
@verbatim{The improvement in human knowledge and survival potential
following the invention of writing was immense.  (There was also
an improvement in self-reliance:  It is possible to learn at
least the basics of an art or a science from a book and not be
dependent on the lucky accident that there is a nearby master
craftsman to whom we may apprentice ourselves.}

When all is said and done, the invention of writing must be
viewed not only as a brilliant innovation but as a surpassing
good for humanity.  I believe the same will be said of those who
are today devising computers and programs at the edge of machine
intelligence.  The next major structural development in human
intelligence is likely to be a partnership between intelligent
humans and intelligent machines (from The Dragons of Eden by Carl
Sagan, pages 224-5).

@COMMENT{TEXT1.MSS}

