Spark

505: Civilization - Correspondence

03.26.2021 - By CBCPlay

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Whether it be via carrier pigeon, smoke signal, telegram or text message, humans have corresponded in some way since they first walked upright. On the 50th anniversary of the first internet email, we look at how the act and art of letter writing has evolved — and where it might go.

The death of email has been predicted for a long time. Yet, it's still with us. Will e-mail ever be replaced? Productivity expert David Heinemeier Hansson, the co-founder and CTO of Basecamp, talks about his love/hate relationship to email, and its future.

Can the way the ancient Greeks and Romans corresponded inform how we communicate today? Antonia Sarri is a researcher in the department of ancient history and archeology at the University of Manchester, and an expert on Greco-Roman letter writing.

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