If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
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- Author：Jill Lepore
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Summary
The Simulmatics Corporation， launched during the Cold War， mined data， targeted voters， manipulated consumers， destabilized politics， and disordered knowledge—decades before Facebook， Google， and Cambridge Analytica。 Jill Lepore， best-selling author of These Truths， came across the company’s papers in MIT’s archives and set out to tell this forgotten history， the long-lost backstory to the methods， and the arrogance， of Silicon Valley。
Founded in 1959 by some of the nation’s leading social scientists—“the best and the brightest， fatally brilliant， Icaruses with wings of feathers and wax， flying to the sun”—Simulmatics proposed to predict and manipulate the future by way of the computer simulation of human behavior。 In summers， with their wives and children in tow， the company’s scientists met on the beach in Long Island under a geodesic， honeycombed dome， where they built a “People Machine” that aimed to model everything from buying a dishwasher to counterinsurgency to casting a vote。 Deploying their “People Machine” from New York， Washington， Cambridge， and even Saigon， Simulmatics’ clients included the John F。 Kennedy presidential campaign， the New York Times， the Department of Defense， and dozens of major manufacturers: Simulmatics had a hand in everything from political races to the Vietnam War to the Johnson administration’s ill-fated attempt to predict race riots。 The company’s collapse was almost as rapid as its ascent， a collapse that involved failed marriages， a suspicious death， and bankruptcy。 Exposed for false claims， and even accused of war crimes， it closed its doors in 1970 and all but vanished。 Until Lepore came across the records of its remains。
The scientists of Simulmatics believed they had invented “the A-bomb of the social sciences。” They did not predict that it would take decades to detonate， like a long-buried grenade。 But， in the early years of the twenty-first century， that bomb did detonate， creating a world in which corporations collect data and model behavior and target messages about the most ordinary of decisions， leaving people all over the world， long before the global pandemic， crushed by feelings of helplessness。 This history has a past; If Then is its cautionary tale。
Founded in 1959 by some of the nation’s leading social scientists—“the best and the brightest， fatally brilliant， Icaruses with wings of feathers and wax， flying to the sun”—Simulmatics proposed to predict and manipulate the future by way of the computer simulation of human behavior。 In summers， with their wives and children in tow， the company’s scientists met on the beach in Long Island under a geodesic， honeycombed dome， where they built a “People Machine” that aimed to model everything from buying a dishwasher to counterinsurgency to casting a vote。 Deploying their “People Machine” from New York， Washington， Cambridge， and even Saigon， Simulmatics’ clients included the John F。 Kennedy presidential campaign， the New York Times， the Department of Defense， and dozens of major manufacturers: Simulmatics had a hand in everything from political races to the Vietnam War to the Johnson administration’s ill-fated attempt to predict race riots。 The company’s collapse was almost as rapid as its ascent， a collapse that involved failed marriages， a suspicious death， and bankruptcy。 Exposed for false claims， and even accused of war crimes， it closed its doors in 1970 and all but vanished。 Until Lepore came across the records of its remains。
The scientists of Simulmatics believed they had invented “the A-bomb of the social sciences。” They did not predict that it would take decades to detonate， like a long-buried grenade。 But， in the early years of the twenty-first century， that bomb did detonate， creating a world in which corporations collect data and model behavior and target messages about the most ordinary of decisions， leaving people all over the world， long before the global pandemic， crushed by feelings of helplessness。 This history has a past; If Then is its cautionary tale。
Reviews
Ardys
，
A look at the company and people of Simulmatics， which was a pioneer in data mining， prediction， and manipulation。 These people collected data to figure how to win the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese people。 These were the lead political pollsters of the 60s。 Facebook， Google， and Cambridge Analytica came after。 Simulmatics is their roots。
Erato EE Morrison
，
First DNF of 2021 but I really just need to stop so I can get on with my life。 Something about this book did not engage me at all。 I kept showing up to try to give it a fair chance but I really just couldn’t connect to the story or info。。。。 it felt like history class with one little slant。 But we didn’t get enough into what would make the book interesting for it to be worthwhile。 I really like Jill Lepore’s other stuff but this was a miss for me
