What have you changed your mind about and why?
Each year, the cyberspace-based Edge Foundation asks leading public intellectuals a simple question. Last year, the foundation wanted to know, "What are you most optimistic about?" This year's query was, "What have you changed your mind about and why?" The answers are dense, arcane, and often fascinating. There a few converts to climate change, including ...
Each year, the cyberspace-based Edge Foundation asks leading public intellectuals a simple question. Last year, the foundation wanted to know, "What are you most optimistic about?" This year's query was, "What have you changed your mind about and why?"
Each year, the cyberspace-based Edge Foundation asks leading public intellectuals a simple question. Last year, the foundation wanted to know, "What are you most optimistic about?" This year's query was, "What have you changed your mind about and why?"
The answers are dense, arcane, and often fascinating.
There a few converts to climate change, including Wired's Chris Anderson. One of the most surprising entries is that of Philip Campbell, the editor in chief of Nature, who comes out in favor of "enhancement drugs" under certain conditions. Sacha Baron-Cohen's brainy cousin Simon, a psychologist at Cambridge, has come to believe that "biology has little time for equality." FP contributor Daniel Kahneman has some new thoughts on what makes us happy. And I had never realized that Brian Eno was once a Mao fan, though I'm glad to see he's seen the light.
As for me, I used to be pessimistic about our ability to solve environmental problems but am becoming much less so, with one glaring exception: I don't think we're going to avert climate change. What about you? Email Passport with your own flip-flops.
(Hat tip: Tyler Cowen)
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