Before this class and reading the first half of the book, I have never thought of looking beyond the obvious in certain aspects of life. I figured things behave the way they do because it just does, nothing more to it. But the book by Steven Johnson led me to look at things from a different angle. It doesn’t mean I will completely change my ideas, but at least I have a better understanding of why he sees things the way he does. I did felt that in certain parts of this book, things got dragged out longer than they should have been. The descriptions in the city section were helpful but could be overkill in the details department. I did not really find that portion of the book really interesting but he did point of some facts that are very true when looking at a city. Some parts do remain as the slums and other parts do transform into upscale living. The myth about the Queen Ant and how their colony function was what caught my attention. I found it interesting that these ants got no instructions from some higher authority ant to perform certain tasks. On the contrary, their actions were all pre-wired and individualized tasks that needed to be done were as natural as breathing for us. As for the discussion we had in class, I personally think a city can’t learn by it self. Yes it can evolve through many many years but it is only possible when there are humans involve to initiate these changes or if some kind of big natural event occurs. If cities had a mind of its own then life on earth would be chaotic.
I think you’re right when you say that humans are needed to have a city learn – do you think that the humans in the cities can make those cities better? I mean, self-organize, clean the city up, and make it a better city for all people?