Dante Alighieri

Nov

2021

Dante’s Comedìa and Our Comprehensivity

Our comprehensivity is our facility for comprehensive thinking and action. One way to build our understanding of comprehensive practice is to look for precursors in historical works. This resource will examine the comprehensive ideas used by Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) in his great works La Vita Nuova and the Comedìa (more commonly known as The Divine Comedy even though Dante never used that title).

Since January 2021 The Greater Philadelphia Thinking Society and 52 Living Ideas have organized group explorations of Dante’s greatest works to commemorate the septicentennial of his death seven centuries ago. The project has been organized through the web page Reading Dante in 2021 where many learning aides including two free on-line video courses were listed to support participants of the project. This resource surveys ideas for deepening our understanding of the practice, values, and history of comprehensive inquiry and action that might be highlighted by participating in a project exploring Dante’s great works.

Continue reading →

Oct

2021

Chronofiles: Data Mining Your Life for Comprehensive Thinking

Many of Bucky’s essays (“Bucky” is the affectionate name for Buckminster Fuller) provide a window through which we may further glimpse his approach to comprehensive thinking. To iterate more deeply into his comprehensive thinking this resource examines Bucky’s short 5-page essay “Man With A Chronofile” published on 1 April 1967 in “Saturday Review”. We recommend you read that essay for context before continuing.

Continue reading →

Jun

2021

June 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Since the April 26th update, Comprehensivist Wednesdays has organized six events. This update documents two forthcoming events and collects resources including event descriptions, video, and essays from the ten most recent past events.

Three Forthcoming Events

In order to RSVP to attend these events, you must join either the 52 Living Ideas meetup or the Greater Philadelphia Thinking Society meetup. Joining either group will require joining Meetup.com which is a free on-line service with strong privacy controls. Once you are a member, you can RSVP to join the event from the link to its Event Page.

Wed 30 Jun 2021 9PM (New York time): Bring Your Most Interesting Topics & Questions to Discuss (Event at Thinking Society)
Wed 7 Jul 2021 9PM (New York time): TBD
Sun 11 Jul 2021 5PM (New York time): The Quest to Purge Vices in the center of Dante’s Comedìa: Purgatorio 12-22 (Event at Thinking Society)
Wed 14 Jul 2021 9PM (New York time): Comprehensivism in the Islamic Golden Age (Event at Thinking Society)

The 11 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

28 April 2021: Your Polymath/Comprehensivist Experience: Heroes & Insights (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 52m): Your Polymath/Comprehensivist Experience, Insights & Heroes

2 May 2021: Towards Lucifer’s Icy Lair – Fraud and Treachery in Inferno XXIII-XXXIV (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (1h 59m): Dante’s Inferno: Towards Lucifer’s Icy Lair – Fraud and Treachery

5 May 2021: Is Taoism Comprehensivist? What does Eastern Thought offer Polymaths? (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Other event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 5m): Is Taoism Comprehensivist? What does Eastern Thought offer Polymaths?
12 May 2021: How To Explore The Future (and Why) with CJ Fearnley (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Essay on “How To Explore The Future (and Why)”
- Video (1h 52m): How To Explore The Future (and Why)
19 May 2021: Consciousness and Approximations: What makes “Us”? (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 6m): Consciousness and Approximations: What makes “Us”?
26 May 2021: “Language as Interpretation” as a Tool for Comprehensivism (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 58m): “Language as Interpretation” a Conversation
2 Jun 2021: Speaking & Listening; Reading & Writing (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 3m): Speaking & Listening; Reading & Writing
6 Jun 2021: Dante’s Ascent of Mount Purgatory: Cleansing From Vice. Purgatorio I-XI (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (1h 31m): Dante’s Ascent of Mount Purgatory: Cleansing From Vice. Purgatorio I-XI
9 Jun 2021: “Redressing The Crises of Ignorance” with CJ Fearnley (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
- Essay on “Redressing The Crises of Ignorance”
- Video (2h 42m): Redressing The Crises of Ignorance
16 Jun 2021: The Networked Brain (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)
23 Jun 2021: Bring Topics & Questions You Find Most Interesting to Breakout Room Extravaganza (Event at 52 Living Ideas) (Event at Thinking Society)

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Comprehensivist Wednesdays is an on-going series of weekly events to foster the art of comprehensivity, our inclination to integrate all our sources of learning so as to better comprehend the world and how it works. The idea of comprehensivity may best be captured by a quote from Buckminster Fuller’s book “Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth”: “wanting to understand all and put everything together”. Although it is impossible to fully achieve by any one human being, it is our conviction that the aspiration of comprehensivity opens new worlds of learning that may not be possible through other approaches. In addition, a citizenry with adequate numbers of practitioners of comprehensivity may be more aware, connected, and able to address planetary challenges.

