Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Connections by James Burke (1978)

topdocumentaryfilms.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

41–50 of 85 posts

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#41

Post by selimthegrim »

ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #28
makuto wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree. I think the point of the show is to illustrate how technology progresses. You could say one piece of it is about how we are reliant on it, and not in control of it, but I'd say overall, the show is optimistic about technology and celebrates innovation. Edit: The Wikipedia article [0] does have a good summary, which I think makes us both right: There are really a collection of theses, none of which in my o…

Take a look at the scene in the first episode while discussing the consequences of being in a scenario where one needs to escape the technology trap where he asks the viewer whether they are willing to kill to ensure their survival. Take a look at the scene about 42 minutes into the last episode where technological artifacts are being smashed to Wagnerian music and listen to what he says just beforehand. Does any of…

In 1989-90 or so he had a much more optimistic special (After the Warming) about climate change.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#42

Post by space_ghost »

rsj_hn wrote: post #37
ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #22

I'm surprised by how many people are missing the central thesis of Connections. Yes, it was about how technological progress is a web of interlocking discoveries, which is entertaining, but that wasn't the _ point _ of it. The first and last episodes of Connections 1 introduce and wrap up the theme of the entire series and it ought to terrify people to the core. (Warning: spoilers ahead) The first, "The Trigger Effec…

That the breakdown of civilization is possible is clear from the Bronze Age Collapse, the Collapse of the Roman Empire, The Incas, and pretty much all civilizations that flourished in the past. There are many attempts to study this and many different takes on it, for example Tainter's Collapse of Complex Societies . I'm not sure that this should be terrifying, civilizations come and go, it's a question of when rather…

There's a wonderful podcast [1] on Youtube that deep-dives into the collapse of various historical civilizations.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT6Y5JJPKe_JDMivpKgVXew

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#43

Post by fakedang »

selestify wrote: post #31
JKCalhoun wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree. I would add too, it seems likely that James Burke more or less created the idea too of connectedness across disciplines, historical events, etc. as opposed to the linear, "homo-disciplinary" approach we were used to. Or at least he brought the idea to the masses in a compelling way.

> it seems likely that James Burke more or less created the idea too of connectedness across disciplines Is there a name for this idea?

Idk, interdisciplinary?

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#44

Post by Sargos »

ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #34
JKCalhoun wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I get the way Burke tied together all ten episodes of the first season and put a bow on it. I'm not convinced though as to how terrified I ought to be. I understand that there is a complexity and inter-connect-edness in our present day society, but the fear of nuclear, mutual annihilation is the part of the original series that seems the most dated. I suppose I choose to feel a little more optimistic. I consider the…

This is just my opinion but, as I said, people don't want to think about it or believe it. The pandemic should be a wake up call, both in terms of demonstrating supply chain disruptions and in terms of people refusing to wear masks and those ignoring shelter-in-place directives. Let's just take one more non-war example: Another Carrington level solar storm is an inevitability ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carringto…

I would use the Pandemic to argue the exact opposite really. It's the worst disaster most people have seen in their lifetimes but it hasn't caused civilization to break down. For a lot of people life hasn't even changed that much. We are more resilient than many people think.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#45

Post by wegs »

lqet wrote: post #5
wegs wrote: post #3

I see a lot of similar stuff on Youtube these days. A recent Economics Explained walked through wealth inequality in some Scandinavian countries (TL;DR: it's high). This is different from income inequality, which is quite low. It walked through the wealth of Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken, who has a net worth of $13B, by virtue of having inherited Heineken. Her family bought (not founded) Heineken 200 years ago, and t…

If I am not mistaken, you are saying that technical entry barriers into documentary filmmaking are much, much lower today than in 1978, and therefore it is much easier to create such a series today. The former is definitely true, but consider the following: - "Connections" used a substantial amount of acted historical scenes. Creating them in such a quality (and not some sketchy animation or a re-cut of existing work…

Well, let's consider these one at a time:

> - "Connections" used a substantial amount of acted historical scenes. Creating them in such a quality (and not some sketchy animation or a re-cut of existing work) is still a challenge today. You need half-decent actors.

But is this core to the value? I find a lot of the animated versions, Ken Burns, and stock footage on Youtube to be way more than good enough. It's exactly as you said: It's about the content.

> Just because paper and ink got much cheaper since the 16th century, we didn't suddenly produce a Shakespeare every 2 years.

