In the shifting sands of knowledge distribution, it can often seem like we're retread ancient territory, once controlled by the medieval churches and now, by elite universities. Yet, there's an undercurrent that's slowly altering this landscape – one that might soon see the role of these institutions diminishing and, instead, shifting to more liberal, democratic means.
The Medieval Churches' Loss Of Authority
In 1436, the advent of the printing press heralded a new era of knowledge dissemination that eventually led to the gradual loss of power of the medieval churches. By 1500, the proliferation of over 1,000 presses ushered in Martin Luther's era in 1517, causing widespread skepticism against authoritative figures, and a newfound reliance on reason, logic, empirical data, and math. Throughout this decline, the church's inability to retain its authority led to increasing frustration, as questioning the divine was considered blasphemous.
Modern-Day Order: Elite Universities and Growing Skepticism
Despite the churches' decline, today, science in elite universities seems to thrive. Ground-breaking medicines are developed in academic labs, and many AI founders are bred in the intellectual melting pots of Stanford and Cambridge. However, a growing skepticism – akin to the one witnessed during the churches' decline – seems to emerge against these universities in the form of liberal vs conservative (ie: anti vaccine, anti-environemntalism, anti-multiculturalism), leading one to question if the wide availability of knowledge is causing this unease.
Granted, the push back is highly nhilistic today. We'll need a new form of hierarchy isntead of the complete dissolution of universities. In the case of medieval Catholic, the new order took in the form of capitalism. I hate to say we don't know what the new form would take into the future. Maybe our ability to manipulate technologies (ie: unversal hackers).
The Need For a New Paradigm: From Knowledge Gatekeepers to Distributed Learning
The question arises: Do we need a new system that moves away from the conventional hierarchy of education? The rise of capitalism eventually replaced Martin Luther's destructed churches, and today, as universities face skepticism, this vacuum seems to be filled by economic and social advancement markers like monetary assets or social media following.
It's likely that a more advanced version of community platforms like Meetup could replace these traditional knowledge gatekeepers, scaling up to accommodate every niche interest group and challenge the primacy of elite institutions. Ethereum is born out of Toronto blockchain Meetup after all.
Digital Revolution: The Internet and Changing Learning Formats
The internet's arrival in 1990 significantly altered the knowledge landscape, driving the cost of digital copies to zero and democratizing access to information. Yet, certain areas remain guarded, such as medical device training often housed within university walls.
However, with the growing popularity of audiobooks (a revolution that began in 2010) and the inherent appeal of visual graphs, learning might soon veer away from the traditional reading-based format.
Mapping the Future of Learning and Knowledge
In our present era, if your innate intelligence or IQ scores aren't competitive enough for the top brand elite universities like Havard at the point of age 15, the focus should turn to self-education or entrepreneurship. The subsequent six to eight years could then see you cross great milestones, despite not following the trodden path.