The series is being organized by emcee Shrikant Rangnekar of 52 Living Ideas in collaboration with CJ Fearnley of Collaborating for Comprehensivism and the Greater Philadelphia Thinking Society. Here are three playlists of past events:

Collaborating for Comprehensivism is an emerging initiative to energize humanity’s collective intelligence through group conversations that step-by-step compose ever broader and deeper and more integrated understandings of our worlds and its peoples.

Mailing List

To receive a weekly update about forthcoming events, please submit a request to join the “Collaborating for Comprehensivism” announcements-only mailing list.

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

May

2021

How To Explore The Future (and Why)

Futures are our ideas about the future. Futures provide another way for us to assemble and eventually integrate broadly informed multi-perspectival views of our worlds; futures can help us foster our comprehensivity. Moreover, futures can help us better create the future we would desire. This resource will interpret, expand upon, and contextualize the exquisite presentation “Exploring Alternative Futures” by the brilliant young futurist Angela Oguntala.

Continue reading →

Apr

2021

April 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Since the March 8th update, Comprehensivist Wednesdays has organized six events. This update documents two forthcoming events and collects resources including event descriptions, video, and essays from the ten most recent past events.

Three Forthcoming Events

Wed 28 Apr 2021 9PM (New York time): Your Polymath/Comprehensivist Experience: Heroes & Insights (event at Thinking Society)
Sun 2 May 2021 5-7PM (New York time): Towards Lucifer’s Icy Lair – Fraud and Treachery in Inferno XXIII-XXXIV (event at Thinking Society)
Wed 14 May 2021 9PM (New York time): Wed 14 May 2021 9PM (New York time): How To Explore The Future (and Why) with CJ Fearnley (event at Thinking Society)

The 8 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

10 March 2021: Art as a Healing Agent with Dr Rick Lippin (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 52m): Art as a Healing Agent
17 March 2021: Rethinking Change and Evolution with CJ Fearnley (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Essay on “Rethinking Change and Evolution”
- Video (1h 4m): Rethinking Change and Evolution
24 March 2021: Using Neuroscience: Framing our intuition of ⍲ℝᛠ (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 14m): Art & Neuroscience
31 March 2021: What Have You Learned Recently? 5 minute Talks & Discussions (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 3m): 5 Minute Lightening Talks: What Have You Learnt Recently?
4 April 2021: Inferno Cantos XII–XXII: Adventures in Hell: Into the Circles of Violence & Fraud (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society):
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (2h 27m): Dante’s Inferno: Adventures in Hell: Into the Circles of Violence & Fraud
7 April 2021: Come Discuss Marshall McLuhan’s Ideas (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 6m): Discussing Marshall McLuhan’s Ideas
14 April 2021: How to Create That-Which-Is-Not-Yet with CJ Fearnley (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Essay on “How to Create That-Which-Is-Not-Yet”
- Video (1h 41m): How to Create That-Which-Is-Not-Yet
21 April 2021: What does a thought look like, within the mind? (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 31m): What does a thought look like, within the Brain?

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Comprehensivist Wednesdays is an on-going series of weekly events designed to foster the art of comprehensivity, the state or quality of considering with ever increasing depth and breadth more and more of Humanity’s great traditions of inquiry, more and more of Humanity’s communicated experiences that comprise Buckminster Fuller’s notion of Universe, and more and more of the Ethnosphere (Wade Davis’ cultural analogue of the biosphere). Buckminster Fuller described the approach as “macro-comprehensive and micro-incisive”.

Collaborating for Comprehensivism is an emerging initiative to energize humanity’s collective intelligence through group conversations that facilitate incrementally the formation of ever broader and deeper and more integrated understandings of our worlds and its peoples.

Mailing List

To receive a weekly update about forthcoming events, please submit a request to join the “Collaborating for Comprehensivism” announcements-only mailing list.

