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0 pointslwhalen12y ago0 comments

I disagree. Others have said (much more eloquently than I) that software is the new literacy. In a hundred years, I believe someone who can't at least read code will be at a disadvantage similar to someone who can't read English today.

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5 comments · 3 top-level

teacup5012y ago· 2 in thread

Literacy is not the same thing as the ability and interest necessary to write a novel.

danford12y ago

But it is the ability to read and (for the most part) understand that novel, which is important. There are definitely more books (and things in general) being written in the age of literacy than there was before.

niels_olson12y ago

But everyone has to write reports.

sillysaurus312y ago

Programming is craftsmanship, not really literacy. The difference is that most people don't like crafting, but they do like communicating. Most people are consumers.

loup-vaillant12y ago

I try not to make prediction that long in the future, because intelligence explosion is likely to happen sooner than that. http://intelligenceexplosion.com/

Once it does, we will likely fall into one of three outcomes: Heaven, Hell, or Annihilation —most likely Annihilation if we're not careful. Any finer point will be moot.

(EDIT: Before you down-vote the singularity crap, please follow the link. The arguments are long, but serious. Machines will take over the world at some point. We just need to ensure they're gentle about it.)

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