Synopses & Reviews
andlt;Pandgt;We live with a lot of stuff. The average kitchen, for example, is home to stuff galore, and every appliance, every utensil, every thing, is compound--composed of tens, hundreds, even thousands of other things. Although each piece of stuff satisfies some desire, it also creates the need for even more stuff: cereal demands a spoon; a television demands a remote. Rich Gold calls this dense, knotted ecology of human-made stuff andquot;the Plenitude.andquot; And in this book--at once cartoon treatise, autobiographical reflection, and practical essay in moral philosophy--he tells us how to understand and live with it. Gold writes about the Plenitude from the seemingly contradictory (but in his view, complementary) perspectives of artist, scientist, designer, and engineer--all professions pursued by him, sometimes simultaneously, in the course of his career. andquot;I have spent my life making more stuff for the Plenitude,andquot; he writes, acknowledging that the Plenitude grows not only because it creates a desire for more of itself but also because it is extraordinary and pleasurable to create. Gold illustrates these creative expressions with witty cartoons. He describes andquot;seven patterns of innovationandquot;--including andquot;The Big Kahuna,andquot; andquot;Colonizationandquot; (which is illustrated by a drawing of andquot;The real history of baseball,andquot; beginning with andquot;Play for free in the backyardandquot; and ending with andquot;Pay to play interactive baseball at homeandquot;), and andquot;Stuff Desires to Be Better Stuffandquot; (and its corollary, andquot;Technology Desires to Be Productandquot;). Finally, he meditates on the Plenitude itself and its moral contradictions. How can we in good conscience accept the pleasures of creating stuff that only creates the need for more stuff? He quotes a friend: andquot;We should be careful to make the world we actually want to live in.andquot;andlt;/Pandgt;
Review
Gold displays casual insights such as illustrating the sheer abundance of the plenitude by pointing out the variety of shirts in an audience and the work that went into each and pads this very skinny book with his own goofy cartoons. The result is a fun splash in some of the important ideas behind modern consumption. - < -="" i="" -=""> - Computerworld - < -="" -="">
Review
This is a gem that will shape your way of seeing and thinking about the world forever. Rich was one of the true visionaries of Xerox PARC and this unique book, in both its form and content, provides a window into a brilliant and incredibility imaginative mind at work. < b=""> Alan Kay <>
Review
andquot;This is a gem that will shape your way of seeing and thinking about the world forever. Rich was one of the true visionaries of Xerox PARC and this unique book, in both its form and content, provides a window into a brilliant and incredibility imaginative mind at work.andquot;
--John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of The Social Life of Information
Review
Rich Gold was one of the most creative and unusual minds of our era. His unique vision lives on in this book. - < -="" i="" -=""> - The Morning News - < -="" -="">
Review
This little book, with its simple logic and language and unforgettable, whimsical drawings, will change the way its readers look at the world around them. < b=""> John Seely Brown <> , Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of < i=""> The Social Life of Information <>
Review
"... a wonderful read if you have any interest at all in art or science or design or engineering or creativity or innovation or the morality of our material culture or managing any of those people or processes... Some books are so good that you know you'll read them again, and you know this by the time you finish. With this book, I knew by page 25."
— Computerworld"Gold's nimble mind unpacks the contradictions and consequences of our stuff-clotted world, quoting a friend's warning: "We should eb careful to make the world we actually want to live in.' This is not the traditional anti-materialist rant—and that helps make it a valuable rumination on a prevailing 21st-century condition.
— The Morning News"This little book, with its simple logic and language and unforgettable, whimsical drawings, will change the way its readers look at the world around them."
— Susan Salter Reynolds, LA Times"Gold displays casual insights—such as illustrating the sheer abundance of the plenitude by pointing out the variety of shirts in an audience and the work that went into each—and pads this very skinny book with his own goofy cartoons. The result is a fun splash in some of the important ideas behind modern consumption."
— Publisher's Weekly"This is a gem that will shape your way of seeing and thinking about the world forever. Rich was one of the true visionaries of Xerox PARC and this unique book, in both its form and content, provides a window into a brilliant and incredibility imaginative mind at work."
—John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of The Social Life of Information"Rich Gold was one of the most creative and unusual minds of our era. His unique vision lives on in this book."