Cara Wood
，
I was expecting the history of Simulatics to reveal our dependency on algorithms and their flaws。 But by digging into the political history and impact data targeting had on leadership and party， Jill Lepore reveals the very deep impact machine thinking has had on our society， our government and our future。 Fascinating for anyone interested in data， futurism， or politics！
June
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a dry subject made juicy; facts and figures correlate to act。history at play， one more essential book to reveal what holds sway。
Jack Eardley
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It s a very interesting bit of history and the relationship to modern day data analytics and social media is fascinating。 However I think the author went on a few too many detours into the political history of the time and the personal lives of the companies founders that I found distracting from the core intrigue of the book。
Alan
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Absolutely fascinating book about the history of Artificial Intelligence in the political sphere。 The focus was on a now defunct company called Simulmatics - they tried to use data sets to predict the results of presidential elections。 What's now commonplace was then quite scary。 The company itself was definitely run by a cast of characters - PR guys， academics， heavy drinkers and loose cannons！ The writing was fast paced and engaging。 Awesome book！ Absolutely fascinating book about the history of Artificial Intelligence in the political sphere。 The focus was on a now defunct company called Simulmatics - they tried to use data sets to predict the results of presidential elections。 What's now commonplace was then quite scary。 The company itself was definitely run by a cast of characters - PR guys， academics， heavy drinkers and loose cannons！ The writing was fast paced and engaging。 Awesome book！ 。。。more
Diogenes
，
The phenomenal Jill Lepore， prolific contributor to The New Yorker， chronicles the little-known history of Simulmatics， what will inevitably be the original catalyst for mankind’s eternal misery （sorry， no nuclear reptilian avatar of Gaia will emerge from the sea to wipe humanity from the face of the Earth， though I wish that would be true—that or an titanic asteroid strike）。 No， it is pocket computers， biometric and behavioral data， and the unregulated internet that is the omnipresent threat。 ” The phenomenal Jill Lepore， prolific contributor to The New Yorker， chronicles the little-known history of Simulmatics， what will inevitably be the original catalyst for mankind’s eternal misery （sorry， no nuclear reptilian avatar of Gaia will emerge from the sea to wipe humanity from the face of the Earth， though I wish that would be true—that or an titanic asteroid strike）。 No， it is pocket computers， biometric and behavioral data， and the unregulated internet that is the omnipresent threat。 ”The Simulmatics Corporation， Cold War America’s Cambridge Analytica， claimed credit for having gotten John F。 Kennedy elected president of the United States in November 1960。 Months later， its scientists spend a summer at the beach planning new projects for their invention: a computer program designed to predict and manipulate human behavior， all sorts of human behavior， from buying a dishwasher to countering an insurgency to casting a vote。 They called it the People Machine。Hardly anyone， almost no one， remembers Simulmatics anymore。 But beneath that honeycombed dome， the scientists of this long-vanished American corporation helped build the machine in which humanity would， by the twenty-first century， find itself trapped and tormented: stripped bare， driven to distraction， deprived of its senses， interrupted， exploited， directed， connected and disconnected， bought and sold， alienated and coerced， confused， misinformed， and even governed。 They never meant to hurt anyone” （p。 10）。 The consumer has become the prime commodity in the age of surveillance capitalism fueled by behavioral psychology， a commodity expected to earn some $12。4 billion by 2022 （p。 354）， never mind social engineering on societal levels such as China’s “social credit” machination， and the puppeteering of authoritarian despots around the globe。 Yet the sheep are willing participants in their own commodification， eating grass while being fleeced。 Lepore is a gifted writer with a flowing narrative style that brings much more into the overarching theme。 Read her recent book review of Linda Colley’s The Gun， The Ship， and the Pen: Warfare， Constitutions， and Making of the Modern World， highlighting the Achilles heel of our own constitution （https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。）， and see for yourself。 The brink is never far beyond our feet。 