Category: Philosophy

It is admirable to live in a narrow band. Ideally, we read and repeat what we have read without embellishment. If we have a goal, we can achieve it. A goal does not spiral. It does not reach too far outside itself. The internet is a place where we learn and understand, instead of waste time.

In the novel War with the Newts by Karel Čapek, the newt, Boleslav Jablonský, self-names himself after learning Czech. Jablonský studied Czech by himself and strikes a lively conversation, his first real conversation, with a group of tourists. Although fictional, here is a lesson in patience.

The internet is anything but narrow. A visit to an aggregator rewards us with links, more sources of information than any person can process. There is no guide to the flood of information.

Even in the case that sources of information are good, we succumb to decision paralysis. It is not possible to order the information beforehand and so we must cope with overload.