On several occasions I have mentioned my having become involved with Medium this past year, the blogging platform developed by Ev Williams. Williams, you may recall, was a co-founder of Blogger in the late 90's and later Twitter.
The elegance and ease of use make Medium popular among users, but especially interesting is the multi-cultural community that has evolved. It has been enjoyable meeting so many new people, sharing one's writing and ideas and getting feedback.
In addition to posting on the forum you may also submit articles and poems to publications that have built followings on Medium. The publications cover all manner of interests, from literature to business and entrepreneurialism. Eric Martin is editor of a publication called Predict, a forward thinking publication to which I have been occasionally contributing. It wasn't till more recently I discovered he has many other facets of his life than merely managing this digital periodical.
A relatively young man, Eric won a competition that made him an instant millionaire. (See link at the end of this interview.) But that was only the first of many features of his life adventure.
EN: You called yourself an amateur futurist. Where did your passion for thinking about the future come from?
Eric Martin: It started with Technology, our family got our first computer when I was 4 or 5, and I've been hooked ever since. In about 6th grade I got interested in programming. Then, over the past 5+ years I've really gotten interested in Artificial Intelligence. In my mind, AI is the single biggest development that will shape the future of technology and the economy, so naturally I think about the future implications of it. A fascination with a computer led to a fascination with computation, which led to a fascination with AI, which leads to a fascination with the future.
EN: What prompted you to start Predict, your publication on Medium about futurism?
EM: I'm interested in future topics, but with Predict, I'm trying to create something where anyone can publish an article about the future. Many publications are very exclusive and only let certain writers in. Predict is the opposite of that. If someone is thinking something about the future and can write it into words, we want to publish it. We are not elitist and I believe that anyone can have an insight into trends and how the future will play out. No one holds magic cards with all of the answers, but any can have an insight that is valuable and turns out to be correct.
EN: Your book Liberation Day is a pretty dramatic response to government overreach. How did government infrastructure become so bloated in the first place?
EM: Quite the question. It's the slow but steady creep of Leviathan, compounding exponentially over 200 years now. In the case of the Roman Republic and Empire it probably started out slower. Unfortunately, not one has successfully created a system to stop the overreach of government. The Constitution would be amazing, if we only followed it.
EN: Politically speaking, you identify fairly strongly with a Libertarian view. Is this something that is fairly common among young people?
EM: I sure wish it was more common! Most young people vote less than older people. I think most young people largely try not to think about politics.
EN: Looking into the future… Do you think we’ll ever see a successful presidential bid by a third party?
EM: We already have, right? Wasn't Lincoln the first Republican when two other parties were entrenched? I think given a long enough timeframe we will see it. In the current state of affairs, a third party could win because people are disillusioned by the old way and because of new means of reaching the masses. In particular, I think an AI could enable a candidate with low funding to win in the future, as long as he's employing it much better than any of his opponents.
EN: What did you go to college for and how did you take an interest in writing?
EM: Good questions! I went to college for Political Science. I would say I don't have an interest in writing, per se, I just feel compelled to write about certain things that I care about, or ideas that I think up because I'm afraid they could be wasted if I don't publish them.
EN: What do you do for a living now?
EM: I'm helping to market an upcoming game of self-awareness... right now I'm helping to run a referral contest for them. Stock options are available to the top 20 referrers. You can learn more here: https://500bcfoundry.com/ and even sign up and compete if you're so inclined.
I work as a contractor remotely.
EN: Taproots looks intriguing. What is your role in this, other than modeling the benefit of a big incentive?
EM: My role is the referral contest team lead, I'm also helping with their social media, their blog, marketing in general, and just trying to improve their product with ideas and critiques here and there.
The company's goal is to help propel the know thyself and mindfulness movement into the mainstream. The movement is already getting there, but by creating a game that rewards users, we hope to make mindfulness a fun experience that also helps people live better, more self-aware lives.
EN: Thank you for sharing.
* * * *
Related Links
Story of an Instant Millionaire
Wal-Mart Deal Makes Overnight Millionaire Even Richer
Liberation Day @ Amazon
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| Eric Martin |
In addition to posting on the forum you may also submit articles and poems to publications that have built followings on Medium. The publications cover all manner of interests, from literature to business and entrepreneurialism. Eric Martin is editor of a publication called Predict, a forward thinking publication to which I have been occasionally contributing. It wasn't till more recently I discovered he has many other facets of his life than merely managing this digital periodical.
A relatively young man, Eric won a competition that made him an instant millionaire. (See link at the end of this interview.) But that was only the first of many features of his life adventure.
EN: You called yourself an amateur futurist. Where did your passion for thinking about the future come from?
Eric Martin: It started with Technology, our family got our first computer when I was 4 or 5, and I've been hooked ever since. In about 6th grade I got interested in programming. Then, over the past 5+ years I've really gotten interested in Artificial Intelligence. In my mind, AI is the single biggest development that will shape the future of technology and the economy, so naturally I think about the future implications of it. A fascination with a computer led to a fascination with computation, which led to a fascination with AI, which leads to a fascination with the future.
EN: What prompted you to start Predict, your publication on Medium about futurism?
EM: I'm interested in future topics, but with Predict, I'm trying to create something where anyone can publish an article about the future. Many publications are very exclusive and only let certain writers in. Predict is the opposite of that. If someone is thinking something about the future and can write it into words, we want to publish it. We are not elitist and I believe that anyone can have an insight into trends and how the future will play out. No one holds magic cards with all of the answers, but any can have an insight that is valuable and turns out to be correct.
EM: Quite the question. It's the slow but steady creep of Leviathan, compounding exponentially over 200 years now. In the case of the Roman Republic and Empire it probably started out slower. Unfortunately, not one has successfully created a system to stop the overreach of government. The Constitution would be amazing, if we only followed it.
EN: Politically speaking, you identify fairly strongly with a Libertarian view. Is this something that is fairly common among young people?
EM: I sure wish it was more common! Most young people vote less than older people. I think most young people largely try not to think about politics.
EN: Looking into the future… Do you think we’ll ever see a successful presidential bid by a third party?
EM: We already have, right? Wasn't Lincoln the first Republican when two other parties were entrenched? I think given a long enough timeframe we will see it. In the current state of affairs, a third party could win because people are disillusioned by the old way and because of new means of reaching the masses. In particular, I think an AI could enable a candidate with low funding to win in the future, as long as he's employing it much better than any of his opponents.
EN: What did you go to college for and how did you take an interest in writing?
EM: Good questions! I went to college for Political Science. I would say I don't have an interest in writing, per se, I just feel compelled to write about certain things that I care about, or ideas that I think up because I'm afraid they could be wasted if I don't publish them.
EM: I'm helping to market an upcoming game of self-awareness... right now I'm helping to run a referral contest for them. Stock options are available to the top 20 referrers. You can learn more here: https://500bcfoundry.com/ and even sign up and compete if you're so inclined.
I work as a contractor remotely.
EN: Taproots looks intriguing. What is your role in this, other than modeling the benefit of a big incentive?
EM: My role is the referral contest team lead, I'm also helping with their social media, their blog, marketing in general, and just trying to improve their product with ideas and critiques here and there.
The company's goal is to help propel the know thyself and mindfulness movement into the mainstream. The movement is already getting there, but by creating a game that rewards users, we hope to make mindfulness a fun experience that also helps people live better, more self-aware lives.
EN: Thank you for sharing.
* * * *
Related Links
Story of an Instant Millionaire
Wal-Mart Deal Makes Overnight Millionaire Even Richer
Liberation Day @ Amazon
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