Notes on “Future Think: From Sapiens to Homo Deus”
Last night, Yuval Noah Harari (author of Sapiens and Homo Deus) and Dan Ariely (author of Predictably Irrational and others) were in conversation in NYC.
Below are some bullet points from their discussion:
Harari on politicians: they have limited ability to do good, but unlimited ability to do bad. The rise nationalism that we are witnessing may lead to less large-scale coordination, whether on environmental issues or other global topics. (JW note: this made me think of the breakdown between countries and leaders in the recent Oscar nominated sci-fi film Arrival, and that the real “walls” are mental and emotional ones)
Harari on “fake news”: this is nothing new, in fact has been going on since the dawn of time. When exactly was the “era of truth”…? Just think of the Bible. People swear to tell the truth, whole truth, and nothing but the truth….With their hand on the bible! Truth was never highest priority of human society. To some individuals? Yes. But not to institutions, not science nor religion…
Harari: The institution of science is REALLY about power & control (over environment, body, energy, food) & Religion is REALLY about order. Ariely countered, saying he prefered to “frame” it as the goal of science is to improve human condition, but Harari responded that to improve human condition we have to get CONTROL over something.
- Ariely: Are you pessimistic?
- Harari: I am a realist
- Ariely: That’s what pessimists say.
- Harari: If you become a professional optimist or pessimist you are no longer a professional historian
After this, Ariely shared a heavy but amazing story about spending time w/paraplegics and learning the difference between those who were and were not able to cope. The successful ones did not think long term to meaning of life but instead focused on daily challenges, such as timing themselves on how long it took for them to wiggle into their clothes. Daily challenges are easier to deal with then big meaning of life. Ariely feels good with little daily tweaks. But big picture is depressing
Harari countered strongly that people need to feel they have a STORY. To be successful a story has to fulfill 2 conditions- #1: it has to have a role for “me”. If a prophet said there was a God who had a role for ants, but not humans, he or she would have no followers. #2: The story must extend beyond “my” horizon. Harari gave story how he realized futility of being a soldier fighting for country that may not exist in 10,000 years. He felt the universe has been here for 13.8B years and will be here for billions more. But “Israel” has not and may not. As a result, it means nothing in the “big scheme”. The meaning of life is not in shape of a story. No story holds when you think really big: “Turtles all the way down”
When asked if religion was net positive Harari said yes. A great organizing story for mass coordination. BUT!….Believers think their religion is eternal and unchanging. Judasim now is different than in thebiblical time. There were no rabbis or synagogues back then. How can people reconcile “Turn the other cheek” and “let’s establish an Inquisition and burn people”? On that note, Islam is what people make of it. He believes that it’s a silly debate if people think it’s peaceful or not. It doesn’t have DNA like animal. If you want it to be peaceful, it will be.
The evening closed with Ariely asking Yuval the best joke he knows. Harari responded: “Reality is far more funny. The things people believe in…and some people never get the joke!”