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Apr

2021

How to Create That-Which-Is-Not-Yet

To develop our comprehensivity, our interest in broadly and deeply understanding our worlds and its peoples, we actively consider the learning of other traditions, traditions that may seem very strange to us. When we explore these kinds of resources, we may come across ideas that puzzle or intrigue us. The practicing comprehensivist will, from time-to-time, want to linger to explore a line of thought and some questions that arose in a prior exploration. This resource will exemplify such a follow-up exploration that extends our previous examination of change as ongoing genesis, ongoing creation. A key motivating issue for this continuation will be how we create that-which-is-not-yet. Many of these ideas are adapted from the 2012 book “The Design Way” by Harold G. Nelson and Erik Stolterman.

Continue reading →

Mar

2021

March 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Since the January 25th update, Comprehensivist Wednesdays has organized six events. This update documents two forthcoming events and collects resources including event descriptions, video, and essays from the ten most recent past events.

Two Forthcoming Events

Wed 10 Mar 2021 9PM (New York time): Art as a Healing Agent with Dr Rick Lippin (event at Thinking Society)
Wed 17 Mar 2021 9PM (New York time): Rethinking Change and Evolution: How is Genesis Ongoing? with CJ Fearnley (Not Yet Posted)

The 10 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

27 January 2021: Destruction & Creation: A Method of Thinking by John Boyd (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 25m): John Boyd & OODA Loop: Destruction & Creation: A Method of Thinking
3 February 2021: Ignorance & Questions (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 44m): Embracing Ignorance & Asking Questions
7 February 2021: Intrapersonal Diversity in Polymaths with Dr. Angela
Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas)
- Video (1h 34m): Intrapersonal Diversity in Polymaths
7 February 2021: Dante’s La Vita Nuova (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (2h 12m): Dante’s La Vita Nuova (The New Life)
10 February 2021: Thoughts on CHANGE from 103 Great Ideas (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 35m): Thoughts on Change: 103 Great Ideas
17 February 2021: Mistake Mystique in Learning and in Life (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Essay on “Mistake Mystique in Learning and in Life”
- Video (1h 39m): Buckminster Fuller: Mistake Mystique in Learning and in Life
24 February 2021: Understanding Us 2: Core Concepts of Neuroscience (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (2h 3m): Understanding Us: Core Concepts in Neuroscience 2
2 March 2021: Comprehensivist Ideas You Have Found Most Useful: Connecting the Dots (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society)
- Video (1h 58m): Comprehensivist Ideas People Have Found Most Useful: Connecting the Dots
7 March 2021: Polymathy & Authenticity with Yasuhiko Genku Kimura & Dr Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas)
- Video (1h 59m): Authenticity: Courage to be Yourself with Yasuhiko Genku Kimura
7 March 2021: From the Gates of Hell to the City of the Damned (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society):
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (1h 50m): Dante: Divine Comedy: From the Gates of Hell to the City of the Damned

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

To receive a weekly update about forthcoming events, please submit a request to join the “Collaborating for Comprehensivism” announcements-only mailing list.

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Jan

2021

January 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Since the December 29th update, Comprehensivist Wednesdays has organized six events. This update documents four forthcoming events and collects resources including event descriptions, video, and essays from the six most recent past events.

Four Forthcoming Events

Wed 27 January 2021 9PM (New York time): Destruction & Creation: A Method of Thinking by John Boyd (Event Page at Thinking Society).
Wed 3 February 2021 9PM (New York time): Ignorance & Questions (Event Page at Thinking Society). Exploring Stuart Firestein work on science and ignorance.
Sun 7 February 2021 9PM (New York time): Dante’s “La Vita Nuova”: Reading Dante in 2021 (Event Page at Thinking Society). Check out the companion page Reading Dante in 2021.
Wed 10 February 2021 9PM (New York time): Thoughts on CHANGE from 103 Great Ideas (Event Page at Thinking Society).

