Abundance – Peter H. Diamandis, Steven Kotler
Abundance shows practical solutions to humanity’s most significant concerns, such as lack of quality food, water, education, healthcare, and freedom. The author shows us how exponential technologies can help us improve our quality of life to achieve abundance.
Abundance is not about providing everyone on this planet with a life of luxury—rather it’s about providing all with a life of possibility.
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Why do we have an overly pessimistic view of the future
Underlying influences tend to push us towards a pessimistic view of the future.
The amygdala is always looking for threats in our environment. When triggered, it starts the fight or flight response. But modern society threats are probabilistic. For example, the economy could crash, or there could be a terrorist attack.
Media outlets know that good news doesn’t sell as well as threatening news, so we are constantly bombarded with fearful images and possible situations that feed the amygdala and prevent us from seeing the future objectively.
Solving complex problems together
The world consists of complex systems where changes in one area can impact another area. For example, population changes in one species affect living and survival conditions for others.
While some systems may seem to exacerbate current problems, they also present great opportunities because they create momentum and positive benefits in others.
Big Business Is Good
Big business can raise standards of living among the world’s poorest people
Contrary to what many believe, big businesses contribute more to alleviating global poverty.
They develop cheaper products for people at the bottom of the income pyramid – around four billion people. This is a huge potential market and the opportunity to make a profit while raising the standard of living for the poorest citizens.
Education is obsolete
Traditional methods of education are outdated and in need of a re-think.
Access to education is a major global problem.
Those students with access to education follow an outdated framework that does not provide students with the skills needed to handle the problems of the twenty-first century.
A Successful Future Depends On Overcoming The Fear Of Failure
A stigma is attached to failure, and many people will do anything to avoid it. This can prevent innovation.
Failure should be viewed as part of a longer learning curve and an important stepping stone toward innovation.
Technological Advances
Nanotechnology allows us to create new materials, leading to major advances in many areas. Nanotechnology involves building things on an atomic scale and creating nanocomposites, even tiny programmable assemblers called nanomachines. These nanomachines can build other nanomaterials and increase the efficiency of the technology.
Examples include nanocomposites, which are stronger than steel and produced at a fraction of the cost. Lifesaver is a water filter that can make water safe to drink without chemical or energy-intensive methods.
Biotechnology Provides Solutions To Global Problems
Access to biotechnology is multiplying the potential to find innovative solutions to food, energy, and other global problems.
Advances in genetic engineering provide solutions that can feed an ever-increasing population.
Biotechnology is also used for other applications, such as developing strains of algae as a biofuel source.
Global Connectivity Is Accelerating The Sharing Of Information
The spread of the internet and social media has helped people share and discuss societal problems and provided tools to find solutions.
Access to information is a significant catalyst in this process, for example, through Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
Other Advances That Point To An Abundance
Advances in solar energy technology can spur further innovation and lower production prices. New Energy Technologies has recently found a way to turn an ordinary window into a solar panel by using the world’s smallest organic solar cell, which performs ten times better than current commercial models.
More efficient methods of growing food, like urban farming, hydroponics, and vertical farming, can reduce the need for arable land.
