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Science requires a society because even people who are trying to be good thinkers love their own thoughts and theories.

Alan Kay

Perl is another example of filling a tiny, short-term need, and then being a real problem in the longer term.
ALAN KAY

Another Example Fill Perl Tiny
In computers, every ‘new explosion’ was set off by a software product that allowed users to program differently.
ALAN KAY

Allow Computer Differently Explosion Off Product Program Set Software Under
When was the last time a technology with a scale like that was so error-free?
ALAN KAY

Error Free Last Scale Technology Time
I realized that my usual approach is usually critical. That is, a lot of the things that I do, that most people do, are because they hate something somebody else has done, or they hate that something hasn’t been done.
ALAN KAY

Approach Done Hate Most People Realize Someone Something Usually
If you’re not failing 90% of the time, then you’re probably not working on sufficiently challenging problems.
ALAN KAY

Challenge Fall Probably Problem Sufficient Time Work
Don’t worry about what anybody else is going to do. The best way to predict the future is to invent it.
ALAN KAY

Anybody Do Else Is Do What Worry
It is not a tool, although it can act like many tools. It is the first metamedium, and as such it has degrees of freedom for representation and expression never before encountered and as yet barely investigated.
ALAN KAY

Bare Degree Encourage First Freedom Investigation Metamedium Representation Tool
In our society we have hard nerds and soft nerds.
ALAN KAY

Hard Nerd Society Soft
And to the extent that we do not violate any known laws of the universe, we can probably make it work the way that we want to.
ALAN KAY

Extent Known Probably Universe Violate Way
[Computing] is just a fabulous place for that, because it’s a place where you don’t have to be a Ph.D. or anything else. It’s a place where you can still be an artisan.
ALAN KAY

Anything Artisan Computer Else Fabulous Just Place
When I first prepared this particular talk…
ALAN KAY

First Particular Prepare Talk
Having an intelligent secretary does not get rid of the need to read, write, and draw, etc.
ALAN KAY

Draw Have Intelligent Need Read Rid Secretary Write
As far as Apple goes, it was a different company every few years from the time I joined in 1984.
ALAN KAY

Apple As Company Different Every Few Go Join
Any medium powerful enough to extend man’s reach is powerful enough to topple his world.
ALAN KAY

Enough Extend Man Medium Powerful Reach Topple World
This is not secret knowledge. It’s just secret to this pop culture.
ALAN KAY

Culture Knowledge Pop Secret
We cannot predict the future, but we can invent it.
ALAN KAY

Future Invent IT Predict
In success there’s a tendency to keep on doing what you were doing.
ALAN KAY

Do Doing Kept Success Tendency
The future is not laid out on a track. It is something that we can decide.
ALAN KAY

Decide Future Laid Out Something Track
Much of the debugging has to be done by others.
ALAN KAY

Debugging Done Much Other
Computer literacy is a contact with the activity of computing deep enough to make the computational equivalent of reading and writing fluent and enjoyable.
ALAN KAY

Activity Computational Computer Contact Deep Enjoy Enough Equipment Fluent Literacy Make Read Write
School is basically about one point of view – the one the teacher has or the textbooks have.
ALAN KAY

Basically One Point School Teacher Textbook View
The flip side of the coin was that even good programmers and language designers tended to do terrible extensions when they were in the heat of programming, because design is something that is best done slowly and carefully.
ALAN KAY

Best Careful Coin Designer Even Extension Flip Good Heat Language Programme Side Tend Terrible
The result is – document destruction – we’re really not going to be able to prove beyond a truth the negatives and some of the positive conclusions that we’re going to come to.
ALAN KAY

Able Beyond Come Conclusion Destruction Document Negative Positive Prove Result
The perfume part is important because it will help find the knowledge again to help get to the destinations the inner urges pick.
ALAN KAY

Destination Help Important Knowledge Perfume Pick Urge
Bad User on Device is a medium that can dynamically simulate the details of any other medium, including media that cannot exist physically.
ALAN KAY

Any Bad Detail Device Dynamical Medium Other Simulate User
Lisp isn’t a language, it’s a building material.
ALAN KAY

Buil Language Lips Material
I fear – as far as I can tell – that most undergraduate degrees in computer science these days are basically Java vocational training.
ALAN KAY

Basically Computer Degree Far Fear Java Most Science Tell Training Undergraduate Vocational

Science requires a society because even people who are trying to be good thinkers love their own thoughts and theories.

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Science requires a society because even people who are trying to be good thinkers love their own thoughts and theories.

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