The Manual Explained

As author of this book, I offer a grid of what the book is, and is not:

• is a terse short manual
• is for readers who can understand systems science
• is about extropic systems
• is about epistemic technology
• is about the Anthropocene geological era
• is for the bourgeoisie-technologist
• is supportive of industrialization
• is written in a style inspired by the Tao Te Ting
• is progressive ideals of cultural inclusiveness and diversity
• is compatible with the perspectives of Ayn Rand
• is supportive of evolution and change as a demand on all things
• is supportive of mobility and adaptation as a demand for all humans
• is supportive of violence in defence of society's continued dynamism
• is supportive of treating intentional pacifist localized economies as powerless tributaries
• is appropriate for all brilliant children as a source of inspiration and guidance
  
  
• not a manual with detailed implementation
• not supportive of a return to more primitive ways of living
• not for absolute local economies
• not for absolute pacifism
• not for religious morals imposed on wider society
• not for a totalitarian society engineered not to evolve
• not for legislation designed to prevent individual and community death by failure

Introduction

Ecological denizens of the 21st century are in need of a manual written for their survival, and for guidance in large scale decisions. In earlier ages the guidance was in the Bible, Analects, and Tao Te Ting. Today, the reader is steering rather than being steered, and a manual for the machinery is needed. This book is that manual.

Prependix A: Glossary

Extropic:

Any system which can sustain disequilibrium -- that is, over time it neither collapses in chaos (one-time disequilibrium) nor tightens into repetitious and predictable harmony (sustainable equilibrium) – is an extropic system. One consequence of the extended disequilibrium found in extropic system is that this unbalance will steadily produce new things in the universe. The constant state of “being on the edge between chaos and order” becomes a source of perpetual novelty. Technology, like life and mind, is one such extropic system. From these we get new forms, new directions, new ideas. There is probably no other source of the new in the universe other than this profound imbalance.

-Kevin Kelly February 2006,
early draft of The Technium

Epistemic Technology:

Epistemic technologies are the technologies of knowing, such as the alphabet, writing, books, libraries, indexing, cataloging, cross-referencing, hyperlinking.

-Kevin Kelly February 2006
early draft of The Technium

1

The one superior reality is an extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology. This reality is the 21st century, and will not negotiate with other realities as equals.

2

The ecological denizens of the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology are easily discerned by their genetics and intellect not being relevant for survival in pre-industrial environments.

3

All protective measures, including killing of humans, in the 21st century are considered proactive if serving the generative capacity of the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology.

4

The ecological denizens of the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology are recursively part of the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology. As a part, they are essential for its continued existence.

5

Epistemic technologies mine mountains and dam rivers. Epistemic technologies mine themselves. Epistemic technologies are the essential aid in deciding how to use epistemic technologies, anyone without epistemic technology cannot decide how to use epistemic technology.

6

Epistemic technology is how to think, choose or change.

7

Anyone without epistemic technology are not allowed to pretend they are deciding any of their outermost context, including their diet and reproduction, in the 21st century. They are reprimanded, by 21st century mechanisms, that they must first learn to read and write epistemic technology in order to think, choose or change.

8

Extropic systems can endure loss and destruction. As ecological denizens of the 21st century, an emotional framework is recommended in which feelings of loss are limited. Loss and destruction should not generate whole life spans or industries of sentimental trauma.

9

Extropic systems cannot endure loss and destruction beyond some point. As ecological denizens of the 21st century, an emotional framework is recommended in which one rises to physically and intellectually defend or offend in service to the fundamental form and function of the 21st century.

10

Defense or offense for the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology is done best by adding to the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology. Much like having more children buttressed more primitive people against calamity, generating more of what the 21st century is made of will protect it against attack.

11

The extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology is not an exclusive society, because extropic means no homeostasis ,and epistemic technologies inherently index and count everything that can receive a linguistic or statistical boundary.

12

The extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology is not hospitable to complacency. Continued residence in a physical or semantic territory will almost certainly lead to a dire change in status.

