Pimping for Democracy among the Intellectually Promiscuous

Links 2013: An Anti-disciplinary conference for the intellectually promiscuous

Transcript

1. Pimping'for'Democracy'among' the'Intellectually'Promiscuous' @bethnoveck' The'Governance'Lab' www.thegovlab.org' July'22,'2013' '
2. Percentage'of'U.S.'adults'that'have'(a' great'deal'of'confidence)'in'the' presidency'in'2013:'17# Gallup'Poll,'“Confidence'in'InsNtuNons.”'June'2013'
3. How'many'have'a'great'deal'of'trust'in' Congress'in'2013:'10'–'the'lowest'level' since'first'surveyed'in'1973' ' Gallup'Poll,'“Confidence'in'InsNtuNons.”'June'2013'
4. Every'day'in'Washington'is'ElecNon' Day' ' VVPresident'Obama'
5. The'“dysfuncNon'gauge'has'moved' into'the'danger'zone.”' ' Its$Even$Worse$Than$It$Looks$(2013)' Norman'Ornstein'and'Michael'Mann'
6. Percentage'of'general'populaNon' across'25'countries'that'trust' government'to'always'do'what'is'right' in'2012:#43' Gallup'Poll,'“Confidence'in'InsNtuNons.”'June'2013'
7. How'many'Americans'in'2012'have' li]le'or'no'trust'in'the'mass'media'to' report'the'news'fully,'accurately,'and' fairly:'Almost#2/3' Gallup'Poll,'“Confidence'in'InsNtuNons.”'June'2013'
8. How'many'Americans'in'2012'have' li]le'or'no'trust'in'the'mass'media'to' report'the'news'fully,'accurately,'and' fairly:'Almost#2/3…….'In'2006:'1/2'
9. Number'of'voters'in'2012'U.S.' PresidenNal'ElecNon:'133'million' ' Increase'since'2008'elecNon:'2'million'' ' Census.gov,'“The'Diversifying'Electorate—VoNng'Rates'by'' Race'and'Hispanic'Origin'in'2012.”'May'2013.'
10. ' Rules'and'regulaNons'conNnually,'taxes'annually'and'wars' occasionally'remind'[the'ciNzen]'that'he'is'being'swept'along'by' great'drifs'of'circumstance…They'are'managed,'if'they'are' managed'at'all,'at'disNnct'centers,'from'behind'the'scenes,'by' unnamed'powers….No'newspaper'reports'his'environment'so' that'he'can'grasp'it;'no'school'has'taught'him'how'to'imagine'it;' his'ideals,'ofen,'do'not'fit'with'it;'listening'to'speeches,'u]ering' opinions'and'voNng'do'not,'he'finds,'enable'him'to'govern'it.'He' lives'in'a'world'which'he'cannot'see,'does'not'understand'is' unable'to'direct.”'
11. Axelrod?' John'Stewart?' Lenin?'
12. # What’s#Old#is#New#Again# # Rules'and'regulaNons'conNnually,'taxes'annually'and'wars' occasionally'remind'[the'ciNzen]'that'he'is'being'swept'along'by' great'drifs'of'circumstance…They'are'managed,'if'they'are' managed'at'all,'at'disNnct'centers,'from'behind'the'scenes,'by' unnamed'powers….No'newspaper'reports'his'environment'so' that'he'can'grasp'it;'no'school'has'taught'him'how'to'imagine'it;' his'ideals,'ofen,'do'not'fit'with'it;'listening'to'speeches,'u]ering' opinions'and'voNng'do'not,'he'finds,'enable'him'to'govern'it.'He' lives'in'a'world'which'he'cannot'see,'does'not'understand'is' unable'to'direct.”'Walter#Lippmann,#The$Phantom$Public,#1925#
13. Reasons'for'OpNmism'
14. Percent'of'U.S.'adult'internet'users' that'have'gone'online'for'raw'data' about'government'spending'and' acNviNes'in'2010:'40# Rainie'Lee,'and'Aaron'Smith,'Kay'Lehman'Schlozman,'' Henry'Brady,'Sidney'Verba,'Social'Media'and'PoliNcal'Engagement.' Pew'Internet'&'American'Life'Project.'October'19,'2012.'
