Luminary

Tim O’Reilly is the founder, CEO, and Chairman of O’Reilly Media, a company that has profoundly impacted how generations of software engineers and computer hobbyists have learned programming. Tim is of course a luminary of the technology industry and hardly needs an introduction. It is difficult to overstate the importance of his contributions. Tim has been active in the open source and internet community for decades, providing the intellectual inspiration behind terms like open source software and web 2.0.

Our conversation with Tim centers around open source. We discuss: the characteristics of open source software, which company has best executed on its open source strategy, and how the open source ethos has influenced the tech industry and beyond. We also cover Tim’s latest project around algorithmic rents.

About and From Tim O’Reilly:

Tim O’Reilly: Various Things I’ve Written

Tim O’Reilly – Wikipedia

Recommendations and References:

Richard Stallman

David Stutz

The Man Watching by Rainer Maria Rilke

The Dawn of Everything

Marriana Mazzucato

Herbert Simon

Economics for the Common Good

The Paris Wife

Working Days

East of Eden

David Graeber

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Yochai Benkler is a professor of Entrepreneurial Legal Studies at Harvard Law School and co-director of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. Yochai is known for coining the term commons-based peer production which describes collaborative efforts or social production in the creation of information goods such as Apache server or Wikipedia. In 2012, he received a lifetime achievement award from Oxford University in recognition of his contribution to the study and public understanding of the Internet and information goods. Yochai has written a number of influential books, including The Wealth of Networks, Network Propaganda, and the Penguin and Leviathan.

Our conversation with Yochai focuses on the role of capitalism, institutions, and ideology in shaping technology and societal outcomes. Yochai’s theory centers around the notion that it is not technology and software that shape change, but rather that the dynamics of power-seeking in capitalism have subsumed and directed technology and software towards the same aim as it always had — which is to maximize profit for a narrow set of profit-reaping classes while legitimizing it under a patina of claims of self-actualization, democratization, social mobility, and improvement in well-being for all. Yochai’s framework pushes back on the prevailing wisdom that technology is the cause of change but rather an arena where the dynamics of capitalism established since the 17th century are driving, while a naturalized view of technology is simply a red herring.

We also discuss the political economy of technology, commons-based peer production as a value generation model, and the value of decentralized blockchain systems like bitcoin and ethereum.This was a very refreshing conversation. It’s clear the world could learn a lot from the wisdom of Yochai Benkler.

About and From Yochai Benkler:

Director, Berkman Klein Center for Entrepreneurial Studies 

Jack N. and Lillian R. Berkman Professor for Entrepreneurial Legal Studies

Personal website

Practical Anarchism: Peer Mutualism, Market Power, and the Fallible State

The Role of Technology in Political Economy: Part 1

The Role of Technology in Political Economy: Part 2

The Role of Technology in Political Economy: Part 3

Power and Productivity: Institutions, Ideology, and Technology in Political Economy

The Penguin and the Leviathan

Recommendations and References:

Heart of Darkness

Black Reconstruction

Shardlake series

The post Yochai Benkler on Tech’s True Forces: Capitalism, Institutions, and Ideological Impact appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Jason Crawford is the founder of Roots of Progress and a prolific writer on all things technology and progress. Jason was previously a startup founder and engineering manager. His mission is to understand the causes of progress and help usher in a new era of human advancement via a philosophy of progress fit for the 21st century. You can find his essays on rootsofprogress.org.

Our conversation with Jason centers around progress and the history of technology. We cover the relationship between human civilization and technology, assorted inventions, and lessons to consider in the development and implementation of future technologies. We also talk about why progress matters, how things went wrong in the 20th century, and Jason’s idea of a new philosophy of progress. Jason has encyclopedic knowledge of diverse topics which made this an especially rich conversation.

About and From Jason Crawford:

https://jasoncrawford.org/

https://rootsofprogress.org/

https://twitter.com/jasoncrawford 

The spiritual benefits of material progress 

Recommendations and References:

The Ascent of Man: Bronowski, Jacob, Dawkins, Richard

On the Origin of Clockwork, Perpetual Motion Devices, and the Compass

Economics of the singularity | IEEE Journals & Magazine   

Robin Hansen

The Population Explosion

Charles I. Jones – Wikipedia

Paul Romer – Wikipedia

Robert Solow – Wikipedia

One Process | Reaction Wheel

Derek Thompson (journalist) – Wikipedia

Noahpinion

Ezra Klein – The New York Times

David Deutsch

Steven Pinker 

Where Is My Flying Car? (Audible Audio Edition): J. Storrs Hall, Jonathan Todd Ross, Stripe Press: Books 