We kinda did, actually. He's hidden among a massive pile of stuff, but he's there. Brilliant books come out far more frequently than I can read. I'd place many well above Shakespeare, not in fame, but in quality.

> So far, I haven't seen any historical documentation on YouTube which even compares to the depth and width of "Connections".

My favorites are Extra History (history) and 3Blue1Brown (math). I think both have at least the same depth and width, albeit in a different direction.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#46

Post by wegs »

bordercases wrote: post #40
wegs wrote: post #3

I see a lot of similar stuff on Youtube these days. A recent Economics Explained walked through wealth inequality in some Scandinavian countries (TL;DR: it's high). This is different from income inequality, which is quite low. It walked through the wealth of Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken, who has a net worth of $13B, by virtue of having inherited Heineken. Her family bought (not founded) Heineken 200 years ago, and t…

> In 1978, he didn't have the Internet. Research is much easier today. Lowering the barrier to entry to anything just makes it easier to create crap. Even when not taken on its own terms, Connections is still a massive achievement given this lack of ease. If you look at the book supplement to the series you can see the depth of research that went into the show. The Internet making research "easier" is false economy s…

With millions of videos on Youtube, it's sometimes hard to find the top 99.99th percentile, but it's there. I've posted references in other posts.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#47

Post by djmips »

rsj_hn wrote: post #37
ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #22

I'm surprised by how many people are missing the central thesis of Connections. Yes, it was about how technological progress is a web of interlocking discoveries, which is entertaining, but that wasn't the _ point _ of it. The first and last episodes of Connections 1 introduce and wrap up the theme of the entire series and it ought to terrify people to the core. (Warning: spoilers ahead) The first, "The Trigger Effec…

That the breakdown of civilization is possible is clear from the Bronze Age Collapse, the Collapse of the Roman Empire, The Incas, and pretty much all civilizations that flourished in the past. There are many attempts to study this and many different takes on it, for example Tainter's Collapse of Complex Societies . I'm not sure that this should be terrifying, civilizations come and go, it's a question of when rather…

> unless you think our civilization is unique among all the others.

I don't think there is even a question that it's unique considering how far it's come in understanding physics math and engineering. To lose all of that would be a great disaster.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#48

Post by lostcolony »

Sargos wrote: post #44
ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is just my opinion but, as I said, people don't want to think about it or believe it. The pandemic should be a wake up call, both in terms of demonstrating supply chain disruptions and in terms of people refusing to wear masks and those ignoring shelter-in-place directives. Let's just take one more non-war example: Another Carrington level solar storm is an inevitability ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carringto…

I would use the Pandemic to argue the exact opposite really. It's the worst disaster most people have seen in their lifetimes but it hasn't caused civilization to break down. For a lot of people life hasn't even changed that much. We are more resilient than many people think.

Oh, I think for most people it's changed quite a bit. It accelerated WFH adoption by at least two decades. The knock on effects of transportation, city planning, and the demographic effects of people moving due to no longer needing to be so close to their jobs, we've only begun to see.

That said, I agree that it still points to the opposite conclusion - civilization has not ended, but has changed dramatically. Same as every other time.

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#49

Post by PaulDavisThe1st »

djmips wrote: post #47
rsj_hn wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That the breakdown of civilization is possible is clear from the Bronze Age Collapse, the Collapse of the Roman Empire, The Incas, and pretty much all civilizations that flourished in the past. There are many attempts to study this and many different takes on it, for example Tainter's Collapse of Complex Societies . I'm not sure that this should be terrifying, civilizations come and go, it's a question of when rather…

> unless you think our civilization is unique among all the others. I don't think there is even a question that it's unique considering how far it's come in understanding physics math and engineering. To lose all of that would be a great disaster.

Why do you believe it would be lost? Did we lose a substantial amount of previously developed knowledge when the Greek or Roman civilizations collapsed? I humbly suggest that we did not ....

Re: Connections by James Burke (1978)

#50

Post by hindsightbias »

selimthegrim wrote: post #41
ThrowawayR2 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Take a look at the scene in the first episode while discussing the consequences of being in a scenario where one needs to escape the technology trap where he asks the viewer whether they are willing to kill to ensure their survival. Take a look at the scene about 42 minutes into the last episode where technological artifacts are being smashed to Wagnerian music and listen to what he says just beforehand. Does any of…

In 1989-90 or so he had a much more optimistic special (After the Warming) about climate change.

Optimistic? He ends with the Atlantic Conveyor slowing and saying we’re screwed because we waited too long.
Post reply on HN