18. Read'or'download'the'text'of' legislaNon:'22#
19. How'many'Americans'volunteered' through'or'for'an'organizaNon'at'least' once'between'September'2011'and' September'2012:'64.5#million## Bureau'of'Labor'StaNsNcs,'Feb'2013'
21. Reasons'for'OpNmism' •  Tremendous'advances'in'every'field'of' scienNfic'endeavor' •  New'technologies'to'aid'decisionmaking' – Data'sciences' – VisualizaNon' – Social'compuNng' – Social'science'incenNve'insights'(defaults,'nudges,' games,'prizes)'
22. We'Have'the'Opportunity'to'CoVCreate' Governance' •  GeEng#Diverse#Knowledge#In#–'InsNtuNons'seek'input'from' ciNzens'or'experts'to'inform'how'they'make'decisions.'Example:'A' city'asks'those'with'scienNfic'experNse,'acumen'or'insight'to'help' devise'a'be]er'way'to'manage'overflowing'sewers.' •  Pushing#Data#Out#–'InsNtuNons'publish'the'data'they'collect'so'that' ciNzens'can'analyze'and'use'the'data'to'detect'and'solve'problems.' Example:'A'naNonal'government'releases'hospital'safety'records'so' that'professional'and'public'pressure'can'improve'quality'of'care.'' •  DistribuOng#Responsibility#Publicly#–'InsNtuNons'delegate' responsibility'to'ciNzens,'or'enable'ciNzens'to'seek'soluNons' themselves.'Example:''City'residents'use'an'app'to'divide'up' responsibility'for'shoveling'snow,'and'coordinate'with'city' government'so'the'city'can'plan'its'snowVremoval'efforts' efficiently.''
23. Opening'Government:'Requires' ReinvenNng'DemocraNc'InsNtuNons'
24. “There'is'no'sancNty'in'universal'suffrage,'frequent' elecNons,'majority'rule,'congressional'and'cabinet' government.'These'things'are'devices'evolved'in'the' direcNon'in'which'the'current'was'moving,'each'wave' of'which'involved'at'the'Nme'of'its'impulsion'a' minimum'of'departure'from'antecedent'custom'and' law.'The'devices'served'a'purpose;'but'the'purpose' was'rather'that'of'meeNng'exisNng'needs'which'had' become'too'intense'to'be'ignore,'than'that'of' forwarding'the'democraNc'idea.'In'spite'of'all'defects,' they'served'their'own'purpose'well.”' ' John#Dewey,#Public#and#Its#Problems,#1927'
25. But'What'Are'We'Doing'About'It?'
26. Harvard'Law'School'First'Year' Curriculum'2013' •  Civil'Procedure' •  Contracts' •  Criminal'Law' •  Property' •  Torts'
27. Harvard'Law'School'First'Year' Curriculum'1890' •  Civil'Procedure' •  Contracts' •  Criminal'Law' •  Property' •  Torts'
28. The'Horror!'The'Horror!'
29. PoliNcal'Science'Not'Much'Be]er… DeliberaNve'Fundamentalism'
31. “[T]social'sciences'have'stagnated.'They'offer' essenNally'the'same'set'of'academic'departments'and' disciplines'that'they'have'for'nearly'100'years:' sociology,'economics,'anthropology,'psychology'and' poliNcal'science.'This'is'not'only'boring'but'also' counterproducNve,'constraining'engagement'with'the' scienNfic'cuung'edge'and'sNfling'the'creaNon'of'new' and'useful'knowledge.'Such'inerNa'reflects'an' unnecessary'insecurity'and'conservaNsm,'and'helps' explain'why'the'social'sciences'don’t'enjoy'the'same' presNge'as'the'natural'sciences.”' Nicholas'Christakis,'New$York$Times,'July'19,'2013'
32. So'This'is'Cool….Who'is'Here?' ' 1/3'visualizaNon'people' 1/3'economic'complexity' 1/3'network'science'' and'a'lawyer'
33. The'Challenge:'Outdated'Designs' •  In#18th#century#America,'we'needed'to'cohere'a'large' naNon'while,'at'the'same'Nme,'channeling'the'popular' will.'Hence'we'forged'centralized'insNtuNons'where' power'is'concentrated'in'a'handful'of'elite' representaNves'and'circumscribed'by'insNtuNonal' checks'and'balances'and'occasional'elecNons' •  The'centralizaNon'and'professionalizaNon'of' administraNon'in'the'late#19th#and#20th#centuries# were'intended'as'a'way'to'govern'increasingly'large,' industrialized'and'diverse'territories'but'also'as'a' counterbalance'to'corrupt,'crony'capitalism'and'big' machine'city'poliNcs.'We'aspired'to'have'people'with' "degrees,'accreditaNon'and'legiNmacy"'to'run'things.''
