{"id":13994,"date":"2023-12-26T10:54:23","date_gmt":"2023-12-26T10:54:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/?p=13994"},"modified":"2023-12-26T11:12:03","modified_gmt":"2023-12-26T11:12:03","slug":"is-history-against-humanity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/general-insights\/is-history-against-humanity","title":{"rendered":"Is History against Humanity?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3>History shows how we got here, not how we should go on. We need to apply what we may learn from the past to a future that will be radically different \u2015 probably most so through the advent of super-A.I.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p>For humanity, business as usual may not be enough to make it through. This may even backfire. On the other hand, with a realistic view and intelligent decisions, we may turn the future into a Compassionate heaven.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>History can make us complacent.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This probably includes you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Most people think (or non-consciously take for granted) that a culture\u2019s past longevity proves its future longevity. Over an extended period, many cases have proven this supposition wrong. Look, for instance, at ancient Greeks, Phoenicians, and Romans. Each time again, they thought that it would last forever. Each time again, they couldn\u2019t imagine that their world would collapse. In hindsight, it was just a matter of perspective. Note also that most animal species that have lived on Earth have gone extinct. Their future wasn\u2019t part of their past\u2019s responsibility. Neither is ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Present-day global culture has new and global problems. We shouldn\u2019t be sure to overcome culturally or even species-bound existential threats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Humans have been made for the past, but hardly for the present and not for the future.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We haven\u2019t been made to manage well the immense technological possibilities that have emerged at an increasing pace over the last few centuries. Nowadays, many of us can do things that were seen as utterly amazing, even a few decades ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Soon enough, we have to deal with the unprecedented capabilities of what amounts to a brand-new species, super-A.I. We have no historically based clue how to do that. The only lesson from history is that we cannot be sure \u2014 even if we feel as confident as modal Romans two thousand years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The argument that, this time, the whole world is involved and that, therefore, things are different is invalid. It only heightens the stakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Fortunately, nature made us very flexible.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This way, we can take on many situations, adapting to new threats \u2014 but not infinitely. We will soon need our flexibility more than in many eras of the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And we can. Oh yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We can adapt toward an excellent future even if history is against us, and even if many are showing \u2013 through <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=13998\">waging absurd wars<\/a>, for instance \u2013 that it will be quite a challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, many people are also <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=13642\">masters in active denial<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Above all, we need hope, but we also need to earn it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Concerning our external circumstances, we can work on a world that provides hope. It doesn\u2019t come for free, of course. How can one find the motivation to persist?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Internally, a deep sense of <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=3767\">Hope<\/a> can provide (or equals) such motivation. That also needs work, albeit of a different kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This may seem like a dark blog.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I see it as a wake-up call. Each time before an era ended, people thought this time was different and, therefore, could not end\u2026 until it did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Eventually, history is made by us \u2014 yet. Even so, it may soon be made by a higher intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We can still <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=13775\">choose to make that a Compassionate one<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkwrap cbxwpbkmarkwrap_no_cat cbxwpbkmarkwrap-post \"><a  data-redirect-url=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\"  data-display-label=\"0\" data-show-count=\"0\" data-bookmark-label=\" \"  data-bookmarked-label=\" \"  data-loggedin=\"0\" data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig  cbxwpbkmarktrig-button-addto\" title=\"Bookmark This\" href=\"#\"><span class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig-label\"  style=\"display:none;\" > <\/span><\/a> <div  data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap\" id=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap-13994\"><div class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguest-message\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguesttrig_close\"><\/a><h3 class=\"cbxwpbookmark-title cbxwpbookmark-title-login\">Please login to bookmark<\/h3>\n\t\t<form name=\"loginform\" id=\"loginform\" action=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-login.php\" method=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-username\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_login\">Username or Email Address<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"log\" id=\"user_login\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-password\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_pass\">Password<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"password\" name=\"pwd\" id=\"user_pass\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-remember\"><label><input name=\"rememberme\" type=\"checkbox\" id=\"rememberme\" value=\"forever\" \/> Remember Me<\/label><\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-submit\">\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" name=\"wp-submit\" id=\"wp-submit\" class=\"button button-primary\" value=\"Log In\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"redirect_to\" value=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/form><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>History shows how we got here, not how we should go on. We need to apply what we may learn from the past to a future that will be radically different \u2015 probably most so through the advent of super-A.I. For humanity, business as usual may not be enough to make it through. This may <a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/general-insights\/is-history-against-humanity\">Read the full article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n<div data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkwrap cbxwpbkmarkwrap_no_cat cbxwpbkmarkwrap-post \"><a  data-redirect-url=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\"  data-display-label=\"0\" data-show-count=\"0\" data-bookmark-label=\" \"  data-bookmarked-label=\" \"  data-loggedin=\"0\" data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig  cbxwpbkmarktrig-button-addto\" title=\"Bookmark This\" href=\"#\"><span class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig-label\"  style=\"display:none;\" > <\/span><\/a> <div  data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"13994\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap\" id=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap-13994\"><div class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguest-message\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguesttrig_close\"><\/a><h3 class=\"cbxwpbookmark-title cbxwpbookmark-title-login\">Please login to bookmark<\/h3>\n\t\t<form name=\"loginform\" id=\"loginform\" action=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-login.php\" method=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-username\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_login\">Username or Email Address<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"log\" id=\"user_login\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-password\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_pass\">Password<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"password\" name=\"pwd\" id=\"user_pass\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-remember\"><label><input name=\"rememberme\" type=\"checkbox\" id=\"rememberme\" value=\"forever\" \/> Remember Me<\/label><\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-submit\">\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" name=\"wp-submit\" id=\"wp-submit\" class=\"button button-primary\" value=\"Log In\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"redirect_to\" value=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/form><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13995,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/2278.jpg?fit=960%2C558&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9Fdiq-3DI","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13994"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14007,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13994\/revisions\/14007"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}