Ayn Rand – Wikipedia

The Industrial Revolution

The Conservative Futurist by James Pethokoukis | Hachette Book Group

The Industrial Revolution, 1760-1830 – T. S. Ashton – Oxford University Press

Slate Star Codex

FreakTakes

The Lunar Society

The Making of the Atomic Bomb | Book by Richard Rhodes | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster

The post Jason Crawford on progress and the history of technology  appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Noah Smith is a renaissance man, blogger, and commentator. Noah’s popular blog, Noahpinion, focuses on economics, technology, and current events. He was previously a columnist for Bloomberg and an assistant professor of Behavioral finance at Stony Brook University.

Our wide-ranging conversation covers digital technology, economics, and energy. We discuss Noah’s framework for thinking about technology, digital technology adoption and its implications for economic activity, measures of technological advancement, opportunities and challenges for solar and nuclear energy, and the Noah Smith production function.

About and From Noah Smith:

Noah Smith (writer) – Wikipedia 

Noahpinion

Noah Smith (@Noahpinion) / Twitter  

140 – The Future is Fiat | Noah Smith (Noahpinion)

Interview: Tyler Cowen, economist and public intellectual  

Globalization Is Narrowing the Wealth Gap, One Nation at a Time

Recommendations and References:

Ramez Naam

Robert J Gordon

The New Argonauts

Kardashev Scale

The Measure of Civilization

Grasping Reality, Brad DeLong

Hannah Ritchie

Faster Please

Matthew Yglesias

David Roberts

David Thompson

Jerusalem Demsas

Ezra Klein

Odd Lots

Packy McCormick

Roon

Sam D’Amico

The post Noah Smith on digital technology adoption, energy, and economic progress appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Carlota Perez is a pre-eminent multi-disciplinarian, scholar, and author. Carlota studies the nature of technological change and economic systems, and the lessons provided by the history of technological revolutions. Her book, Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital, is a landmark contribution to the study of technological innovation and change. She has received numerous awards and accolades including most recently an Honorary Doctorate by Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

Our conversation with Carlota centers around her framework for studying technological change and the adoption of digital technologies. We discuss the ideas behind technology cycles, the role of capitalism in influencing change, the difference between the current digital paradigm and prior technology revolutions, the role government can play in accelerating the adoption of digital technologies, and get a preview of her upcoming book which features the role of governments in shaping technological revolutions.

About and From Carlota Perez:

Personal website

Carlota Perez: Wikipedia

Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital

The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State

Carlota Perez (@CarlotaPrzPerez) / Twitter

Carlota Perez | UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose – UCL – University College London

Carlota Perez – Agenda Contributor | World Economic Forum

The post Carlota Perez on technological revolutions and capitalism  appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Clay Shirky is the Vice Provost of Educational Technologies at New York University and an associate professor at the New York University Tisch school of arts. He is a prominent thinker on the social and economic effects of the Internet and the Web. Clay has authored a number of books, including Here Comes Everybody and Cognitive Surplus.

Our conversation with Clay gravitates around models of value generation in the context of digital technologies and the impact of ai on education. We talk about the social and economic impact of digital technologies, the nature of the internet, and why distributed version control is a new and important form of arguing. We also touch on how the university model of education might co-evolve with the growth of digital technology.

About and From Clay Shirky:

Clay Shirky

Clay Shirky: Wikipedia

Clay Shirky (@cshirky): Twitter

Clay Shirky: TED Speaker   

Clay Shirky: Books

Clay Shirky: Institutions vs. collaboration 

Recommendations and References:

ChatGPT Is Here — What’s NYU Doing About It? – YR Media 

Beware the Shirky Principle: John M Jennings 

Clay Shirky Quotes: BrainyQuote 

Danah Boyd: Wikipedia

David Weinberger: Wikipedia  

Yochai Benkler: Wikipedia

Marshall McLuhan

Attribution of “we shape our tools and then our tools shape us” 

Ward Cunningham

John Herman Randall Jr: Wikipedia. 

Bob Lewis: books, biography, latest update 

Midjourney

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Music:

Music used in this podcast: Simplex Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Chipper Doodle Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

The post Clay Shirky on value generation, ChatGpt, and education appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Matt Clancy is a research fellow at Open Philanthropy and a senior fellow at The Institute for Progress, a think tank for accelerating scientific, technological, and industrial progress. He maintains New Things Under the Sun, a living literature review about innovation.

