Article Review: “As We May Think” by Vannevar Bush

I began reading the article, “As We May Think”, unaware that it had been written by Vannevar Bush back in 1945, and upon realization, I was not only intrigued but also highly impressed with the expectations Bush had for technology. Bush predicted that if it were economically warranted we would further develop and improve the existing methods in which we record and organize data. We could implement a technology that hosts the summation of human experience and knowledge in a ‘library’, where information was not only recorded and stored, but also could be easily retrieved and consulted. This ‘library’, which he called “Memex”, has today manifested itself as the Internet.

What amazed me was that when Bush wrote this essay, almost sixty years ago, when the World Wide Web did not exist, yet Bush was able to foresee the development of a collection as sophisticated as the Internet. In his essay, Bush references the technology that existed at the time; explaining how further “expansion of man’s physical powers” will enhance the “power of the mind”, and which is something we should aim for.

Bush stresses the importance of the “power of the mind”, arguing that we possess an abundance of information, but not a have an adequate ‘library’. We are unable to store and recall all the information in a way that we can truly benefit from the knowledge and progress as a race. Bush refers to Mendel’s study of genetics being momentarily futile, while it was lost in the abundance of information and was not being utilized. Bush proposes a ‘library’ that retrieves information efficiently, operating by association, as does the human mind. He models his theoretical “Memex” based on the human mind; recalling information upon association, creating a trail, or trails that would be saved; such is today’s Internet!

Reading Bush’s essay, I was reminded of Ray Kurzweil, a scientist living in today’s times, but like Bush anticipating technological advancement of the future. While Bush expected a world with the “Memex”, a library modeled after the human brain, Kurzweil proposes a world where technical development blurs the difference between man and machine. Both Bush and Kurzweil are futurists, but their different ideologies are what most intrigue me. Bush proposes modeling machines after the human body, while Kurzweil proposes the contrary, modeling the human body after machines.

This recognizes how our development and success as a race. Initially, technology was created to epitomize the human body, enhancing its physicality and functionality. Soon technology was able to perform human activities, and continued to develop to then achieve bionic activities. The sophistication of today’s technology is not only able to better perform human activities, but also achieve that which is impossible for. Futurists like Kurzweil recognize this and envision modeling the body after, and even incorporating it into machines.

Reading the accounts of the two futurists is inspiring. Both Bush and Kurzweil study current technological trends and envision where it is taking us. We too should create blueprints using what is available today for designs that will exist tomorrow.