The 1960s and early ‘70s truly were a fascinating period of time， one in which so much could have been accomplished for the greater good， and sadly one we seem destined to be mired within its painful reverberations with engrained racism， historic classism， insatiable warmongering， vampiric capitalism， and rabid political tribalism。 This book uncovers another dimension of this time period， with the evolution of computers and their fledgling use in analyzing and manipulating human beings。 Lepore did an interview with The New Yorker （https://www。newyorker。com/magazine/20。。。）， as well as NPR （https://www。npr。org/2020/09/15/913039。。。）， for some additional insight。 ”Human nature does not follow laws like the law of gravity， and to believe that it does is to take an oath to a new religion。 Predestination can be dangerous。 The profit-motivated collection and use of data about human behavior， unregulated by any governmental body， has wreaked havoc on human societies， especially on the spheres in which Simulmatics engaged: politics， advertising， journalism， counterinsurgency， and race relations。 Its rise also marked the near abandonment of humanistic knowledge” （p。 351）。 The wanton greed and reckless wielding of such power by the Goliaths of Amazon， Facebook， Google， many governments， police departments， Big Ag， Big Pharma， Big Oil， and， well， just about everyone else began with a fascinatingly dysfunctional company called Simulmatics in 1959。 This is that story， but the saga is ongoing and the GOP seeks to control that power， as Adam Serwer summarizes （https://www。theatlantic。com/ideas/arc。。。 ”Like the Republican turn against democracy， the newfound opposition to the market fundamentalism that conservatives once espoused and the free-speech principles they pretended to revere is superficial and contingent。 Free speech， democracy， and free-market capitalism were fine as long as Republicans could expect victory in these arenas。 But with public opinion shifting against them on key priorities， their focus has now turned to rigging the rules of the game to their advantage rather than winning over a larger share of the public。 They do not seek to achieve a more equitable distribution of either money or power， but to ensure that the present inequities work to their political advantage。An irony is that the era with which the right is enraptured was in part a product of a set of mid-century economic arrangements—higher taxes on the wealthy， greater union density， stronger regulations—that the left is attempting to restore， in some form， while including a novel commitment to racial and gender equality。 Republicans have no interest in curtailing corporate power in this fashion—not when they believe that power could be used to reimpose a diminished cultural hegemony。 These so-called populist Republicans do not wish to throw the one ring into Mount Doom; they simply want to wield it on their own behalf” （the emphasis is mine）。 We need to rage against this machine。 。。。more
Linda Bond
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It’s all over the news – data collection， selling personal information to the highest bidder， manipulating the marketplace， even influencing elections。 It’s all pretty new， right？ Wrong。 As historian Jill Lepore let’s us know， it actually began at the end of the 1950’s， when the startup Simulmatics Corporation took on data collection and its use as a new kind of business。 What followed was， well… history。 But only Ms。 Lepore knows how to bring this to life in a way that draws our attention to th It’s all over the news – data collection， selling personal information to the highest bidder， manipulating the marketplace， even influencing elections。 It’s all pretty new， right？ Wrong。 As historian Jill Lepore let’s us know， it actually began at the end of the 1950’s， when the startup Simulmatics Corporation took on data collection and its use as a new kind of business。 What followed was， well… history。 But only Ms。 Lepore knows how to bring this to life in a way that draws our attention to the essential message embedded in the story which is a lesson we can learn – if we will。I met this book at Auntie's Bookstore in Spokane， WA 。。。more
Justin Fraser
，
At times， this seemed more like a history of the world around Simulmatics than about the corporation itself， especially in the later chapters。 I felt it got away from that central story a bit too often and I felt the pace dragged sometimes。
Benjamin
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First impressions; Kind of like the underside of Isaacson's "Innovators"， this book weaves a story of how technology has transformed our lives by profiling a company that wasn't particularly focused on making the world a better place， and that wasn't successful。 This strategy plays off handsomely， thanks to Lepore's sharp research and bemused affection for the times and the giants of those times。 If you have any interest in US post-WWII history or the ethics and history of social networks， you r First impressions; Kind of like the underside of Isaacson's "Innovators"， this book weaves a story of how technology has transformed our lives by profiling a company that wasn't particularly focused on making the world a better place， and that wasn't successful。 This strategy plays off handsomely， thanks to Lepore's sharp research and bemused affection for the times and the giants of those times。 If you have any interest in US post-WWII history or the ethics and history of social networks， you really are going to have to read this book。 。。。more