34. But'need'to'understand'what'works'
35. I'Have'an'IDEA'for'You'
36. An'IDEA' •  IdenNfy'–'finding'people'with'experNse'who'if' asked'could'help'solve'complex'problems' •  Define'–'defining'skills,'talents,'different'kinds' of'intelligence'that'could'transform'society'' •  Engage'–'collaboraNng'meaningfully'–'either' short'term'(“flash'ciNzenship”)'or'over'the' longer'term'' •  Assess'–'measuring'success'at'governance''
37. Smarter'Governance' •  IdenNfy'V'how'to'find'people'with'a'certain' experNse'who'if'asked'could'help'solve'complex' problems' •  TargeNng'experNse' •  How'to'find'experts?'What'can'we'learn'from' network'sciences?'' –  CredenNaling,'RecommendaNon,'Experience,'SelfV ReporNng?' –  Contributory'vs.'RelaNonal'(Rethinking$Exper:se,' Collins'and'Evans)'
39. By'Contrast'CiNzen'Engagement'is' UndifferenNated'and'Mass'Based'
40. “There'are'no'credenNals'for'experts' such'as'the'Cumbrian'sheep'farmers' or'the'AIDs'acNvists.”'Collins'and' Evans,'Rethinking$Exper:se'
41. An'IDEA' •  Define'–'how'to'define'skills,'talents,'different' kinds'of'intelligence'that'if'managed'well' could'transform'society'' •  What'kind'of'experNse'ma]ers'in'which' problem'solving'contexts?'What'can'we'learn' from'cogniNve'sciences?'
42. Gardener'and'MulNple'Intelligences'
43. By'Contrast'CiNzens'are'“Just'Not'That' Bright”' •  The'head'rules'the'body'poliNc' •  The'aim'of'every'poliNcal'consNtuNon'is,'or' ought'to'be,'first'to'obtain'for'rulers'men'who' possess'most'wisdom'to'discern,'and'most' virtue'to'pursue,'the'common'good'of'the' society”'Madison'Federalist$57' '
44. Tapping'Intelligence'and'ExperNse:' Just'the'Beginnings'
45. An'IDEA' •  Engage'–'how'to'engage'meaningfully'–'either'short' term'(“flash'ciNzenship”)'or'over'the'longer'term'' •  ….Under'what'circumstances'do'crowds'create'more' effecNve'and'legiNmate'insNtuNons?'What'can'we' learn'from'organizaNonal'psych?' •  …How'do'I'“layer”'different'types'of'inputs'to'make' engagement'manageable'and'useful?'What'can'we' learn'from'web'sciences?' •  …How'do'I'use'the'graphical'screen'to'condiNon'public' behavior?'What'can'we'learn'from'visualizaNon?''
47. BETHSIMONENOVECK TALK Solving Public Problems with CROWDSOURCING 10 Using Networked Groups to Expand the Toolkit for Problem Solving
48. An'IDEA' •  Assess'–'how'to'measure'success'as'it'relates' to'governance'' •  ….Big'challenge'is'connecNng'decisionmaking' to'outcomes'rather'than'to'demographics'or' “representaNveness”' •  Depends'first'and'foremost'on'a'belief'that' people'have'knowVhow'and'will'share.'Sadly,' that’s'a'hypothesis'that'needs'proving'if'we' are'to'convince'The'No'Machines.'
49. Test,'Learn,'Adapt:'DemocraNc' Experimentalism'
50. WANTED'
52. “Greater'than'the'tread'of'mighty' armies'is'an'idea'who'Nme'has'come.”' ' Victor'Hugo'