ABSTRACT
During the tech tsunami of the past fifty years, initially through sheer happenstance and later through growing curiosity and excitement, the author met some of the most extraordinary men and women. For civilization as a whole, there may be little one can do now to avert calamitous times ahead, as many of the leading scientists discussed in this account now believe. The combination of specialized expertise and generalized ignorance—and the hegemony of industries that profit from that ignorance—impedes any timely reversing of course. This chapter advises to replace some of the time spent in passive absorption of TV or YouTube entertainment with active participation in a local drama group, or choir, or hiking club, or discussion group. It also asks to consider the recent findings (in multiple studies) that humans often improve the quality of their thinking and problem-solving if they do their thinking while walking or moving around physically.
