Citizen Share Workshop I
,2015
«The Gift» 17.09. – 25.09.2015
Michael Leube, Ph.D.: «The Anthropology of Giving»
At the dawn of speciation, Homo habilis developed the first artifacts, culture was synonymous with design and the designer was Promethean. Judging from the paleoanthropological and archaeological evidence, the archaic process of ideation, manufacture, distribution and communication of the first gadgets could only have happened through teamwork and a continuous feedback between «designers» and users. We are so good at reasoning on the basis of design from birth onward that it is very likely a genetically evolved adaptation shared by all people. Similarly, the act of giving and receiving has surely been a great advantage for the harmony of any tribal organization from distant times to now.
Bernhard Müller Hug, M.Sc.: «The Bitcoin Paradigm»
The spirit of open-source software and creative commons content is different from what we are largely used to. It tears down any usage restrictions from the very beginning and thus results in intellectual gifts to everyone. Access to education, information and books was strictly controlled for very long stretches of history. With the help of the printing press and later the Internet, this drastically changed in many places, and in many cases against the will of governments or other large organizations. What currently remains in central control worldwide are the currencies, which we use for trade. Currencies serve as reference for the valuation of goods, services and other currencies. This has larger implications then what meets the eye.
