Automatic computers have now been with us for a quarter of a century. They have had a great impact on our society in their capacity of tools, but in … - Edsger W. Dijkstra

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Automatic computers have now been with us for a quarter of a century. They have had a great impact on our society in their capacity of tools, but in that capacity their influence will be but a ripple on the surface of our culture, compared with the much more profound influence they will have in their capacity of intellectual challenge without precedent in the cultural history of mankind.

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About Edsger W. Dijkstra

Edsger Wybe Dijkstra (11 May 1930 – 6 August 2002) was a Dutch computer scientist, programmer, software engineer, mathematician, and science essayist.

Biography information from Wikipedia

Also Known As

Native Name: Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
Alternative Names: Dijkstra E. W. Dijkstra Edsger Dijkstra EWD
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John von Neumann draws attention to what seemed to him a contrast. He remarked that for simple mechanisms, it is often easier to describe how they work than what they do, while for more complicated mechanisms, it is usually the other way around.

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Don't blame me for the fact that competent programming, as I view it as an intellectual possibility, will be too difficult for "the average programmer" — you must not fall into the trap of rejecting a surgical technique because it is beyond the capabilities of the barber in his shop around the corner.

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