3. Excerpt
• “He wrote the title boldly on the image: three
childlike questions, simple yet profound. ‘D’Où
Venons Nous? Que Sommes Nous? Où Allons
Nous?’ Where do we come from? What are we?
Where are we going?” (Wright, 2).
• “From the first chipped stone to the first smelted iron
took 3 million years; from the first smelted iron to the
hydrogen bomb took only 3,000” (Wright, 14).
4. Main Topics
• Humans have not progressed
• The output of each stage is quicker and more
dangerous each time
5. “Growth”
(Repeating History)
• The discovery of Fire
• Similar in structure to Cold War, and the political
race to space
• “Business is war. I go out there, I want to kill the
competitors. I want to make their lives miserable. I
want to steal their market share. I want them to fear
me and I want everyone on my team thinking we're
going to win” (brainyquotes.com). -Kevin
O'Leary
6. Experiment
• “Things are moving so fast that inaction itself is one of the biggest mistakes.
The 10,000-year experiment of the settled life will stand or fall by what we do,
and don't do, now. The reform that is needed is not anti-capitalist, anti-
American, or even deep environmentalist; it is simply the transition from short-
term to long-term thinking. From recklessness and excess to moderation and
the precautionary principle.” (Wright, 31)
• The changes we make impact our future severely
• Every business product is an experiment
• “I'm not trying to make friends, I'm trying to make money”
(brainyquote.com) . -Kevin O'Leary
• Timing of products is essential (Wheel)
• Supply and Demand theory
8. Precaution
“Entrenched Myth: Successful leaders in a turbulent
world are bold, risk-seeking visionaries.
Contrary Finding: The best leaders we studied did not
have a visionary ability to predict the future…They
were not more risk taking, more bold, more
visionary…they were more disciplined, more
empirical, and more paranoid” (Collins, 9).
9. Specialization
• Earth’s change in temperature and food
• Similar to the saber-toothed tiger and mammoths
• Why does the owner of Mr. Lube also own Boston
Pizza?
“Equities are wonderful, but don't put
all of your investment in one stock or
one sector” (investopedia.com).
“Steady warming will be bad enough,
but the worst outcome would be a
sudden overturning of earth’s climatic
balance -- back to it’s old regime of
sweats and chills…cops will fail
everywhere and the great experiment
of civilization will come to a
catastrophic end.” (Wright, 53)
10. Conclusion
If we don’t control what we do now, it will be too late to
stop it. Civilization keeps repeating its mistakes. The
opportunity is there, but the mindset is not.
