The Dark Forest Of The Internet

[Yooper]

Part 1:

The Dark Forest Theory of the Internet

Why the dark forests of the internet — podcasts, newsletters, and other private channels — are growing, and why might that pose a problem

onezero.medium.com

Part 2:

Beyond the Dark Forest Theory of the Internet

Re-learning how to be yourself online

onezero.medium.com

Here are the opening paragrpahs of Part 1.

In his sci-fi trilogy The Three Body Problem, author Liu Cixin presents the dark forest theory of the universe.

When we look out into space, the theory goes, we’re struck by its silence. It seems like we’re the only ones here. After all, if other forms of life existed, wouldn’t they show themselves? Since they haven’t, we assume there’s no one else out there.

Liu invites us to think about this a different way.

Imagine a dark forest at night. It’s deathly quiet. Nothing moves. Nothing stirs. This could lead one to assume that the forest is devoid of life. But of course, it’s not. The dark forest is full of life. It’s quiet because night is when the predators come out. To survive, the animals stay silent.

Is our universe an empty forest or a dark one? If it’s a dark forest, then only Earth is foolish enough to ping the heavens and announce its presence. The rest of the universe already knows the real reason why the forest stays dark. It’s only a matter of time before the Earth learns as well.

This is also what the internet is becoming: a dark forest.

The articles will, I think, resonate more if you've read Liu Cixin's "Three Body Problem" trilogy ("The Dark Forest" is the second of the the three). But the point(s) the article makes still make sense.

I thought it was a good read. About 5-10 minutes per part.

(BTW, FWIW, I thought Part 1 of the "The Three Body Problem" trilogy was really good (the trilogy takes its name from the title of the first book). Part 2 ("The Dark Forest") was equally so. Part 3 ("Death's End") was less satisfying. All three are very long (but enjoyable) reads. Here's a link to the Wikipedia entry on the first book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three-Body_Problem_(novel); it has links to Books 2 & 3.)

--- End of line (MCP)