Information access
By Michael Fraase
Thursday, 02 September 1999 04:22PM CDT
Section: 06 Information access
John Perry Barlow—former Wyoming rancher and lyricist for the Grateful Dead—has identified a phenomenon he calls the “learning curve of Sisyphus:” what happens when technology develops faster than anybody’s ability to learn it. This phenomenon can be broken down into two basic, closely interrelated components:
- Knowledge workers’ skills become obsolete faster than they can be completely learned.
- Everyone feels they have no control over their lives and identities.
Who controls access to information, and how can we be assured that we have access to the information we need?