seeing-like-a-state-how-certain-schemes-to-improve-the-human-condition-have-failed

My Linked Notes

• 2021-01-10
  

  In this piece, Venkatesh summarizes the book [[Seeing like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed]], which, in part, examines our propensity to project our own lack of comprehension of a subject or thing, to irrationality of the thing, instead of our own limitations in understanding the thing. In other words, people conclude that their lack of ability to understand a complex thing (like a city) is because it is irrational (often wrong). This results in fantastical failures. Take, for example, [[Things You Should Never Do, Part 1]] (Venkatesh also references this idea at the bottom of the article). Programmers are particularly suited to fall into this trap. We love to talk about how much better we could make a project, if only we could build it from scratch. Often, this is flat out wrong. We ignore the hidden complexities that made the current project such a mess in the first place. For large projects, this mistake is deadly. This problem is even worse when talking about multi-year infrastructure problems, like cities.

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