If the Darwinian innovations introduced by Mark Ludwig are any indication of coming trends in viral technique, then it’s not inconceivable that a vital ecology might someday flourish in the midst of our daily routines, unplanned, uncontained, ill-comprehended, and irrepressible. It’s an unnerving prospect. Yet it wouldn’t have to be – not if we prepared for it by actively cultivating a digital biodiversity of the sort Tom Ray proposes. This is a niche that will be filled, whether we fill it deliberately or not.
Predictor: Dibbell, Julian
Prediction, in context:In a 1995 article for Wired magazine, Julian Dibbell covers the concept that the study of computer viruses and worms can lead to gains for networking and computing, referencing the work of research scientists Tom Ray of the University of Delaware and Mark Ludwig. Dibbell writes: ”If the Darwinian innovations introduced by Mark Ludwig are any indication of coming trends in viral technique, then it’s not inconceivable that a vital ecology might someday flourish in the midst of our daily routines, unplanned, uncontained, ill-comprehended, and irrepressible. It’s an unnerving prospect. Yet it wouldn’t have to be – not if we prepared for it by actively cultivating a digital biodiversity of the sort Tom Ray proposes. This is a niche that will be filled, whether we fill it deliberately or not.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1994
Topic of prediction: Communication
Subtopic: Viruses/Worms
Name of publication: Wired
Title, headline, chapter name: Viruses Are Good For You: Spawn of the Devil, Computer Viruses May Help Us Realize the Full Potential of the Net
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.02/viruses_pr.html
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney