The story of how human were banished from the garden of Eden is an example of how small disicions can have a huge consequence. God created the Garden of Eden and filled it with many trees bearing fruits. He created all the animals, including Adam and Eve the first humans. He told Adam and Eve that they could eat the fruit of any tree, except for the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The two humans promised and lead a happy life free from pain and turmoil. However, one day, A snake convinced Eve to take a fruit from the Forbidden tree. Although eating the fruit was a small decision, it would soon have a huge consequence. Eve then convinced Adam to take a bite as well. Right after eating the fruit, they were able to separate right and wrong, but more importantly, they began to age and would die. Because the two disobeyed God, they were forced to leave the Garden of Eden and introduced hardship and toil to humans. The act of taking and eating the fruit was small and seemed insignificant at the time, but small acts can lead to huge consequences.
The essay by Alfred E. Kahn published in 1966 talked about how small decisions could lead to undesired outcomes. His inspiration for this essay came form the Ithaca Railway. At that time, the railway was the only reliable way to get in and out of the city and was always open, even in
unfavorable weather. However when a new airline was introduced, plus a bus company, people began making the decision to take the bus and ride the airplane to get out of the city. Less and less people
were using the railway, and thus it had to close. Perhaps no one saw taking the bus as a huge decision, and in fact, it is not, but these small decisions accumulated overtime causing a major means of transport to shut down.
A collection of small decisions were the cause of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The ship was said to be unsinkable and the crew did not pay as much attention to the safety of the passengers, therefore there were less lifeboats, only enough for about half of the passengers, therefore many died in the freezing waters. The captain of the ship, Edward J. Smith wanted to beat the maiden voyage of the Olympic, the Titanic's sister ship and the Titanic was sailing full speed in an area known to have icebergs. If the captain decided to go slower, the ship may have been able to maneuver around the iceberg. Also, the binoculars were locked, and the lookouts did not have access to them during the fateful night, making it harder for them to spot icebergs. Perhaps if the binoculars were not locked up, the lookouts would be able to spot the iceberg.
Little decisions do have a large scale impact of the future. Looking at each decision individually, perhaps the decision would seem insignificant and not a big deal, but perhaps when looking at small, everyday decisions, we need to look at them as a whole, rather than individually. As the example of the Ithaca Railway and the sinking of the Titanic, each little event contributes to a larger and maybe more important consequence. Little decisions, unlike what many people think is many times the beginning of a great event.
unfavorable weather. However when a new airline was introduced, plus a bus company, people began making the decision to take the bus and ride the airplane to get out of the city. Less and less people
were using the railway, and thus it had to close. Perhaps no one saw taking the bus as a huge decision, and in fact, it is not, but these small decisions accumulated overtime causing a major means of transport to shut down.
A collection of small decisions were the cause of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The ship was said to be unsinkable and the crew did not pay as much attention to the safety of the passengers, therefore there were less lifeboats, only enough for about half of the passengers, therefore many died in the freezing waters. The captain of the ship, Edward J. Smith wanted to beat the maiden voyage of the Olympic, the Titanic's sister ship and the Titanic was sailing full speed in an area known to have icebergs. If the captain decided to go slower, the ship may have been able to maneuver around the iceberg. Also, the binoculars were locked, and the lookouts did not have access to them during the fateful night, making it harder for them to spot icebergs. Perhaps if the binoculars were not locked up, the lookouts would be able to spot the iceberg.
Little decisions do have a large scale impact of the future. Looking at each decision individually, perhaps the decision would seem insignificant and not a big deal, but perhaps when looking at small, everyday decisions, we need to look at them as a whole, rather than individually. As the example of the Ithaca Railway and the sinking of the Titanic, each little event contributes to a larger and maybe more important consequence. Little decisions, unlike what many people think is many times the beginning of a great event.
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