Book Review: The Book of Adventure by Taizo Son
This is a story where Taizo Son, who is deeply involved in AI businesses, explores why school education might be in trouble as it currently stands, and why school studies are so uninteresting, by engaging in dialogues with various great figures across time and space. Many historical events and figures appear, and their backgrounds are explained, revealing so many things I didn't know. It was a book that made me feel like saying, 'Thank you for letting me come along on this journey.'
A scary point mentioned: becoming a 'slave to machines'.
The very starting point of why education is necessary for ordinary people actually stems from trying to prevent religious wars in Europe. It was disheartening to realize that we have been doing the same thing for hundreds of years.
'Study to become a useful person.' For example, if you become someone who can use various machines, you might be useful in many ways. However, the book points out that while humans originally wanted to reign as 'masters of machines,' our education has turned us into 'machine operators,' which is effectively becoming 'slaves to machines'.
This book doesn't just point that out; it continues to ask questions like, 'Why did it end up this way?' and 'Why did we become a meritocracy?' It took me to a world I didn't know, making me realize I had never really thought about these things before.
A term I learned for the first time: 'Meritocracy'.
The idea that a person's status in society should be determined by their abilities rather than their birth or background.
Studying hard to earn a good salary, feeling happy if you are considered capable and gain status, and feeling unhappy if you are not—this is something I can relate to. Reading this part made me realize that I am trapped within this way of thinking. It was refreshing to see this mindset itself treated not as common sense, but as a subject for questioning.
A term that warmed my heart: 'Appreciation'.
Appreciation apparently has two meanings: 'to admire' and 'to be grateful'.
'Appreciation' is a word that refers to the emotions that well up when encountering something and the entire process of those emotions being born; it can be said to be an attitude that focuses on how 'grateful' (arigatai) it is that something simply 'exists' (aru).
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Both of these forms of appreciation greatly encourage the learner.
If I can cultivate a feeling of gratitude, perhaps I can think for myself about what I should do. I want to start expressing such words myself from now on.
I'd like to read it if I can...