NWO; New World Order needs "Old Time Religion"; Welch Company

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Communication Metrics... new science for a new era

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New World Order Needs "Old Time Religion"

By: Rod Welch

1. Aristotle Has a Powerful Message; But, is There Time to Listen?
2. Limited Span of Attention Makes Communication Fragile
...Common Sense is Neither "Common" nor "Sensible"
3. Welcome to the New World Order of Information Overload
4. New Realities of 21st Century Require New Science, Tools and Roles
...Understanding, Follow Up Need Leadership with Broader Vision
5. Communication Metrics Empowers Leadership with a Broader Vision
6. Meaning Drift is the "Devil" in Murphy's Law
7. Law is a Slow, Costly Metric of Business Communication
8. Feel Good Management, Guess and Gossip Crashing on Information Highway
9. Communication Methods Must Transcend Human Mental Biology
...Technology Positions Meaning in Knowledge Space
...Knowledge Space Empowers Understanding and Follow Up
...Mental "connections" Form Organic Structure of Human Thinking
10. Back to the Future: "Religion" as Management Science
11. Automated Thinking: Leveraging the Capacity of the Mind
12. Intelligence New Way of Working Integrates Locality and Complementarity
13. Intelligence Tools Enable Practice of Knowledge Management
14. Intelligence Scope Outline Roles Responsibilities for Knowledge Management
15. Changing 5,000 Years of Management Practice Takes Leadership
16. Anytime, Anywhere Intelligence Makes the Internet an Asset
17. Clear, Concise Complete Communication Enables Due Diligence
18. Cognitive Overhead Knowledge Dilemma Resolved by Proactive Management
19. Business Intelligence Brings Creativity and Skill
20. Better Communication Saves Time and Money
21. Rework, Problem Handling Offer Income Potential
22. Transformation to Culture of Knowledge Takes Time, Commitment
....Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
....Alphabet Technology Namless Giant on Which Civiliaton Stands
....Prometheus Galelio Rewarded with Banishiment for Advancing Faith of Civiliaton
....Stealing Transformed to Cooperation and Production Innovaton of Civiliaton
....Farming Investment Strategy Experience Grows Faith in Deferred Rewards
....Socratic Skepticism Resists Alphabet Technology Talking and Listening Fast and Easy
23. Religion Keeper of Flame for 1000 Years Accuracy Authority Grows Faith Spreading the Word
24. Democracy Foundation of Literacy for Responsible Self-rule
25. Air Force Resisted No Requirement Until Experience in WWII Grew Faith
26. Personal Computers Augment Intelligence Economies of Scale in Vastness of Microcosm
....Edison Launched the Utilities Industry
....Nikola Tesla Operating System for 20th Century - Alternating Current
....Genie in the Bottle Powerless to Open the Bottle
....Cannot Give Away Solution Without Faith
....Westinghouse Releases the Genie in the Bottle
....Chicago World's Fair Open World's Eyes to City of Light
....Tesla Configured Light Bulbs to Turn Switches On and Off
....Eccles Jordon Digital Circuit
....Counting and Calculation Core Requirements of Civilization
....Leibniz Plants Seeds of Binary Mathematics Tilled by Boolean Logic
....Von Neumann Brought to America by Veblen to Advance Mathematics
....Turing Planted the Seeds of Software Programming
....Shannon Connects Electrical Circuits with Boolean Logic Design
....Binary Mathematics Empowered by Speed and Precision of Electricity
....World War II Accelerates Evolution of Calculating to Computers
....Atanasof Builds First Electronic Digital Computer
....Military Builds Big Computers for Intelligence and Ballistics
....Aikin and IBM Build Harvard Mark 1 for US Navy
26. ENIAC Case Study Collaboration and Collapse of Social Forces
....ENIAC Case Study Collaboration and Collapse of Social Forces
30. Taking the Quantum Leap into the 21st Century Takes Courage

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Aristotle Has a Powerful Message
But is There Enough Time to Listen?