Our conversation with Matt gravitates around the state of knowledge of technological innovation. We talk about inputs to innovation, models of innovation, the discipline of Progress Studies, and ways to measure technological progress. We also cover the relationship between policy and innovation.

About and From Matt Clancy:

Personal Website 

What’s New Under the Sun: What academia knows about innovation 

Are Technologies Inevitable? 

Matt’s dissertation 

References and Recommendations:

Institute for Progress 

Ned Gulley: Patterns of innovation, a web-based MATLAB programming contest 

Anton Howes 

William Nordhaus: Do Real-Output and Real-Wage Measures Capture Reality? The History of Lightning Suggests Not  

Tyler Cowen: Marginal Revolution 

Pop Culture Happy Hour Podcast 

George Elliot: Middlemarch

Ursula K. Le Guin: Dispossessed

Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley: Barriers to Bioweapons

Luminary Podcast:

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Music:

Music used in this podcast: Simplex Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Chipper Doodle Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

The post Matt Clancy on innovation, policy, and Progress Studies  appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Martin Gurri is the visiting research fellow at Mercatus Center and a former CIA analyst. Martin’s core interests center around politics, information, and media. His book The Revolt of the Public received notoriety for its cogent analysis of the effects of information on political change. 

Our conversation with Martin centers around the societal and political implications of how information is organized and controlled. We launch into Martin’s thesis in The Revolt of the Public which tells the story of How insurgencies—enabled by digital devices and a vast information sphere—have mobilized millions of ordinary people around the world, and talk about what’s changed since it was last published in 2018. We discuss the evolution of technology and information structure and its implications for how societies are organized, the nature of the current political discord, and democracy. Martin also offers some practical advice for engaged citizens and aspiring politicians.

About Martin Gurri:

Martin Gurri – Wikipedia 

Martin Gurri – Mercatus Center 

Martin Gurri – Twitter

From Martin Gurri:

The Fifth Wave

The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium

Recommendations:

Light in August: Weiner, Tim

San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities: Shellenberger, Michael

Luminary Podcast:

Visit us

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Music:

Music used in this podcast: Simplex Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Chipper Doodle Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

The post Martin Gurri on the fifth wave, democracy, and technology appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Brian Arthur is a storied economist and complexity thinker. He is a pioneer in a number of disciplines including increasing returns, complexity economics, and the evolution of technology. Brian previously served on the science board and the board of trustees of Santa Fe Institute.  He is one of the youngest endowed chair holders at Stanford University.  Brian is also the author of The Nature of Technology: What it is and how it evolves.

Our conversation with Brian centers on technology and its manifestation within economic systems. More specifically, we cover: the nature and evolution of technology, the role of software in shaping economic systems, the concept of increasing returns, and Star Wars as a representation of the human condition. 

About Brian Arthur:

W. Brian Arthur – WikipediaW. Brian Arthur – Santa Fe    W. Brian Arthur – Google Scholar 

Books:

The Nature of Technology: What It Is and How It EvolvesComplexity and the Economy Complexity Economics: Proceedings of the Santa Fe Institute’s 2019 Fall Symposium  

Articles:

Where is technology taking the economy? Increasing Returns and the New World of Business  

Recommendations/References:

Walter G. Vincenti Samuel ButlerCormac McCarthyPodcast: Complexity

Luminary Podcast:

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Music:

Music used in this podcast: Simplex Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0Chipper Doodle Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

The post Brian Arthur on technology, software, and economic systems appeared first on Luminary.fm.

Alissa Cooper is the Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Technology Policy and a Fellow at Cisco Systems. She is also currently a board member of the Tor Project. Alissa was chair of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), an organization that develops and promotes voluntary open Internet standards, from 2017 to 2021. She previously served as chief computer scientist at the center for democracy and technology.

Our conversation centers around the Internet. What is the nature of the internet? Why are technology standards important and how do standards influence the Internet? How are decisions on standards for the Internet made? We also discuss policy and regulation of the internet and emerging technologies, as well as digital privacy.

About Alissa Cooper:

Alissa CooperAlissa Cooper – IETFAlissa Cooper – Center for Democracy and TechnologyAlissa Cooper – Twitter

Speaker references:

IETF | Internet Engineering Task ForceIEEE Tor Project | Anonymity Online Ken Kesey – WikipediaGalaxy Brain Hang Up and Listen, a sports podcast 

Luminary Podcast:

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Music:

Music used in this podcast: Simplex Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0Chipper Doodle Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com): Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

The post Alissa Cooper on building the internet appeared first on Luminary.fm.