Is the Past Really Prologue?

The future isn't etched in stone. But it is determined by our actions.

Via Appia at the height of Quarto Miglio, Vincenco Giovannini, 1884 (Wikimedia Commons, public domain)

“The less a man knows about the past and the present, the more insecure must prove to be his judgement of the future.” — Sigmund Freud, 1927

There are days when life comes at you fast.

Days when it feels as if we’re being pummeled with news and developments. It’s hard to keep up—overwhelming, even.

We seem to be living with the results of our constantly evolving technology that is increasingly infringing on humanity. 

Where do we turn?

Dr. Conrad Gessner, a physician, was one of the first people to raise a concern. He was respected by his colleagues and his professionalism made him a serious thinker. 

So when he warned us about the effects of information overload, the world took note. In one of his five books, he described how the modern world overwhelmed people with data and that the human mind would be confused and irreparably damaged if something wasn’t done. 

Today, as we’re in the mi…