To explain the things happening around us I like to learn from history. I feel so many lessons of past ages can still be applied today and tomorrow if you yake the time to apply them properly.
What older lesson is there than that of evolution. It's always applied to the context of biology and how we have arrived at this current juncture.
Well, I like to see evolution as a tool of analysis and apply it to more than biology. To juxtapose it against revolution. When I do I see that we're evolving on a global scale in so many ways. Our judicial and financial systems grow to adjust to the increasing globalisation and amazing technology that's now prevalent.
Evolution describes mass extinctions as environments and ecosystems change and the creatures and food chains that depended on them are replaced by news ones adapted to newer ways of life.
Archeologists are coming to accept that dinosaurs died out over hundreds of millions of years as multiple changes to the environment occurred that they couldn't adjust to.
Yet crocodiles and frogs apparently survived unscathed. They were bult to survive. What's special about them?
We aren't completely sure but in the case of the crocodile their cold bloodedness which allows them to survive almost a year on just one meal would be distinct advantage against warm blooded creatures that typically feed every day.
The relevance to legal and financial situations such as markets for me is that all the models on which these and all other systems depend relate to the environments and in effect ecosystems that they have been designed to support.
Well, there have been so many political, ideological, technical and social changes throughout history, particularly in recent years, that the environment that everything exists in is just changing so fast its threatening to change ecosystems faster than they're able to adapt.
Entire markets such as software and hardware are based on business models that now, with open source and cheap production methods, seem archaic, even anachronistic. For me it truly feels like we're entering an exciting new era simply because the people can adjust faster than the organisations and policy so the naturak order and food chain can't keep up.
By food chain I mean large markets with entrenched monopolies. The holes in the old business models are becoming ever so apparent and the jsutification for the status quo is constantly challenged.
Just like the large swathes of private land that were given over to the public in the uk around the 1900's. Land which was once off limits to only a few but is now open to all to enjoy. Closed markets such as the phone industry, news and others are now being opened up, and barriers to entry are changing.
This means a different food chain and natural order is emerging and it's totally fascinating being around to see it happen. Mainly because things are so open now
Take gadgets for example. New scientist describes evolution of gadget design. The independent did their own take on gadget evolution.
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