The Six Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

30 December 2020: What Will You Be Exploring in 2021? (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
6 January 2021: Come Celebrate 700 Years of Dante (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Reading Dante in 2021
- Video (1h 42m): Dante: Celebrating 700 Years
10 January 2021: “The Power of Polymathy” with Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas).
- Video (1h 38m): Power of Polymathy
13 January 2021: “The Inductive Attitude: The Moral Basis of Science” with CJ Fearnley (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Exploring George Pólya’s epistemic virtue for learning from experience and its implications for comprehensivism.
- Essay on “The Inductive Attitude: The Moral Basis of Science”
- Video (1h 24m): George Pólya on The Inductive Attitude
20 January: Neuroscience: A Child’s Mind (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Video (1h 12m): Child’s Brain: Developing Brain’s LifeCycle — Neuroscience
24 January 2021: Paradoxes of Polymathy with Dr. Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas).
- Video (1h 34m): Paradoxes of Polymathy

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

To receive a weekly update about forthcoming events, please submit a request to join the “Collaborating for Comprehensivism” announcements-only mailing list.

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Dec

2020

December 2020 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Since the November 23th update, Comprehensivist Wednesdays has organized eight events. This update documents three forthcoming events and collects resources including event descriptions, video, and essays from the seven most recent past events.

Three Forthcoming Events

Wed 30 December 2020 9PM (New York time): What Will You Be Exploring in 2021? (Event Page at Thinking Society). Come share your plans with others. Each attendee will get 5 minutes to talk about any field they are exploring or are planning to explore.
Wed 6 January 2021 9PM (New York time): Event on the Legacy of Dante Alighieri (1265–1321). 2021 is the 7th centenary celebration for the legacy that Dante bequeathed us on his death. Event details are not yet available, but you can check out the companion page Reading Dante in 2021.
Wed 13 January 2021 9PM (New York time): The Inductive Attitude: A Moral Basis for Science and Comprehensivism. Exploring George Pólya’s ideas about plausible reasoning and induction as a moral basis for science and then wondering if the ideas can be extended for comprehensivism.

The Eight Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

25 November 2020: Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Exploring David Epstein’s bestseller “Range” about what amounts to the comprehensivist approach.
- Video (2h 30m): Range by David Epstein
29 November 2020: “The Ethos of a Modern Day Polymath” with Dr Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas).
- Video (25m): Michael Ferguson Interview
- Video (1h 17m): Polymath Ethos with Michael Ferguson and Angela Cotellessa
2 December 2020: “Lessons from Interviews with Polymaths” with Dustin Miller (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Video (2h 10m): Polymaths: Dozen Interviews in One
9 December 2020: Understanding Us: Core Concepts in Neuroscience (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Video (2h 40m): Understanding Us: Core Concepts in Neuroscience
13 December 2020: “Polymaths in Organization” with Chris Foltz and Dr. Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas).
- Video (1h 46m): Polymaths in Organization with Chris Foltz
16 December 2020: The Value of Multiple Working Hypotheses with CJ Fearnley (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Exploring T. C. Chamberlin’s epistemic virtue for the learning of the investigator, the student, the citizen, and the comprehensivist. The Value of Multiple Working Hypotheses
- Essay on The Value of Multiple Working Hypotheses
- Video (1h 29m): Value of Multiple Working Hypotheses
23 December: How to be a Super Ager (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas) (Event Page at Thinking Society).
- Video (2h 10m): How to be a Super Ager
27 December 2020: Future of Work with Angela Cotellessa (Event Page at 52 Living Ideas).
- Video (2h 3m): Future of Work

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

To receive a weekly update about forthcoming events, please submit a request to join the “Collaborating for Comprehensivism” announcements-only mailing list.

Dante Alighieri

Dante’s Comedìa and Our Comprehensivity

Chronofiles: Data Mining Your Life for Comprehensive Thinking

June 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Three Forthcoming Events

The 11 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

How To Explore The Future (and Why)

April 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Three Forthcoming Events

The 8 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

How to Create That-Which-Is-Not-Yet

March 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Two Forthcoming Events

The 10 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

January 2021 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Four Forthcoming Events

The Six Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

December 2020 Update on Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Three Forthcoming Events

The Eight Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Recent News

Recent Comments

Archives

Three Forthcoming Events

The 11 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Three Forthcoming Events

The 8 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Two Forthcoming Events

The 10 Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Four Forthcoming Events

The Six Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Three Forthcoming Events

The Eight Most Recent Past Events including video links and essays

About Comprehensivist Wednesdays

Mailing List

Other Comprehensivist Wednesday's Series News Releases

Recent News

Recent Comments

Archives

List of Tags