GUINEA PIG B - The 56 year experiment

Guinea Pig B

R Buckminster Fuller

Critical Path Publishing (2008)

This is the first book by Bucky that I have managed to finish.  Before I congratulate myself, this book was first published as the introduction to “Inventions - the Patented Works of R Buckminster Fuller” (1983).  So what I have done is merely finished reading the introduction to one of Bucky’s books.

As the title and subtitle ‘The 56 year experiment’, of the book suggests it is about Bucky’s experiment “to discover what, if anything, an unknown, moneyless individual, with a dependent wife and newborn child, might be able to do effectively on behalf of all humanity that could not be accomplished by great nations, great religions or private enterprise, no matter how rich or powerfully armed.”

In the more than half a century this experiment was being documented until then, Bucky had to expand his knowledge a great deal and unlearn a great deal more.

As can be expected, I ended this first read wondering what I had actually read, but for now I’ll just reflect on this: “...the fact that we are designed to be born naked, helpless and ignorant is, I feel, a very important matter.  ...we are quite clearly designed to be inexorably driven to learn only by trial and error.  ...that being the only way ...‘how’ we can take advantage of what we have learned from our mistakes.” (from Page 22)

And I just love the way Bucky ends it with, “I hope this book will prove to be an encouraging example of what the little, average human being can do if you have the absolute faith in the eternal cosmic intelligence we call God.”

If you are interested in reading Bucky, this would be a good book to start with.  I have not seen the book at the stores and had to order it from Borders at Berjaya Times Square.  It cost RM50.40 including shipping charges and I had to wait about 6 weeks for it, but it was well worth the wait, and it is money well spent.

P.S.  The book contains a listing of all of Bucky’s patents and honorary doctorate citations.