Neal Stephenson responds with wit and humor
6 hours ago
- - Neal Stephenson's Slashdot interview was praised for his wit, humor, and ability to engage with trolls and complex questions alike.
- - On whether hacking tools should be protected by the Second Amendment, Stephenson argued they are better covered by the First Amendment, noting practical difficulties in classifying code as weapons and possible international side effects.
- - He discussed the original intent of the Second Amendment (flintlocks, militia) and the narrow judicial interpretation it has received compared to the First Amendment.
- - Stephenson distinguished between 'Dante' writers (supported by patronage, literary) and 'Beowulf' writers (market-driven, commercial), acknowledging the system is unfair and makes no sense, yet explaining its historical and economic logic.
- - He recounted an anecdote where a conference organizer asked where he teaches, illustrating how genre writers are often viewed as outsiders in literary circles.
- - On the future of publishing and copyright, he predicted that electronic distribution via Creative Commons is not a fad but will coexist with traditional models, much like brick-and-mortar bookstores survived online retail.
- - He echoed Jaron Lanier's view that while hardware improves, software is often flawed, and without good software, powerful hardware is just a complicated space heater.
- - Stephenson expressed skepticism that money and monetary systems will fundamentally change, regarding them as constants rather than variables.
- - He shared stories about travel, including an anecdote about a tribe in the Sahara with rifles, which sparked humor about Second Amendment debates and Swiss gun laws.
- - The interview also touched on his love of intelligent people, his own writing process, and his platform of choice, Mathematica, which he uses for fun and exploration.