The companion book, produced by the video’s producer John R. McLaughlin, reveals another aspect of the Silicon Valley network that I don’t recall being mentioned in the broadcast: “It’s no coincidence that much of the great rock and roll music of the 1960s and 1970s emanated fro mthe sons and daughters of the Silicon Valley work force: The Grateful Dead, Santana, Pablo Cruise, Jefferson Airplane….Creedence Clearwater…Fleetwood Mac, and more. The affluence of the Valley and a sense of urgency, coupled with youth’s rejection of tradition, were primary factors that led to the formation and success of these music groups.”

The author attributes that sense of urgency, pervading the 20th century, to events like the 1918 flu epidemic, World Wars I and II, and the threat of nuclear annihilation, and compares their influence to that of the Black Death, the plague that occurred at the onset of the European Renaissance.

I became interested in the question of whether such a renaissance could ever occur in Ithaca (no less than Cleveland!), with Cornell as its nucleus. There are parallels between the philosophies of Ezra Cornell and Leland Stanford, and the universities are quite comparable. A remarkable amount of technological innovation has arisen here in Ithaca. Because Ithaca is so small, its social network entails few degrees of separation, which should encourage the establishment of research and business ties. Of course there are differences (and not just the weather), but just as with Cleveland it is worth asking what it would really take to bring about such a renaissance here in Ithaca.

Reference: “The Making of Silicon Valley: A One Hundred Year Renaissance”, edited by Ward Winslow and published by the Santa Clara Valley Historical Association, 1995.