The World Brain

Having been an avid user of the Internet for many years, I was startled to have a friend remark, "David is addicted to the Internet."

I don't think it is fair to say addicted. Rather, the Internet has become something of a World Brain. Just as not everything in life that a human brain dictates is correct or useful, the same is true of the World Brain. The Internet does have a great deal of foolishness and error. Yet, when queried wisely, it is an amazing resource of good information.

It has become fashionable to decry the amount of garbage floating on the Internet. Certainly it does contain a great deal of misinformation posted by biased writers, but in that particular it is no different than any other information resource. On the other hand, just looked at as another locus for the free exchange of ideas, it has the potential to enhance the level of discourse.

Like any other venue, one must look for multiple sources to approximate truth. Those who take their news only from the Washington Times will believe they have facts that back an ultra-conservative political position. Only getting "the truth" from AlterNet will give a contrary perspective. Similarly, on Palestine, one can read Al Jazeera, Haaretz, The Jordan Times, Iran Daily and The Jerusalem Times will all have different slants and interpretations of the same event.

That said, there is a great deal of good information. Whether it is a recipe for making sauerkraut at home or the latest information about Super-string theory, there is a vast resource of knowledge. Looking for a new laptop but confused by all the different models and the vast number of central processing units being used. There are websites for that. Do you want a list, as I did today, of Barack Obama's accomplishments prior to becoming president? Within five minutes I had a fairly complete list of his Illinois record as well as his actions in the US Senate. Of course the Republicans also had a list of his "accomplishments" detailing what they see as his failures.

I have two friends who have mentioned Scientology to me recently. One was positive, the other negative. A quick search with Dogpile (An agglomeration of search engines) gave me a great deal of information, much propaganda and very divergent opinions. Of course, I then had to use my own personal and individual brain.

Things get murkier when searching for information about spirituality, religion, faith and God. This won't surprise anyone. Every person deals with these concepts differently. Words fail to convey the truths understood in the human heart. Still, at the very least, one does find out what others believe, feel and act on. Thus, a willing and inquisitive soul will find an ally in The World Brain. (Let me suggest http://www.religioustolerance.org/ as a good starting point.)

The Internet, which began as an adjunct to the military establishment, has become a vital, cultural, "game-changing", social phenomenon. The World Brain is the boundary between generations, but for those who are TWB savvy, it promotes the possibility of a world of peaceful, inter-cultural exchange. China may wish to block news of Tienaman Square and they do have a very powerful filter to prevent their citizens from fully participating in the world dialogue, but they will fail. There is a community of very clever programmers, themselves relying on TWB, who will overcome the barriers.

The world is becoming one large community, enriching each person's life through inter-connections. The World Brain helps make this possible.