A series on The Disruptive Dependency Theory -- Part 1
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My series on the Disruptive Dependency Theory commences with this post. I've cut and pasted content from my Teaching Note on the Disruptive Dependency Theory into this blog post. As a result, there are some minor indentation and formatting errors. The reader is requested to please ignore these minor deviations from the norm.
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Title:
The name "Niall Ferguson", and Thoughts on ChatGPT and Writing History Using ChatGPT -Part 1 (including the Disruptive Dependency Theory)
This section is the Abstract for a Teaching Document that introduces Disruptive Dependency Theory
The Disruptive Dependency Theory posits that the global system can be understood through the dichotomy of "core" and "periphery" nations. The "core" represents a group of powerful countries—including the United States, China, Russia, France, and the United Kingdom—while the "periphery" consists of weaker states. The set of states that should be considered the "periphery" cannot be established in a mathematically conclusive sense but certainly small nations, such as the island nations of Vanuatu, Togo, Jamaica, and Antigua & Barbuda belong to the periphery. Since the end of World War II, this core-periphery relationship has been stabilized by economic models and frameworks that rely on enduring assumptions about global power dynamics. Core nations exert influence over periphery nations through a combination of political, economic, social, cultural, and technological strategies. These mechanisms ensure the perpetuation of existing power imbalances while shaping the global landscape. Additionally, on a humorous note (further explored in slides accompanying the Teaching Document), I explore the provocative idea of whether historian Niall Ferguson can be considered an early, human counterpart to AI-driven content generation (e.g., ChatGPT). While I argue that his conclusions should not be fully trusted, his prose remains grammatically sound.
DISCUSSION
The name “Niall Ferguson” has two parts: the name “Niall” and the name “Ferguson”. Niall is a male given name of Irish origin. The original meaning of the name is unknown, but popular modern sources have suggested that it means "champion" (derived from the Old Irish word niadh). The name “Ferguson” is an Anglicization of the Scots Gaelic
“Macfhearghus", a patronymic form of
the personal name Fergus which translates as son of the angry (one).
A photograph of Queen Victoria, Queen of
the "United" Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Are you ready? Brace yourselves: Niall Ferguson is actually a "wetware" early edition, Homo Sapiens-genes based version of ChatGPT. I know, I know, it's shocking. But hear me out: both have a tendency to ramble on about things they don't really understand, both have questionable accuracy,
and both have
a knack for
using big words
to sound smart.
So maybe Niall's
parents were onto something when they named him. And while he may not be the champion of the world like ChatGPT, we can still appreciate his...uh, valiant efforts to write history. I mean, sure, he's a bit undereducated, but let's not let that stop us from calling him a "champion historian" or even an "international man of history", right?
