Who Needs a Magic 8-Ball When You Have Vannevar Bush? (Digital Fiction, Blog Post 1, Part 2)

Disclaimer:

All of these questions and links were first posed by Dr. Mark America in his Digital Fiction class, Spring, 2019, at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Links and questions have been posted with his gracious permission.

!!!(Huzzah to you, Mark, for getting the brain noodles juiced)!!!

Article: Vannevar Bush—“As We May Think” (July, 1945 Issue of The Atlantic)

Questions for Consideration: What are some specific sections or phrases that Bush uses that remind you of something we experience in our “always connected” lives today? Bush is writing as a scientist over 70 years ago, but you are encouraged to try and decode his language into today’s techno-jargon by pointing out things we know exist in the world today but that he was only projecting.

A Penny for My Thoughts?:

Okay. This Bush guy? He is like a 20 on a creepy scale that only goes 1-10. We’re talking like, Nostradamus creepy.

Rather than type out all the creepy digital-age things he predicted (Bush, not the guy with the Bush on his chin), here’s some screen shots of my notes: (BRACE YOURSELF)

1.

2.

3. 

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

Okay. Take a look at those. Creeped out yet? If you aren’t, I need to check you for a pulse.

I’ll admit, dude lost me on all the math stuff. My eyes roll when I even READ the word math, but it’s really interesting that a dude from 1945 was able to foresee our current digital age when the rest of world still had their eyes on Hitler’s bunker and the images coming out of places like Auschwitz and Dachau… right?  I’ll leave it at that.

Thanks for reading, my lovelies!

Until next time,

😼😼 ~Bree 😼😼