Big Mind: How Collective Intelligence Can Change Our World

by Geoff Mulgan Narrated by Julian Elfer

Overview

A new field of collective intelligence has emerged in the last few years, prompted by a wave of digital technologies that make it possible for organizations and societies to think at large scale. This "bigger mind"?human and machine capabilities working together?has the potential to solve the great challenges of our time. So why do smart technologies not automatically lead to smart results? Gathering insights from diverse fields, including philosophy, computer science, and biology, Big Mind reveals how collective intelligence can guide corporations, governments, universities, and societies to make the most of human brains and digital technologies.



Geoff Mulgan explores how collective intelligence has to be consciously organized and orchestrated in order to harness its powers. He looks at recent experiments mobilizing millions of people to solve problems, and at groundbreaking technology like Google Maps and Dove satellites. He also considers why organizations full of smart people and machines can make foolish mistakes?from investment banks losing billions to intelligence agencies misjudging geopolitical events?and shows how to avoid them.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

One of The Guardian’s Favourite Reads of 2017 as chosen by scientists

Arab News

"A perfect introduction to collective intelligence. . . . The book draws on subjects such as social psychology, computer sciences and economics, as well as the author’s experiences as co-founder of the think tank Demos."

Paradigm Explorer

"An engaging and important read."

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2017-09-19
How thought happens on a large scale.Why do some organizations seem so much smarter than others? Can people think together successfully in groups? How can technology help? In this brilliant, somewhat heady, but generally accessible book, Mulgan (The Locust and the Bee: Predators and Creators in Capitalism's Future, 2015, etc.), chief executive of Nesta, Britain's National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, shows how the answers can be found in the emerging field of collective intelligence, which links people and machines to foster "dramatic jumps" in group intelligence. The smarter outcome does not happen automatically; it must be carefully orchestrated. The tools for CI are expensive, found mainly in the military and finance and rarely in the health and environmental sectors. Were they widely available, writes the author, they could give us a "truly global intelligence" that "could solve global problems—from pandemics to climate threats, violence to poverty." Drawing on such disciplines as social psychology, computer science, and economics, as well as his experiences as a co-founder of the think tank Demos, Mulgan outlines the elements of CI, which has informed collaborations from the Manhattan project and NASA's moon landings to Google Maps and Wikipedia. His recounting of a well-known past attempt to organize collaborative thought on a large scale—the Oxford English Dictionary, which engaged a huge army of volunteers working according to strict rules—illustrates nicely how the orchestration and properties of a group "far exceed the capabilities of any one part." The author examines the many elements of CI, making clear how computers have enhanced our capabilities, from observation to memory, and shows how they work in real-life settings like the economy, universities, and meetings of all kinds. "Environments that are stimulating, demanding, and engaging will tend to enhance intelligence," he writes.An essential primer on an important new discipline.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170156924
Publisher:	HighBridge Company
Publication date:	11/28/2017
Edition description:	Unabridged

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