Serick Bjurstrom
，
A whirlwind tour covering behavioral science from the mid-50s through the mid-70s， tying it all to today。 The lens Lepore uses is Simulmatics， the very first data analytics company。 Lepore successfully makes the case that data treachery didn’t start during the 2016 election， but has been an issue for over 60 years。Along the way she touches on mid-century domestic dynamics， colonialism， and utopianism。 I think the biggest theme， though， is hubris， and how it blinds the greatest minds of any gener A whirlwind tour covering behavioral science from the mid-50s through the mid-70s， tying it all to today。 The lens Lepore uses is Simulmatics， the very first data analytics company。 Lepore successfully makes the case that data treachery didn’t start during the 2016 election， but has been an issue for over 60 years。Along the way she touches on mid-century domestic dynamics， colonialism， and utopianism。 I think the biggest theme， though， is hubris， and how it blinds the greatest minds of any generation to the enormous harm they do。 All， of course， while they insist their work will end wars and deliver prosperity to all。 Most of the men （inevitably men） who ran the Simulmatics Corporation were visionaries， whose visions curdled into justifications for winning at any cost。A really great read， especially useful for understanding our current tumultuous age。 。。。more
Curt Stamp
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Fascinating！ Great history and commentary on the role of analytics and behavioral sciences in the early days of computers （1950s and 60s）。
Jonathan Briggs
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History is more important Loved this。 It’s a hard to put down account of a story over 50 years old that has simply been forgotten。 That story is the birth of behavioural data science and the men （always men） that created it。 Fascinating to see the lessons for now and be reminded that although we live in a crazy age it’s roots go back decades。
Liang Hua
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Read the first 100 pages。 The ms more about the political history of the 50/60s than about Simulmatics
Renee King
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First， if you don't know Jill Lepore or have not read any of her other works， remedy that。 Her texts on historical events are so well-researched， well-written， and interesting！ Ms。 Lepore has found a gem buried in the forgotten history of mid-century America。 And it's easy to see why it was forgotten， as it was completely overshadowed by the big events then: the Kennedy's， MLK， Johnson's Great Society wins and flops， the never ending morass that was the Vietnam War， protests， riots， deep societa First， if you don't know Jill Lepore or have not read any of her other works， remedy that。 Her texts on historical events are so well-researched， well-written， and interesting！ Ms。 Lepore has found a gem buried in the forgotten history of mid-century America。 And it's easy to see why it was forgotten， as it was completely overshadowed by the big events then: the Kennedy's， MLK， Johnson's Great Society wins and flops， the never ending morass that was the Vietnam War， protests， riots， deep societal unrest and budding change。 Fascinatingly enough， the small handful of ad men and mathematicians turned social scientists cobbled together a little company that aimed to do big things， and touched on every one of those big events。 And more！ Along the way seemed like a whole lot of chicanery， pretending， fudging， poorly designed studies and government contract waste。 That MIT was such a hub of academic and government collaboration is something I did not realize went as far back in the decades as it did。 And so very， very interesting and ironic that the invention of the networked internet was something protested， feared and decried on that campus in the 1960's by the "woke" students of that era。 Oh， what the future was to bring。。。But man， did Pool nail it when he predicted the day of reckoning to come between technology and privacy。 I recommend this book。 。。。more
wade
，
