We need to let our children grow up to face the world armed with knowledge, with much more knowledge than we ourselves had at their age. It is scary, but the alternative is worse.
Daniel DennettRead
Wherever there is a design that is highly successful in a broad range of similar environments, it is apt to emerge again and again, independently - the phenomenon known in biology as convergent evolution. I call these designs 'good tricks.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
Great designs in nature often reappear independently in similar contexts, a principle known as convergent evolution.
The quote by Daniel Dennett suggests that certain successful designs arise repeatedly across different contexts due to their inherent effectiveness, much like the biological principle of convergent evolution where different species develop similar traits in response to similar challenges. He refers to these effective designs as 'good tricks,' highlighting the idea that useful solutions tend to recur in various forms across nature and invention.
Themes
DesignConvergent EvolutionBiologySuccessNature
In practice
Example use cases
During a talk on innovation, one could use this quote to illustrate how effective solutions surface across various fields.
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