The Future Belongs to Curators

Based on the handwritten notes in the image, the text is organized into a large mind map titled "The Future Belongs to Curators". Here is a detailed extraction of all the notes, grouped by their apparent sections and connections:

Evolution, Complexity, and Competence (Top Left)

• Competence without Comprehension: This central node points to "Turing machine," "Animals," and "AI". It also links to "Tools -> increasing competence w/o comprehension," which connects to "cranes".

• Dennett's Influence: Notes mention Dennett's idea that "self-understanding is not necessary to manipulate the underlying complexity," pointing toward "Physical and indirect interfaces".

• Evolutionary Progress: There are notes on "Accelerated evolution" and the idea that "Greatness cannot be planned but stepping stones/novelty search -> no set goal but direction".

• Fitness & Function: "Vacuum tubes as stepping stones?" connects to the idea that "Some may not have a function but may be neutral (e.g. traits / enzymes)". Another note compares "Local fitness vs global fitness," concluding that "the ultimate fitness is not known until it manifests".

• Side Notes: In the margins, there is a reference to a "Fluke: Confuse vindication w/... Prob of lottery winning = 1? Prob of me winning = Excl" and another note contrasting "Competence of C-suite understanding?" with "generation vs extension periods of integration vs selection".

Abstraction, Knowledge, and the "Adjacent Possible" (Bottom Left)

• The Trajectory of Abstraction: A vertical note reads, "New levels of abstraction in the emergence of acceleration". The notes map out a progression:

• "The Age of Abstraction" features "modules as GP, math, coding".

• "Limits of individual knowledge" leads to "Decoupling" and the need to "outsource knowledge (external)".

• "Limits of collective knowledge" leads to "complete decoupling" and the need to "outsource understanding (internal)".

• The "Full Stack": To keep progressing, "we need to let go of an understanding of the 'full stack' -> turtles all the way down".

• Innovation & Choice: "Combinatorial innovation" leads to "The garden of forking paths in the Library of Babel". This connects to the concept of the "Adjacent possible," posing the question: "How are neighbors instantiated in the adjacent possible vs virtually infinite".

• Crowdsourcing: A note regarding "Choice, crowdsourcing (Democratizing Innovation)" states it "Doesn't always explore what was once possible (or plausible) no large moves space. Cambrian explosion followed by culling".

• Quotes: Includes Arthur Koestler's "There is nothing new in this book" from The Act of Creation, and "I write to know what I think (Joan Didion) (sometimes attributed to Horace Walpole but without findable reference)".

Convergence, Divergence, and History (Top Right)

• Convergence: Points to Dennett's concept of "lobster traps / eyes -> independent functions but with function". Another note says convergence "could leave final goal as an option. complex traits combine to lead to a completely different history".

• Divergence: Notes that "small changes may lead to completely different history". It provides a historical example: "e.g. if Hitler was an artist. Weimar republic was set up for failure and blaming Jews was in the air, so was inevitable".

• Micro vs. Macro: It contrasts "micro-history and macro-history," citing Thomas Schelling's idea that a "fluctuation on micro level makes any array of local to different macrostates".

The Role of the Curator (Middle & Bottom Right)

• The Illusion of Simplicity: "People conflate the simplicity of the UI with the simplicity of what appears under the hood. Just because it looks simple does not make it so".

• When Do We Need Curation?: The notes answer this with several factors:

• "Hard to find/assemble/organize"

• "Lack of awareness of what's out there"

• "Emergence of assemblage"

• "Multiple pieces"

• A reference to Marie Kondo: "Doesn't spark joy"

• Dimension Reduction: "Too many options -> paradox of choice" is countered by curation, which serves to "simplify decisions, not the world" (labeled as "Dimension reduction").

• Curation Strategies: Notes mention "Curation -> customization has precedent w/ curation," "Strategy as curation" (citing "La Poste"), and "Curators as gatekeepers (constraints) -> e.g. Blockbuster vs Netflix (p. 132-135 curation)".

• Types of Curation: Lists three forms affecting "What you are exposed to": "Person making decisions for you," "Collective contributing to scores (Ranking, Re-ranking)," and "Personal".

Cognition, Context, and Perception (Bottom Right)

• Recognizing Information: A note contrasts legal and cognitive frameworks: "Potter Stewart: I know it when I see it but the reality of human cognition is the opposite: I see it when I know it". There is also a note referencing Daniel Dennett (TBC): "I speak to know what I think".

• Subjectivity: A note reads "norms, knowledge... One person's erotica is another's hard core pornography".

• Context: Notes state, "You know more than you think you know -> you don't know (you lack context to know you know)" and "you don't see it if out of context". This is followed by the "story of Unknown Person not selling art on the child section" and ends with a reference to "(p 125-128 Curation)".