There are some nice points buried in this column; it takes a bit to extract them, but I think I can capture them with two broad strokes:
- the 'social' in 'social media' represents society - not just the individuals that make up society, but the institutions they build
- these institutions are not ends in themselves, but are valued because what they signify, because of the meaning they represent
These are really good points. If we think of a neural network, there is a great deal going on over and above the individual neurons - not only structures that define the senses and emotions that power connections and the motor responses that result but also the static structures or 'memories' that we acquire through time and assume a causal agency of their own. The same thing happens in society, and the structures we build are much more complex and interesting than mere memories, but they acquire a causal efficacy of their own as well.
The other point that becomes clear in this article is that we can identify two types of network failure. The first has been described variously as 'alienation', 'disconnection' or 'dropping out'. It's when the individuals become of primary, even sole, importance over and above the institutions. The second, more incipient, failure is when these institutions become ends in themselves, losing the meaning originally attached to them. That's what happens, for example, when banks cease to perform a useful function in society, and exist only to drain wealth from it.
- the 'social' in 'social media' represents society - not just the individuals that make up society, but the institutions they build
- these institutions are not ends in themselves, but are valued because what they signify, because of the meaning they represent
These are really good points. If we think of a neural network, there is a great deal going on over and above the individual neurons - not only structures that define the senses and emotions that power connections and the motor responses that result but also the static structures or 'memories' that we acquire through time and assume a causal agency of their own. The same thing happens in society, and the structures we build are much more complex and interesting than mere memories, but they acquire a causal efficacy of their own as well.
The other point that becomes clear in this article is that we can identify two types of network failure. The first has been described variously as 'alienation', 'disconnection' or 'dropping out'. It's when the individuals become of primary, even sole, importance over and above the institutions. The second, more incipient, failure is when these institutions become ends in themselves, losing the meaning originally attached to them. That's what happens, for example, when banks cease to perform a useful function in society, and exist only to drain wealth from it.
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