—Alan Kay
Review
...a wonderful read if you have any interest at all in art or science or design or engineering or creativity or innovation or the morality of our material culture or managing any of those people or processes...Some books are so good that you know you'll read them again, and you know this by the time you finish. With this book, I knew by page 25. The MIT Press
Review
Gold's nimble mind unpacks the contradictions and consequences of our stuff-clotted world, quoting a friend's warning: 'We should be careful to make the world we actually want to live in.' This is not the traditional anti-materialist rant and that helps make it a valuable rumination on a prevailing 21st-century condition. - < -="" i="" -=""> - Publisher's Weekly - < -="" -="">
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"... a wonderful read if you have any interest at all in art or science or design or engineering or creativity or innovation or the morality of our material culture or managing any of those people or processes... Some books are so good that you know you'll read them again, and you know this by the time you finish. With this book, I knew by page 25." andlt;Iandgt;Computerworldandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press The MIT Press The MIT Press
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"Gold displays casual insightssuch as illustrating the sheer abundance of the plenitude by pointing out the variety of shirts in an audience and the work that went into eachand pads this very skinny book with his own goofy cartoons. The result is a fun splash in some of the important ideas behind modern consumption." andlt;Iandgt;Publisher's Weeklyandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"Gold's nimble mind unpacks the contradictions and consequences of our stuff-clotted world, quoting a friend's warning: "We should eb careful to make the world we actually want to live in.' This is not the traditional anti-materialist rantand that helps make it a valuable rumination on a prevailing 21st-century condition. andlt;Iandgt;The Morning Newsandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"Rich Gold was one of the most creative and unusual minds of our era. His unique vision lives on in this book."andlt;Bandgt;Alan Kay andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"This is a gem that will shape your way of seeing and thinking about the world forever. Rich was one of the true visionaries of Xerox PARC and this unique book, in both its form and content, provides a window into a brilliant and incredibility imaginative mind at work."andlt;Bandgt;John Seely Brown andlt;/Bandgt;, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of andlt;Iandgt;The Social Life of Informationandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press
Review
andlt;Pandgt;"This little book, with its simple logic and language and unforgettable, whimsical drawings, will change the way its readers look at the world around them." andlt;Bandgt;Susan Salter Reynolds andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;Iandgt;LA Timesandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Pandgt;
Review
This is a gem that will shape your way of seeing and thinking about the world forever. Rich was one of the true visionaries of Xerox PARC and this unique book, in both its form and content, provides a window into a brilliant and incredibility imaginative mind at work. < b=""> Alan Kay <>
Review
This little book, with its simple logic and language and unforgettable, whimsical drawings, will change the way its readers look at the world around them. < b=""> John Seely Brown <> , Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of < i=""> The Social Life of Information <>
Synopsis
We live with a lot of stuff. The average kitchen, for example, is home to stuff galore, and every appliance, every utensil, every thing, is compound: composed of tens, hundreds, even thousands of other things. Although each piece of stuff satisfies some desire, it also creates the need for even more stuff: cereal demands a spoon; a television demands a remote. Rich Gold calls this dense, knotted ecology of human-made stuff the "Plenitude." And in this book (at once cartoon treatise, autobiographical reflection, and practical essay in moral philosophy) he tells us how to understand and live with it. Gold writes about the Plenitude from the seemingly contradictory (but in his view, complementary) perspectives of artist, scientist, designer, and engineer; all professions pursued by him, sometimes simultaneously, in the course of his career. " I have spent my life making more stuff for the Plenitude, " he writes, acknowledging that the Plenitude grows not only because it creates a desire for more of itself but also because it is extraordinary and pleasurable to create.
Gold illustrates these creative expressions with witty cartoons. He describes " seven patterns of innovation" --including " The Big Kahuna, " " Colonization" (which is illustrated by a drawing of " The real history of baseball, " beginning with " Play for free in the backyard" and ending with " Pay to play interactive baseball at home" ), and " Stuff Desires to Be Better Stuff" (and its corollary, " Technology Desires to Be Product" ). Finally, he meditates on the Plenitude itself and its moral contradictions. How can we in good conscience accept the pleasures of creating stuff that only creates the need for more stuff? He quotes a friend: "We should be careful to make the world we actually want to live in."
Synopsis
Lessons from and for the creative professions of art, science, design, and engineering: how to live in and with the Plenitude, that dense, knotted ecology of human-made stuff that creates the need for more of itself.
Synopsis
We live with a lot of stuff. The average kitchen, for example, is home to stuff galore, and every appliance, every utensil, every thing, is compound--composed of tens, hundreds, even thousands of other things. Although each piece of stuff satisfies some desire, it also creates the need for even more stuff: cereal demands a spoon; a television demands a remote. Rich Gold calls this dense, knotted ecology of human-made stuff the Plenitude. And in this book--at once cartoon treatise, autobiographical reflection, and practical essay in moral philosophy--he tells us how to understand and live with it.
Synopsis
andlt;Pandgt;Lessons from and for the creative professions of art, science, design, and engineering: how to live in and with the Plenitude, that dense, knotted ecology of human-made stuff that creates the need for more of itself.andlt;/Pandgt;
About the Author
Rich Gold (1950-2003) was an artist, composer, designer, inventor, lecturer, and writer. Equally at home in the worlds of avant-garde art, academia, and business, he worked at various times for Sega, Mattel, and Xerox PARC.