There is a line in Meditations where Marcus says we can’t quench understanding unless we put the insights that compose it. In other words, it’s a two way street.

The big shift in media is that technology has blurred the line between creator and customer. With the basic software that comes on a mac I can take something that was previously only consumable and make it into something else that can, in turn, be consumed again. That’s the notion of a “prosumer.”

So how can anyone expect to get anywhere on the internet without participating? You cannot quench understanding unless you put out the insights that compose it. Prosumption is incredibly easy. Wikipedia, del.icio.us, messageboards, StumbleUpon are all in desperate need of contributions. And more than that, they’ll help you do the things you do already. In one capacity or another, I get paid to use all of them.

More than that, as a species that learns by doing, you can’t possibly develop to the fullest through absorption alone.