The phone book was a groundbreaking innovation. For the first time, you could actually look up the person you were seeking to reach.

At about the same time, the department store arrived. You could actually have a shot at finding what you were hoping to buy.

TV Guide was, at one time, the most valuable magazine in the US, worth more than any TV network. Directories transform consumption.

Incrementally, slowly then all at once, we’ve multiplied the sorting and directory building of our world. We didn’t notice it happening, but we’ve sorted the people, the ideas, the media, the culture, healthcare, even which lake to go fishing on. Serendipity used to be normal, now it’s rare.

Why stumble when you can look it up?

It’s not simply the extraordinary efficiency of this sort that makes it important. It also represents a different expectation of how the world works.

There’s no place to go look up what to do with that insight, so we’ll have to figure it out as we go.