Comment by HPsquared
2 years ago
This line of thought goes back to Socrates and his supposed views on writing. (That it weakens the memory)
2 years ago
This line of thought goes back to Socrates and his supposed views on writing. (That it weakens the memory)
The major difference is that in the event that there's a catastrophic event, we won't be able to build the tech we need because the intermediate steps will be lost.
It is also how we know there hasn't been a civilization more advanced than us that left without a trace. All the oil that was easy to extract has been extracted.
I don't think that follows, it is easy to imagine an alternative history without all the hissyfits about nuclear fission or with real investment into nuclear fusion starting in the 70s.
It's not just oil, it's also coal and other integral resources that are now difficult to extract because we are at the upper level of the S-curve and efficiency has dropped.
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"What if something happens to all the books"
> Raytheon has called in retired engineers to teach its employees how to build the Stinger missiles heavily used by Ukraine’s military—using blueprints drawn up during the Carter administration.
https://www.defenseone.com/business/2023/06/raytheon-calls-r...
And of course, lots of resources have been depleted.