In 400 B.C., Aristotle complained that the youth of his day lacked diligence and respect for their elders. This generational worry came to mind recently when visiting a museum in Salt Lake City. The curator explained that in the late 1800s a farmer, untrained in the arts, created a series of magnificent tapestries to depict the story of the Mormon trek across the continent. He was inspired by complaints that the youth of his day did not know the heroic effort by their elders to build a new community. The farmer-turned-artist traveled the territory showing his tapestries at public events. People awed by artful pictures, also, listened to stories of hard won experience, as diaries of those who had accomplished the feats shown in the tapestries, were read aloud at these events.
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This powerful story illustrates how the lessons of life take time to listen and learn .
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Today, we call the work undertaken by the farmer-turned artist....

Getting everyone on-board!

...and more simply, just.....

Communicating!
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Powerful technology enables people to tell their story farther and faster than in earlier times. Yet, despite constant calls, meetings, email, movies, television and radio, indeed an...

Information Highway

...communication remains the challenge of the ages.
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CEOs, managers, political leaders, engineers, pundits, educators and experts from every field daily cry out the classic line from the 1970s movie "Cool Hand Luke."

What we have here is a... Failure to Communicate! ..
Why hasn't a quantum leap in information improved communication?
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Why doesn't more information result in better performance instead of misunderstanding, mistakes, frustration and losses? Aristotle made another observation in 400 BC that offers a powerful solution, if only we have time to listen...

The least initial deviation from the truth is
multiplied later a thousandfold!
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Stories Drive Reasoning from Sensory Perception
Common Sense is Neither "Common" nor "Sensible"
Limited Span of Attention Makes Communication Fragile

The human mind builds meaning by summarizing details from the chronology of events into related blocks of information, called "stories," that have a beginning an end and a lesson or rule about cause and effect. Human mental metrics synthesize new information into stories linked with prior experience to understand cause and effect for making decisions. Professionals research and assemble disparate stories to construct compelling and cogent lessons learned from history. The market for history satisifes the innate process of continual learning that constantly constructs and tests lessons, paradigms, and rules for survival.
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Jeremy Campbell explains in his book, The Improbable Machine reviewed on March 3, 1990, how the brain "stores" information chronologically that is encountered through sensory perception from experience performing tasks. Reading a book, digging a ditch, observing a sunset the intelligence process of mental biology connects daily experience into patterns that associate cause and effect based on the context of human needs, generally described in the work place as objectives, requirements, and commitments. (see POIMS) The mind further connects patterns of information into stories that are communicated through oral narrative in meetings, conversations, and formal speeches, and, also, through written narrative, sometimes called documentation and reporting. (see POIMS).
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Professional writers sift through and analyze targeted portions of oral and written narrative to convert seemingly mundane experiences of daily life into stories that enlighten and entertain. The power of history to enlighten current decisions about future events reflects human mental biology that understands life through stories, as expressed by the common question...

What's the story? ..
The most common form of communication summarizes stories in conversation based on first impression. When asked "What's the story," meetings that last hours, even days, are summarized in a few words or sentences. Until the details are written out and instructions are given with the weight of authority and consequences, which occurs infrequently as the number of meetings, calls and email rises, cursory impressions summarized through conversation, rumor, guess and gossip, routinely become operational understandings that drive daily work toward error. These familiar dynamics present a significant opportunity to improve productivity with the POIMS process of thinking through writing by summarizing complex events, and adding connections to relevant details that triangulate accuracy with context, analysis, and precision access to background and sources.
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Writing a summary with links to details in the full record increases understanding and personal memory, even if nobody ever reads it. If the record is distributed, then organizational memory and management are greatly improved by communication that conveys accurate operational understanding for taking timely, effective action under the rule that... a little intelligence goes a long way in a big organization. Since working intelligently requires reliance on the record, adding links ensure that, if people read the record, they can quickly become familiar with critical details that otherwise escape notice until error occurs. While it's true that people learn from mistakes, it is, also, true that investing time to write a coherent summary and adding links helps expand span of attention for learning how to avoid the devil in the details that cause mistakes. Proactive management to get the story right and empower timely, accurate understanding with links to critical details, converts continual bumbling into continual learning. Accordingly, routinizing the practice of summary connected to detail that makes sense of complexity is a powerful part of Communication Metrics, essential for clear, concise, complete communication.
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Journalism reporting the daily news routinely applies practices of summary by constructing headlines that convey the main points. Additionally, the first paragraph expands on a headline with a few sentences that summarize the entire story. Consumers depend on the reporter to accurately summarize news, but only rarely do news articles impact our work and lives. On the job, however, accuracy of summary for operational understanding is essential to get things done correctly in order to save lives, time and money. This requires practices and mechanisms for precision access that empower people to quickly verify summary impressions, and expand span of attention with context, correlations, implications and nuance that impact the work. Thus, the first challenge in the new world order is to answer the question "What's the story" with an accurate summary connected to relevant details.
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When stories conflict with personal experience, when a story seems incorrect, or when there isn't enough time to get the full story then mistakes, frustration, anger, loss, pain, conflict, crisis and calamity cause people to complain that...