A very informative study on the infancy of computer research focusing on the first company in that area， Simulmatics Corporation。 The book follows a wide array of the companies' founders and their families over the years。 The first use of their data was the Kennedy campaign to help him defeat Richard Nixon。 However， the companies' information was only as good as the data they were able to get。 （through interviews， surveys， etc。） So there will be a colossal failure in trying to aide our governme A very informative study on the infancy of computer research focusing on the first company in that area， Simulmatics Corporation。 The book follows a wide array of the companies' founders and their families over the years。 The first use of their data was the Kennedy campaign to help him defeat Richard Nixon。 However， the companies' information was only as good as the data they were able to get。 （through interviews， surveys， etc。） So there will be a colossal failure in trying to aide our government during the Viet Nam War。 The book is very thought provoking about the evolution of computers in our lives up till today。 。。。more
Nathan
，
I love the story。 She really stresses the human side of the story and I love the anecdotes along the way。 I suppose I am biased， but since I completely agree with her about the evils of social media and what is happening to our politics and society， it really resonated with me and helped my own thoughts come together。 Highly recommended
Timothy M
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An interesting look at the beginnings of big data。
Zach
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3。5 stars！ This was not the book I thought I was reading， but it was pretty interesting all the same。 Lepore probably has a very specific idea of the direction history should've taken， and that perspective filters in through the reporting。 If I was expecting a book written from the inside of the company， looking outward。 This is better summerized as a book documenting coldly， critically from Simulatics outside， looking in。 The last few chapters read a bit perfunctory （"We get it！ Facebook is bad 3。5 stars！ This was not the book I thought I was reading， but it was pretty interesting all the same。 Lepore probably has a very specific idea of the direction history should've taken， and that perspective filters in through the reporting。 If I was expecting a book written from the inside of the company， looking outward。 This is better summerized as a book documenting coldly， critically from Simulatics outside， looking in。 The last few chapters read a bit perfunctory （"We get it！ Facebook is bad！ And Simulatics was it's precursor！" I felt like saying）， but still， I learned a lot and enjoyed Lepore's prose once I settled in for the book as it was， vs what I expected it to be。 。。。more
Thomas
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There's really a lot of great historical information in here and it's a well-told story to boot。 There's really a lot of great historical information in here and it's a well-told story to boot。 。。。more
Wally Bock
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If you want a good read about computer technology， the attempt to model human behavior， and the period from 1960 to the end of the 20th century， If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future by Jill Lepore is well-researched and a great read。 If you’re looking for details on the technology or business， look elsewhere。 My complete review:https://www。threestarleadership。com/b。。。 If you want a good read about computer technology， the attempt to model human behavior， and the period from 1960 to the end of the 20th century， If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future by Jill Lepore is well-researched and a great read。 If you’re looking for details on the technology or business， look elsewhere。 My complete review:https://www。threestarleadership。com/b。。。 。。。more
Abhishek Kona
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There is barely anything about the computers， the technology or even the business of the company。It is a history book with some selected snippets of history very very very loosely tied to the Simulmatics corporation。
Willsy Waites
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Jill Lepore shreds， man。 Love RAND Corp and the conveyor of scientists enlisted for military research so this read was v interesting。 Keep it up， Jill。
Cathy
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Rating is not so much because it was so good but that the story was so darn interesting。 Nothing like a book that tells me something I didn’t know！ （Oh， and it was a good book too）
Anita
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If you are interested in the history of tech and unintended consequences， highly recommend。
Jenny
