My Reflection on Bush and Hawthorne

Contrary to Nathanial Hawthorne’s opinion of progress, in this case comparing the iron stove versus the open hearth fireplace, I am of the belief that more often than not progress is a good thing. Vannevar Bush’s thoughts of the future and the storage, linking and dissemination for knowledge and information, the memex, offered a glimpse of the world as we know it today. It is an example of a vision that is now considered a vital part of everyday life. The internet and its associated trappings offer unlimited possibilities even Bush would have had a hard time imagining and to compare it to the nostalgic ramblings of Hawthorne and his desire to keep things they way they were, irrespective of the advantages of modernization, seem silly almost to the point of being ridiculous.

Hawthorne longed to keep the open hearth as a link to the past. A comforting, yet strong and sometimes dangerous reminder of one of the basic elements of civilized man. Fire in its pure form provided light, warmth, protection and an almost spiritual presence. Even with its highly destructive nature when uncontrolled, fire in a managed environment was the driving force behind steam mechanization, the mother and lifeblood of the industrial revolution. And still Hawthorne clung to the notion that the stove was an abomination, a “slap in the face” to a hearth fire and all cozy memories associated with it. Even with his own admission of having stoves throughout his household and the inherit efficiencies of the air tight stove he continues to try and convince the reader of the virtues of fire light, the hearth rug and social fabric woven around an open fire. It was a passionate but unrealistic plea to cling to the architecture of the past.

Bush’s focus and what he envisioned for the future was part clairvoyance and part intelligent observation. He was part of a dramatic leap in technology and progress that occurred along many fronts in the 1940’s. It was driven by necessity, in this case World War 2, but it spawned ideas and advancements unheard of just years before. Vannevar Bush was a bit of a fortune teller, predicting the future but using his knowledge of what had been done and what was there was potential for. His accurate prediction of information gathering, storage and dissemination via an interconnected series of links is attributable to both his knowledge of the microfilm systems available at the time and his convincing writings of what the future could hold that inspired others to action. Professor Michael Buckman, past president of the American Society for Information Science and Technology stated "Bush's contributions in this area were twofold: (i) A significant engineering achievement by the team under his leadership in building a truly rapid prototype microfilm selector, and (ii) a speculative article, 'As We May Think,' which, through its skillful writing and the social prestige of its author, has had an immediate and lasting effect in stimulating others."(1)








It is hard to imagine the world without the internet. It is impossible in a modern society to ignore progress and its associated comforts and advancements. Hawthorne was trying to cling to the past, lamenting the fact that progress meant change. But, by his own admission enjoyed the comforts of change, “And I, likewise--who have found a home in this ancient owl's nest, since its former occupant took his heavenward flight--I, to my shame, have put up stoves in kitchen, and parlor, and chamber”, (2) but he still wanted to perpetuate the memories by romanticizing the past. Bush, on the other hand, saw the potential of the future and how technology would serve to strengthen and better society, just as the iron stove improved the quality of life in the mid 1800’s. It is important to know where you’ve been because it gives you a better idea of where you are going, as one cannot live in the past.

“The applications of science have built man a well-supplied house, and are teaching him to live healthily therein”. (3) Bush made it clear where he stood on the issue. I am of the opinion that the advancements of science and society are well worth the effort. As often is the case, examples can be made of the negative side of advancements but this has been true since the dawn of time. Everything has a consequence and how we react and embrace the advancements often dictates the result. The internet has been used for both good and evil. It teaches, entertains, provides sustenance and opens minds. It can also harbor hate, malice, evil intent and destructive power. Just as radicals and extremists use it to spew hatred and deceit, decent people around the world use it to educate and expand horizons.
The advances of science and technology provided by the internet and Bush’s prognostication of the future illustrates the fact that remaining with the status quo, such as Hawthorne’s hearth, provides a comfort level that the uncertainty of the future can never offer. This is what was so attractive to Nathaniel. How does this all relate to the question of whether the internet and blogging seem more like a realization of Bush's dream or the insidious threat to social and domestic life professed by Hawthorne’s new-fangled wood stove? Bush could not have predicted the internet would turn out as we know it today, but he forged a path with the memex and the idea that vast amounts of information from a variety of sources could be made available in an instant. Scientific progress is essential. It has had a powerful, positive effect on the human condition. If we perpetuated the mindset of Hawthorne, we wouldn’t have most of the conveniences, or even the necessities, we enjoy today. What’s insidious about that? Bush said “Advances in science when put to practical use mean more jobs, higher wages, shorter hours, more abundant crops, more leisure for recreation, for study, for learning how to live without the deadening drudgery which has been the burden of the common man for ages past”. (4) Who would you agree with, Nathaniel or Vannevar?




1. Buckland, Michael K. "Emanuel Goldberg, Electronic Document Retrieval, And Vannevar Bush's Memex". Journal of the American Society for Information Science 43, no. 4 (May 1992): 284–294

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne "Mosses from an Old Manse” , 1846, 1854 http://www.eldritchpress.org/nh/fw.html

3. Vannevar Bush “As We May Think” The Atlantic Monthly (July 1945)
HTML version by Denys Duchier, University of Ottawa, April 1994.

4. Vannevar Bush “Science- The Endless Frontier” (July 1945)
A Report to the President by the Director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development (United States Government Printing Office, Washington: 1945)



Vannevar Bush

Links:
"As We May Think - A Celebration of Vannevar Bush's 1945 Vision", at Brown University
Vannevar Bush and Memex – Living Internet
Bush, Vannevar; Science The Endless Frontier; A Report to the President by Vannevar Bush, Director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development; United States Government Printing Office; July, 1945.
Memex and Beyond -- historical and current research in hypermedia inspired by Vannevar Bush's memex vision.
MIT Vannevar Bush Symposium -- 1995.
Book review of "Endless Frontier: Vannevar Bush, Engineer Of The American Century", by G. Pascal Zachary.