Why we are more excited about Future Technologies than Closer-to-Reality ones

Part of the fun of writing based on Kabbalah are articles like these published after some empirical study or research corroborated something you wrote way back.

Photo Credit: Space Elevator on Green Mars, Bruce Irving (Flickr)

But instead of an “I told you so” victory lap, these are the moments to spend reflecting on the Great Hand of Divine Providence that orchestrates everything. So while it is affirming that a recent Pew Study corroborated many of my previous articles, if there is awe and wonder to be felt, it should be directed to God, not me.

The study was first brought to my attention by a friend, so what follows are actually the two short responses that I wrote back to him to explain the conceptual backdrop to the Pew Study. With regard to the study itself, you can read a short write-up in “Americans Think Science Is Great! Except When They Don’t.” *

Before I start quoting, I did change one thing. Instead of mentioning the product that my friend is involved in promoting, I used the example of an iPad.

1st Email:

With regard to the article, the difference comes from the interplay between form and function, concept and real-world benefit. The closer a once sci-fi invention comes to becoming a reality, the less interested we become as a whole. This is because the natural tendency of inventors and early adopters (those that then influence the rest of us) are to prefer concepts over specs. But the closer an invention comes to becoming reality, the more emphasis shifts from concept to specs. I explained this in “Introducing The Product Flip Cycle, The New Product Life-Cycle Model.”

And the 2nd Email:

Once a product “lands” in reality (i.e., once the release date has passed), and even during the process of descent to reality (i.e., as the release date approaches) the job of a marketer becomes more difficult. The more the concept behind the product enters reality within the vessel of the product, the more friction there is (as the public ascertains whether this particular product is an appropriate vessel for the concepts/ideas that originally made headlines). For instance, even though the next iPad may still be months away from being released, the moment that news became leaked that it’s thinner, faster, etc… our attraction immediately shifts over to the new iPad. Even if the present version only came out last week.

 

I explained this in what I called the “Apple Turnaround Series” on my site if you are interested. This is also why the most exciting lectures present at most 3-4 ideas. Aside from the capacity of the human mind, when marketing a concept, the less details the better. But when selling something that is already available, then the more details the better … e.g., product reviewers focus on the details not on the concepts. But the marketer’s job starts way before the release date and product reviews.

Another Happy Ending

I don’t always write about it, but this sort of things happens fairly often. A few months ago a scientist contacted us excitedly because a new ground-breaking discovery of his perfectly corroborated with one of our meditations.  Again the way to stay level headed and focused throughout is that while we may have been the conduits for presenting these meditations, the ideas belong to God not us.

The miraculous are all part of a day’s work.

* This is just one of many articles that recently came up in my technology news feed. I encourage those interested in the subject to research further.