How Arts Promote Our Economy

    When most people think of the arts， they imagine the end product， the beautiful painting， a wonderful piece of music， or an award﹣winning performance in the theater． But arts groups bring broader value to our communities． The economic impact of the arts is often overlooked and badly judged．

    The arts create jobs that help develop the economy． Any given performance takes a tour bus full of artists， technical experts， managers， musicians， or writers to create an appealing piece of art． These people earn a living wage for their professional knowledge and skills．

    Another group of folks is needed to help market the event． "If you build it they will come" is a misleading belief． Painters， digital media experts， photographers， booking agents and promoters are hired to sell tickets and promote the event． According to the Dallas Area Cultural Advocacy Coalition， arts agencies employ more than 10，000 people as full﹣or part﹣time employees or independent contractors．

    A successful arts neighborhoods creates a ripple effect（连锁反应）throughout a community． In 2005， when the Bishop Arts Theatre was donated to our town， the location was considered a poor area of town． After investing more than﹩1 million in reconstructing the building， we began producing a full season of  theater performances， jazz concerts， and year﹣round arts education programs in 2008． Nearly 40 percent of jazz lovers live outside of the Dallas city limits and drive or fly in to enjoy an evening in the Bishop Arts District．

    No doubt the theater has contributed to the area's development and economic growth． Today， there are galleries， studios， restaurants and newly built work spaces where neighbors share experiences， where there is renewed life and energy． In this way， arts and culture also serve as a public good．

    Teco Theatrical Productions Inc． made use of Bloomberg's investment of﹩35，000 to get nearly﹩400，000 in public and private sector support during the two﹣year period． Further， Dallas arts and arts﹣based businesses produce﹩298 for every dollar the city spends on arts programming and facilities． In Philadelphia， a metro area smaller than Dallas， the arts have an economic impact of almost﹩3 million and support 44，000 jobs， 80 percent of which actually lie outside the arts industry， including accountants， marketers， construction workers， hotel managers， printers， and other kinds of art workers．

    The arts are efficient economic drivers and when they are supported， the entire small﹣business community benefits．

    It is wrong to assume arts groups cannot make a profit． But in order to stay in business， arts groups must produce returns． If you are a student studying the arts， chances are you have been ill﹣advised to have a plan B． But those who truly understand the economic impact and can work to change the patterns can create a wide range of career possibilities．

   Other people can help us compensate for our mental and emotional deficiencies （欠缺），much as a wooden leg can compensate for a physical deficiency．To be exact，other people can extend our intelligence and help us understand and adjust our emotions．When another person helps us in such ways，he or she is participating in what I’ve called a “social prosthetic （义肢的）system．”Such systems do not need to operate face﹣to﹣face，and it’s clear to me that the Internet is expanding the range of my own social prosthetic systems．It’s already a big bank of many minds．Even in its current state，the Internet has extended my memory and judgment．

Regarding memory：Once I look up something on the Internet，I don’t need to keep all the details for future use﹣I know where to find that information again and can quickly and easily do so．More generally，the Internet functions as if it were my memory．This function of the Internet is particularly striking when I’m writing； I’m no longer comfortable writing if I’m not connected to the Internet．It’s become natural to check facts as I write，taking a minute or two to dip into PubMed，Wikipedia，or other websites．

Regarding judgment：The Internet has made me smarter in matters small and large．For example，when I’m writing a textbook，it has become second nature to check a dozen definitions of a key term，which helps me dig into the core and understand its meaning．But more than that，I now regularly compare my views with those of many others．If I have a “new idea，”I now quickly look to see whether somebody else has already thought of it，or something similar﹣and I then compare what I think with what others have thought．This certainly makes my own views clearer．Moreover，I can find out whether my reactions to an event are reasonable enough by reading about those of others on the Internet．

These effects of the Internet have become even more striking since I’ve begun using a smartphone．I now regularly pull out my phone to check a fact，watch a video，read weibo．Such activities fill the spaces that used to be dead time （such as waiting for somebody to arrive for a lunch meeting）．

But that’s the upside （好处）．The downside is that in those dead periods I often would let my thoughts flow and sometimes would have an unexpected insight or idea．Those opportunities are now fewer and farther between．