Sunday, March 16, 2014

[umkzcilo] Information provenance database

A vague vision of the future: Every purported fact, every statement, every idea you might hear can instantly have its source tracked down by information search tools operating on natural language.  Along with the source, also available are other confirmations, commentary, endorsements, and rejections.

Whether to trust the individuals in the provenance still requires a personal judgment call, but we could imagine a "web of trust" becoming formed. (Inspired by the concept in cryptography.)

Optimistically, the era of myth may soon be over.  Pessimistically, forces too powerful will continue to cause people to hold fast to their beliefs.

Similar previous idea emphasizing the importance of natural language processing.

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