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This is actually a very important principle that science is learning about large systems like evolution and that futurists are learning about anticipating human society: just because a future scenario is plausible doesn't mean we can get there from here.
Kevin Kelly
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Future possibilities may seem realistic, but the path to reach them is often complex and uncertain.

Kevin Kelly's quote emphasizes the distinction between plausibility and feasibility in the context of large systems, such as evolution and societal progress. While we can envision potential future scenarios, the actual journey from our current situation to those futures is fraught with challenges and unpredictabilities, underscoring the need for careful planning and understanding of complexity in order to navigate change effectively.

Themes

FutureChangeEvolutionPossibilityComplexity

In practice

Example use cases

In a motivational speech about innovation and adaptability.

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The way to build a complex system that works is to build it from very simple systems that work.
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