“At 2:26 AM on 3 June 1980, Colonel William Odom of the Strategic Air Command alerted National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski that the US nuclear warning system had detected an imminent 220-missile nuclear attack on the US. Shortly thereafter, the automated system revised its projection from 220 missiles to an all-out attack of 2200 missiles. Just before Brzezinski was about to wake up President Carter to authorize a counterattack, he was told that the 'attack' was an illusion caused by 'a computer error in the system'.” PresidentAirSecurityComputerIllusionWake UpErrorsNuclearCommandWarningNational SecurityProjectionJuneStrategicMissilesCarterNuclear WarColonelsAdvisorsPresident Carter Author:Stansfield Turner
“bureaucracy, safely repeating today what it did yesterday, rolls on as ineluctably as some vast computer, which, once penetrated by error, duplicates it forever.” TodayForeverComputerErrorsYesterdayBureaucracyDuplicate Book:The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam Source: The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam
“All sorts of computer errors are now turning up. You'd be surprised to know the number of doctors who claim they are treating pregnant men.” KnowsMenNumbersTechnologyComputerDoctorsClaimsErrorsMedicalFeel GoodPregnancyCheerPregnantDoctor WhoComputer TechnologyFunny Computer Author:Isaac Asimov
“In our interconnected world, novel technology could empower just one fanatic, or some weirdo with a mindset of those who now design computer viruses, to trigger some kind of disaster. Indeed, catastrophe could arise simply from technical misadventure - error rather than terror.” WorldKindTechnologyNovelDesignComputerErrorsTerrorMindsetDisasterAriseJust OneEmpoweringCatastropheTriggersFanaticsVirusesInterconnectedWeirdoMisadventureComputer VirusesInterconnected World Author:Martin Rees
“For me, form is something I locate in the process of writing the poems. What I mean is, I start scribbling, and then try to form the poem - on a typewriter or on my computer - and, by trial and error, try to find the right shape. I just try to keep forming the poem in different ways until it feels right to me.” WayFeelsWritingTryingMeanDifferentFormProcessShapesComputerErrorsTrialsDifferent WaysTypewritersFeels RightTrial And Error Author:Matthew Zapruder
“Computers are wasteful of paper and time. Once, we'd get documents with a few errors. Now, people make hundreds of copies until each sheet is flawless and memos are duplicated endlessly. Managers get swamped with emails.” PeoplePaperComputerErrorsManagersCopiesDocumentsSheetsEmailFlawlessMemos Author:Felix Dennis
“I know there's a proverb which that says 'To err is human,' but a human error is nothing to what a computer can do if it tries.” IfsKnowsTryingHumansCan DoTechnologyComputerErrorsHuman ErrorErr Is Human Book:Hallowe'en party Source: Hallowe'en party
“Uh, what are you doing?” “Nothing much. Just erasing all of Calinda’s good grades and replacing them with incompletes. Eventually, the administrators will figure out what happened, but I’m making it look like a computer error. Still, I imagine she’ll get some nasty lectures from her profs and parents in the meantime.” LooksStillsParentImagineHappenedFiguresComputerErrorsGradesNastyLecturesDoing NothingAdministratorsGood Grades Book:Kiss of Frost Source: Kiss of Frost