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I’ve read on me other book by Jill Lepore， and it was good enough for me to try another。 This book， my second， is good enough to put her on my “read everything they write” list。 Lepore is a deft historian， and an excellent writer。 The history of Simulmatics here operates on multiple levels: the story of the company， the relational， the political， and the consequential。 Lepore constructs her history her in order to highlight the underlying irony of a company founded on the notion of information a I’ve read on me other book by Jill Lepore， and it was good enough for me to try another。 This book， my second， is good enough to put her on my “read everything they write” list。 Lepore is a deft historian， and an excellent writer。 The history of Simulmatics here operates on multiple levels: the story of the company， the relational， the political， and the consequential。 Lepore constructs her history her in order to highlight the underlying irony of a company founded on the notion of information as both binary and dependent， that in turn blinds itself to the information of oh say half the human race （the founders’ inability to see women as people and women’s knowledge as knowledge）。 And for a set of people determined to map the world and replicate reality via quantified data， such an omission was （and is， Lepore implies） hugely problematic。People interested in media studies， 20th century history， and big data will enjoy this book。 Book pairings: put the chapter on Vietnam with books that deal with the Vietnam war and its consequences。 I have a few specific titles in kind， but I need to check them then come back later。 。。。more
Alli Bittner
，
It may be that this just isn’t my genre， but I had a really difficult time forcing myself through this。 I hoped， and expected， to see a more through discussion of how the work pioneered by Simulmatics is still pervasive in our world today （à la Cambridge Analytica。） Instead， this read like a purely documentary， historical textbook。 That said， I can appreciate the enormous amount of research that obviously went into this。
L。A。 Heberlein
，
This is the story of the first attempt to use computerized demographic data to advise political candidates， a company called Simulmatics。 No， I never heard of them either。 Lepore turns the tale into an entertaining romp of rogues， charmers， and scoundrels。 （Chapter Two centers on Eugene Burdick -- author of Fail Safe and The Ugly American， novels famous in their time -- in his California years， wheeling his Jaguar up the eucalyptus-lined lanes to his faculty office where the co-eds line up outsi This is the story of the first attempt to use computerized demographic data to advise political candidates， a company called Simulmatics。 No， I never heard of them either。 Lepore turns the tale into an entertaining romp of rogues， charmers， and scoundrels。 （Chapter Two centers on Eugene Burdick -- author of Fail Safe and The Ugly American， novels famous in their time -- in his California years， wheeling his Jaguar up the eucalyptus-lined lanes to his faculty office where the co-eds line up outside his door。）What I loved most is that Lepore never loses track， while we follow the schemes of these white males， of the larger context: the civil rights movement going on outside， the miserable mid-century women the academics abuse at home。 I would really love to have seen more of the data science behind the story of this early data science company。 I understand the limitations of books aimed at a broad non-technical audience， but， in the same way that DVDs （if anyone still remembers DVDs） had Bonus Features where you could go behind the scenes， I’d love to read an article， perhaps in Wired magazine， called “The Science of Simulmatics。” Modeling is one of the most interesting of intellectual endeavors。 Lepore is livid that anyone would think models could be applied to human behavior， but modeling any behavior， whether it’s that of an airplane wing or a thundercloud， is really fascinating， and really hard to do well。 Pitfalls everywhere。 No end of ways to do it wrong。 In fact， “Every model is wrong， but some models are useful。” I may need to go look for a book on the history of the development of modeling techniques。 Does one exist？ I would have appreciated just a taste of that here。 Lepore never goes deeper than “reducing humans to punch cards。” We do get some great character sketches and quick historical summaries。 If you read Lepore’s These Truths you’ll remember， over and over again， her one-page summaries of stories you’ve read whole books about， which she makes clearer than you’ve ever had them pictured before。 Here there’s a great snapshot of Arthur Schlesinger wandering the Kennedy White House， with nothing much to do， occasionally invited to meetings people thought might be historic。 She demolishes Theodore White。 There are delightful tidbits。 Did you know that the New York Times used to announce breaking news with searchlights？ Lights to the east mean the Democrats won， to the west the Republicans。 （She says it’s the origin of the term “news flash。”）My favorite moment was when Simulmatics showed up on Madison Avenue bidding to help manufacturers and advertisers but finding no way to do so， because the merchants had no data on their customers。 They had no idea who bought their stuff！ The problem with the book， and it was a serious problem， is that Lepore wants us to consider this story in the light of today， of Facebook， Cambridge Analytica， the 2016 Election， Donald Trump。 This story of people trying to use computer demographic data to predict human behavior is supposed to be taken as emblematic of all attempts to use computers to predict human behavior。 You get the clear sense that Lepore believes we all have exactly the same opinion about that。 She just never spells out that opinion。 Instead she just appeals to it with snarky asides and sarcastic jabs。 I actually sat down and tried to work it out。 What does Lepore believe we believe？1。tThese Simulmatics rascals were frauds， like The Music Man’s Professor Harold Hill， unable to even figure out how boot their computers。 2。tComputer data can never tell us anything useful about human behavior， because humans are just too special to ever be predictable。 3。tComputer data can predict human behavior， and doing so is evil。Much of the time Lepore seems to be assuming that #2 is so obviously true we don’t even need to discuss it， but some of the time she’s assuming #3 with equally firm confidence。 It seems to me that the two are mutually contradictory。 In any event， it would have seemed to me more courteous for Lepore to spell out what she thinks we all think， rather than just relying on implicit assumptions about it。 Heavily。 Throughout。 On p。 277 Lepore snorts at the notion that the Internet can provide the benefit of allowing people with common interests to find one another， even though separated by geography。 “Life will be happier for the on-line individual because the people with whom one interacts most strongly will be selected more by commonality of interests and goals than by accidents of proximity，” she quotes MIT professor J。C。R。 Licklider looking forward in 1968。 Lepore responds， “As if people would be happier if they kept to their own kind， like tribes。” Okay， the benefits of on-line communities have not been unalloyed。 The Internet has allowed people who believe the United States is governed by a cabal of satanic cannibals to find one another and reinforce one another’s craziness。 But do we think that means on-line communities are inherently bad？ That’s like saying we shouldn’t have cities because cities have some dark alleys。 The Internet has allowed people to find one another who never previously could have。 If you’re a kid living in rural Kansas with an interest in medieval Welsh， you can now find other people around the globe who share your passion， and you can all learn from one another。 My wife is a painter。 Instagram vastly expands her ability to see other painters’ work。 She can become familiar with artists she would never have had any way to even hear of before， let alone see what they’ve been painting， let alone see what they’re painting right now。 This thickened web of connections between practicing artists has been good for painting。 You could cite millions of similar examples。 （Goodreads， for one。） Yes， we have Qanon。 It doesn’t negate the undeniable richness that our ability to connect with one another has brought to our lives。 In fairness， Lepore doesn’t set out an argument that the Internet is a worthless cesspool。 What she does is just act like everybody already knows that case so well that she doesn’t even have to say it， she can just communicate it with a sniff。 。。。more
Charles Lupo
，
I was under the impression that this book was more about AI than it really is。 It certainly has roots there， but it's not a history if AI， so much as a history of how computers and data modeling impacted everyone's lives starting back basically at the beginning of computing。 The men who ran Simulmatics Corp were certainly visionary， as， spoiler alert， computers are everywhere now， and 'big data' is big business。 They were all flawed in one way or another， and that seemingly lead to their downfal I was under the impression that this book was more about AI than it really is。 It certainly has roots there， but it's not a history if AI， so much as a history of how computers and data modeling impacted everyone's lives starting back basically at the beginning of computing。 The men who ran Simulmatics Corp were certainly visionary， as， spoiler alert， computers are everywhere now， and 'big data' is big business。 They were all flawed in one way or another， and that seemingly lead to their downfall。 If they had been able to get their act together， and actually produce results Simulmatics might be a household name， like Facebook。 I think in part， they were limited by their personal biases （all white men） and the raw power of the computers of their time。The period of history covered in this book （roughly 1958-1972） was rather a dark age for me as it is both before my time， and we never covered it in school in any real detail。As a programmer and lover of history， I found this book to be a good read， but I would have a difficult time recommending it to anyone without similar interests。 。。。more
James
，