In the 19th and 20th centuries,  societies were shaped and molded by philosophers and the beaujouis class. In 2010, the technologists and the "public" have taken reign - or so it seems.

During the earlier days of the internet, experts cited the 1% rule which proposes that more people will "lurk" in a virtual community than actually participate. Specifically, the theory states that "1% of people create content, 9% edit or modify that content, and 90% view the content without contributing." The theory, however, fails to include the number of people that  cannot access virtual spheres because of age, poverty, technophobia, etc. What begins to emerge is a clear, shocking picture of a reality that is hidden by first world assumptions: Everyone is on the net and everyone is equally represented. In fact, the internet is still just as elitis as the real world.

The difference, however, is that the current technological elite fights relentlessly and sincerely to close that gap.

The Web Only Amplifies Our Humanity

In a post web 2.0 world, I highly suspect that the "content creators" to "content consumer" ratio is still imbalanced. However, the 1% rule may not really reflect the nature of the internet, but rather reflect the nature of our species.

Theories similar to the 1% rule exist in other fields. In statistics, the Pareto Principle, or the 80-20 rule, states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. In economics, you find the idea of wealth condensation. Additionally,  the principle of least effort, which is embraced by numerous fields, states that people will choose the path of least resistance or effort.

Channeling Nietzsche, these theories seem to imply that in fact we are herd animals, where the majority seem to be okay with following, while a small percentage "lead." Our human nature and instincts are only "amplified" through technology. Power structures may have shifted to individuals that posses different type of skills and, in many ways, technonology has allowed those structures to be more accessible but, at the end of the day, a glass ceiling still exists that affects the "traditional" disempowered groups. Additionally, an individual still needs the same traditional tools to be part of that power structure: education/knowledge, money, networks, power, communications skills.

What makes this part of our human history different, however, is that power is being taken by a group of highly intelligent individuals that have more altruistic intentions that are not neccesarrily motivated by money and greed. 

The Geek Era

It seems logical to think that if main stream cutlure is being transformed by web culture, that this 1%  is significantly responsible for these changes.  In some regard, their ethics, perspectives and culture have infiltrated the mainstream.  While more tools are available to empower non-technical, normal users, this 1% is responsible for instigating the cultural changes we are witnessing and, most importantly, influencing our daily information consumption.

I do believe that this web elite is in many ways MUCH more ethical than lets say old skool publishing families because they are motivated by a humanitarian, scientific view of the world. However, any analytical human being should be aware of the common characteristics that one could attribute to this group. I mean, they are affecting how you communicate, what you consider valuable, how you inerpret events and information - and trust me they are.

Logical Utopian View of the World

Above all, the most common charateristic I see is an utopian but logical vision of what the world should be like. Many have been influenced by the sci-fi / fantasy genre, and adhere to the idea that we are one species, and a more equal, intellectual, and civilized world is possible. These are not flakey dreamers that live in a fantasy land, however, these are imaginative people that are results driven. A look at any free culture or open source project will confirm that. They walk the talk, and spend countless hours working on tools that they believe will improve our humanity.

Geniuses Who Solve

The 1% are the geninuses of their communities that have high IQs and may have a hard time accepting  illogical or worthless rules imposed upon them. In fact, they may be seen as as anti-social, but thats the farthest thing from the truth. They are social. They just have a different way to process the world. In many ways, they are puzzle masters who get pleasure in "solving" and, because of this, interact with their surroundings in a very unique way.

Scientific Libertarian

While the 1% can be classified as humanitarian, don't call them liberal or conservative. They are more philosophically "scientific libertarian." They process the world based on facts and research, and are not lead by poltical messaging or traditional party banter (- and believe me, they do their research!) Additionally, they do not see the world in a good vs. bad paradigm, and recognize the sophisticated depth of situations and problems - in fact, thats what they do best. They believe humans should be treated as analtyical individuals that should be allowed to make their own decisions. While they believe that everyone should be guaranteed the same starting point, and work towards makign that happen, they also believe individuals should be held accountable for their actions, either for good or bad. 

International Connection

The 1% are connected virtually. Class, nationality, race do not matter. They find ways to collborate and share based on passion and interest. They create their own language that is heavily influenced by techie expertise, web culture and gaming. Transparency and objectivism is highly valued in communication and representation of self. Since the probability of meeting physically is low (atleast as a group), being honest about who you are online is essential to establishing virtual relationships. And those relationships, and the loyalty shown are real.  

While it seems like I am paiting a picture perfect description, real problems exist in that 1%, such as a lack of women. However, the difference between this power group compared to those of the past, is that they sincerely work to fix those problems. The negatives addressed with this group will be included in another post.

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