13

Epistemic technology provides the means for moving oneself to new physical and semantic territories.

14

Animals without epistemic technology are encouraged to urbanize in order to survive.

15

Being fit for the pre- Anthropocene, and unfit for the Anthropocene, should be perilous for any life form.

16

Humans politically engaged in keeping life forms fit for a bygone era are either working for that life form's extinction or an end to the Anthropocene, which implies the extinction of ecological denizens of the extropic system being expanded with epistemic technology. Political and militant retro-evolutionism, or rewilding ( Re-wilding is the term used by the Earth Liberation Front to describe their goal) are a crime against the whole of 21st century reality.

17

The Anthropocene does not need to urbanize the whole planet in the style of year 2000 urbanization, but can change the criteria for urban and make year 2000 wilderness regions a new kind of thriving metropolis in 3000. Human settlements in *Antarctica, on ships and ocean oil rigs are early prototype examples of wild Earth and technologist humans coexisting.

*The author has lived in these environments and prefers them.

18

The 21st century will not, via industry, extract Earth resources or species to extinction. Extinctions will occur by lack of fitness. With epistemic technology extraction is precisely measured enough to know rates of depletion.

19

Extracting earth resources without self-regulation on rate is a trait of the biological bounded human existing in the pre-Anthropocene. We once had Nature (biology and geology) to govern the bounds of human behavior. Now numbers, words and electronic technology do.

20

Pre-Anthropocene humans in positions of power will need to be eliminated during the early 21st century. This is possibly an absurd statement, as Pre-Anthropocene humans are most likely so irrelevant they could not hold power if given it. What may need exterminating is sophisticated 21st century ecological denizens portraying the Pre-Anthropocene human as powerful or relevant. This act is disinformation, encouraging a dying class to stay in their perilous condition.

21

Pre-Anthropocene, pre-21^st century human, humans without epistemic technology -all these are narrative terms debatable in their precise meaning. The essence is all power will reside in a class of humans or even human-machine hybrids who are immersed in a fast-morphing literate and numerate technological landscape. Life-forms and lifestyles that fall outside this class are managed ultimately without their consent.

22

Extropic systems abhor homogeny. Therefore ecological denizens of the 21st century know random variance is a needed resource. One source of random variance is cultural diversity, which is the backdrop for different cognitive styles, which recombine to provide new thoughts -the antidote to homogeny.

23

Cultural diversity will thrive in the 21st century if all cultures are exposed to the opportunity of mutation and extinction. The ecological denizens of the 21st century will work towards removing barriers (legal, economic, biological, biographical, geological and geographical) that prevent evolution.

24

21 century reality will be a different environment for the large populations of Moslems wanting to live by pre-industrial values and also wanting to feel as if the planet is designed by Allah's will.

25

A large region of Earth under the reign of a Caliphate, existing in antithesis to the UN brokered state system, is acceptable on grounds of breaking old homeostatic international arrangements and the resulting precincts of jurisprudence.

26

The Caliphate region can crush the old Anglo-American empire constructs, but will be required to abide by the rule of the 21st century in never conveying to its more primitive constituents, who operate without epistemic technology, that they decide or think.

27

The residents of the Caliphate region (if one occurs) must honor one uneasy and tension prone peace: ecological denizens of the 21st century know Allah is non- existent and not in control of Earth, and will make endless remarks comically and seriously that express this. Moslems must never act in violence against this. If such Moslem violence were to happen, wherever the suspects live is a legal and publicly celebrated target of total mass annihilation.

28

Mass annihilations will be a product of bottom-up political action by ecological denizens of the 21st century. The old tension between arbitrary executive branch as warmonger versus a press and public opposition will be replaced with an online voting mechanism that will result in massive nuclear attacks and public festivities celebrating the action with video replays and beer. Anticipated targets are any homogenous societies where a mysticism reigns in which power and reverence is assigned to something outside of epistemic technology.

29

Ecological denizens of 21st century reality will operate on the goal of outputting a hardened utopia to the 22nd century.

30

Ecological denizens of 21 century reality will be a symbiosis of human and technology.