access any time. There is one piece he mentions about: But there's also the more speculative possibility, not mentioned by Woolley et al, of enhancing the social sensitivity of group members. What would happen if group members took, for instance, a pharmaceutical of some sort that enabled them to be more socially sensitive towards each other? What if some sophisticated technology were available that augmented the individual's ability to better listen to the ideas of others - to let others have time to speak and to be intellectually open to opposing views? I began to test this in group settings with a good amount of success. It is difficult to measure though. I have tested with flower essences. http://www.laviedelarose.com one particular called shasta daisy which supports individuals and groups to achieve an ever deepening sense of community and experience of Oneness. My seminars are mostly about mind (topics like socialmedia, collective intelligence, new economy) yet I try to make them integral and include other body/mind, spirit. We do meditate. In the seminars where I don´t use the flowers there is a different feeling to it. Its very difficult to describe. Its a sense of a field.

[...Gleick: When people say that the Internet is going to make us all geniuses, that was said about the telegraph. On the other hand, when they say the Internet is going to make us stupid, that also was said about the telegraph. I think we are always right to worry about damaging consequences of new technologies even as we are empowered by them. History suggests we should not panic nor be too sanguine about cool new gizmos. There's a delicate balance. ...]

Today, AlterNet launches a series of articles and investigations on fear, and how to combat it.

Today, AlterNet launches a series of articles and investigations on fear, and how to combat it.

"IoT is about to explode, perhaps literally, if privacy and security issues aren't fixed. by Sean Gallagher (US) - Oct 30, 2015 9:50am CET"

"IoT is about to explode, perhaps literally, if privacy and security issues aren't fixed. by Sean Gallagher (US) - Oct 30, 2015 9:50am CET"

"From killer robots, to runaway sentience, there's a lot of FUD that needs clearing up. by Rupert Goodwins - Dec 21, 2015 9:30am CET"

"One of the great aspects of open source is that there's always something new to learn. Many of us like to jump right in with new software or technology and learn by trial and error. Sometimes, however, we can use a guiding hand. That hand comes in the form of a good how-to or manual."

"While I was putting together slides for my lightning talk at Great Wide Open (happening March 16-17), Not that Weird: Open Source Tools for Creatives, I remembered that in the last half of 2015 we had a bit of a loss from our open source creative toolbox. I think I was little"

"Perhaps the biggest surprise to come from Microsoft's Build developer conference last week was the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)."

"One of the great strengths of open source is that it provides opportunities for everyone. Regardless of background, age, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation or religion, everyone can benefit from and contribute to some of the most important technologies ever developed. "