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The computer and you

DEC 01, 1965
Although what a man can do with a computer has been deeply explored, less attention has gone to what computers do to men. Results of a survey show that some users fear that thinking and the aesthetic appeal of science may suffer. Nevertheless those who use them most are most convinced that they will come to use them more, and at least one commentator thinks that those who think sloppily with computers would also think sloppily without them.
Robert J. Spinrad

The folk wisdom of most nations has a proverb that comments on man’s discomfort with new ideas or experiences. In English the saying is “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” In Slovene it is, “The tree must be shaped when it is young.” One does not normally think in these terms, however, when discussing the deliberations of science because scientific thought reputedly represents the ascendancy of objectivity over subjective predilections. The professional scientist is thought of as one whose training enables—or rather compels—him to grasp the new if it can help him in his search.

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More about the Authors

Robert J. Spinrad. Brookhaven National Laboratory.

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This Content Appeared In
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Volume 18, Number 12

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