Verhoeff J
Tijdschr Diergeneeskd. 1986 Jan 1;111(1):3-8.
We witnessed the stormy development of electronics during the last few years. The effects of this so-called micro-electronic revolution have gradually become noticeable in anyone's everyday life. This will penetrate into all our lives at an accelerated rate during the present century. The computer may be used as an automatic tool or as an independently operating instrument. In the former case (processing of texts and diagrams is an instance to bear in mind), man should see to it that he uses the tool as a creative individual himself. In the latter case, the strong features of the computer should be made use of. These are: Being able to wait patiently and attentively, which may stand in good stead in monitoring and alarming functions. Being able to react rapidly and accurately, a good quality in controlling a variety of well-defined processes in which the human ability to react fails. The ability to cope with and treat large amounts of data, in which the weak side of the computer should be taken into account, namely the assessment and recognition of situations. A good feature of these developments consists in the fact that man can dispose of a capable electronic slave. The unsatisfactory aspect is that a stupid electronic dictator may be imposed on man.
在过去几年里，我们见证了电子学的蓬勃发展。这场所谓的微电子革命的影响已逐渐在每个人的日常生活中显现出来。在本世纪，它将以更快的速度渗透到我们所有人的生活中。计算机既可以用作自动工具，也可以作为独立运行的仪器。在前一种情况下（文本和图表处理就是一个需要记住的例子），人应该确保自己作为有创造力的个体来使用这个工具。在后一种情况下，应利用计算机的强大功能。这些功能包括：能够耐心且专注地等待，这在监测和警报功能中可能很有用。能够快速准确地做出反应，这是控制各种明确过程的良好品质，而在这些过程中人类的反应能力会失效。能够处理大量数据，不过在这方面应考虑到计算机的弱点，即对情况的评估和识别。这些发展的一个优点是人类可以拥有一个能干的电子助手。令人不满的是，可能会有一个愚蠢的电子独裁者强加于人类。
