a16z Podcast Technologies & Threads Through the Fabric of Our Lives
Feb 21, 2022
Virginia Postrel, author of "The Fabric of Civilization", explores how textiles shape human history and technology. She delves into the unseen connections between fabric innovation and technological advancements throughout history. The conversation highlights how textiles influence commerce, mathematics, and even early computing. Postrel also examines modern knitting techniques and the environmental implications of dyeing practices. Ultimately, she portrays textiles as a vital part of cultural identity and storytelling across civilizations.
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Disappearing Technologies
- The most profound technologies are those that disappear, becoming integral to everyday life.
- Textiles, like ubiquitous computing, exemplify this by being so essential we rarely notice them.
Textile Amnesia
- We experience "textile amnesia" due to the abundance of textiles in modern life.
- This parallels how technology becomes invisible as it becomes cheaper and more readily available.
Revolutions of Fiber and Food
- The agricultural revolution was as much about fiber as it was about food.
- The industrial revolution significantly reduced the cost of textiles, similar to how technology costs decrease today.
