Optical magnification always blows me away. Not because of what it reveals through the lens, but what it reveals of our limitations. It's easy to believe, as I did when I was little, that a pair of binoculars compresses distance and somehow moves you closer to what you're observing because that's what it feels like. In reality, all that's happening is it's taking the same information (visual data) that's already available to you and enhancing it - in essence doing something your eyes can't (unless you're the Bionic Man). It always makes me stop and realize the immense amount of data that's swimming around me right now that I can do nothing with because I can't sense it, detect it or otherwise interact with it. Here's a great example. Right now, in the air of my office in NYC, there are probably over a million cell phone conversations taking place - right now. The air, though transparent to my eyes and silent to my ears, is literally teaming with radio-wave energy. If I had the proper sensory organ I would most likely be blown away by the volume.
Now take a step back and consider this. All our sensory organs exist for one reason. To process information about our environment, that is, our immediate surroundings. But isn't our definition of environment radically changing? Doesn't our world extend way beyond the reach of our physical senses? We all interact with data created far from our physical location, but only a tiny proportion. How can we get smarter? My point is, the wind as a resource has existed forever, but at some point someone invented a sail. What can we do creatively with all the data being created everywhere, all the time? I know there are some good answers. NOTE: I posted something similar to this over a year ago here.
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