Clay Shirky and Web 2.0

In the video below, Clay Shirky talks about a “cognitive heat sink.” This is a very interesting combination of words. By the term “cognitive heat sink,” Shirky means that people’s minds and brain power dissipate by doing things that do not require thought. Predominately, he discusses sitcoms and other television programs that people just sit around and watch to fill a cognitive surplus. Shirky says that it is better to be doing something than to be doing nothing. By watching television, people do not think, they just sit and waste their asset of time. Even if television time is redirected to playing a somewhat “silly” video game, at least the time is spent thinking and participating in something. Reassigning our surplus time to tasks which require thought, production, and sharing will be much better for our society and will yield new possibilities.

This new Web 2.0 “vast civic surplus” may create new forms that we will live by. The possibilities here are truly endless. With such an enormous amount of time that can be spent creating and sharing utilizing technology, people can try out new ideas, work with others across the globe to improve them, and make ideas into reality. Perhaps we will use virtual classrooms or hold classes with students in other countries. We can work together with those we don’t know to share information,pool resources, and improve our world. With more minds at work, the ideas of physical objects being delivered via email and artificial intelligence mentioned by Ray Kurzweil may become our new way of life.