A New School

Will the scale of our presence matter if all we export is emptiness?

Elon’s mission is to expand the scale and scope of human consciousness so that we can better understand the universe and our place in it.

One way is to increase the number of humans (scale), a primary motivation behind SpaceX’s mission to make life multiplanetary.

Another way is to increase the scope of the consciousness of the humans that already exist. Smarter, more curious humans means more questions about the universe being asked and answered.

It seems possible that AI (among other things) is making humans less intelligent. If this accelerates, it won’t matter if there are 100 billion humans across the solar system. If those humans are less curious and intelligent, the growth of the scale and scope of human consciousness will be net negative.

In essence, the scale and scope of human consciousness will be a leaky bucket. We need initiatives to plug the hole and ensure that, over time, humanity grows smarter and more curious.

I want to see a future where humanity is spread across the stars. But will it matter if everywhere we go we only recreate shopping centers and $10 smoothie shops? Will the scale of our presence matter if all we export is emptiness?

The Romans forgot how to build aqueducts and it contributed to their decline. If we let curiosity and intelligence leak away, we risk repeating that fate on a planetary scale.

That’s why we need a new kind of education system, one that ensures our expansion makes us not just more numerous, but wiser, more curious, and more capable of carrying the best of human knowledge into the future.