Nobody listens! ..
Writing history reflects the value of experience that makes time and context critical components of knowledge, as distinct from information acquired through sensory perception, and is often expressed by the introduction to a story...

Once upon a time...
The biological drive to survive by understanding cause and effect correctly through an accurate chronology in stories can further be seen from the common question people ask...

Then what happened? ..
Reporting the sequence of events in an accurate chronology enables continual learning by continually correlating new information with prior experience that refines understanding of causation, which drives human reasoning, shown by research on March 19, 1990. Accurate personal and organizational memory of chronology therefore enables decision support for working intelligently. (see POIMS) People exercise judgement about the veracity of a story based on faith from belief about cause and effect established by experience and history. A story is not plausible nor believable, and so Does not hold water, as the saying goes, if the sequence of events conflicts with a lot of experience and with credible history showing that events usually do not occur in the manner conveyed.
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Human mental machinery seems fast and easy handling experience, knowledge and history because we don't have to stop and puzzle about how information fits together. The subconscious mind makes millions of calculations instantly without bothering conscious attention (see POIMS). The constant stream of information from daily life automatically and miraculously accumulates into experience organized for survival, and memory of experience is applied seemlessly and instantly to fill in the gaps missed by the conscious span of attention in order to understand the "Big Picture." However, truth is a moving target. The mind routinely draws incorrect details from memory that seem to fit the "Big Picture," but in fact conflict with prior experience; and, even when memory of details is correct the picture is often out of date, because circumstances have changed from prior experience.
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Moreover, "truth" moves much faster on the Information Highway of today. This greatly increases the chances of deviations being overlooked that worried Aristotle so long ago. In other words, unless used properly to leverage human mental acuity, technology brings mistakes, disaster and constant crisis, rather than better productivity by relying on common sense. As a result, truth needs an ally on the Information Highway, and this need grows as technology increases the pace of life.
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Therefore, designing technology to improve management begins with the question of how human mental machinery works? (see also, POIMS on the architecture of human thought)
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The automatic pilot of the human mind makes connections to construct a plausible story without great effort nor appreciable time, so that we can comprehend and cope with evolving conditions moment to moment. But, over time, stories fragment and disconnect in the mind, due to limited span of attention. Our memory of truth changes, but we are unaware of change because our attention is on other matters. Each day, new information encountered, even on unrelated matters, gradually changes the mind's perception of truth by evolving new belief that is strongly held, yet different from what we previously knew. This continual biological cognitive process of making connections makes truth a moving target that escapes attention when small, seemingly inconsequential, details slip quietly past our span of attention to change the stories stored in the mind. Unless discovered and corrected, either by fortuitous accident or through proactive management, to maintain alignment, this innate mental dynamic launches a chain of events that eventually explode in error, failure, conflict, crisis and calmity.
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Alphabet technology evolved thousands of years ago into a proactive practice of literacy to overcome limitations of human mental biology by preserving history (our "stories"), so that information can be used regardless of immediate conditions under the rule "past is prologue." Writing expands span of attention, by readily alerting us to forgotten "stories."
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But, it takes time to write!
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We have to stop talking and hearing long enough to invest time for research, puzzle about organization and analysis of correlations, implications, and nuance that make listening effective by accurately understanding cause and effect, essential to supplement, correct, and refine connections made by a busy mind day-to-day.
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Museums and libraries are an investment to preserve important history, so that an entire culture can accurately remember the "truth," despite giving attention to immediate conditions in the present, and to hopes and worries about the future. For individuals who make up a culture, be it a nation, a community, an organization, group or family, at each moment in the present, the mind is using experience from the past to make plans for the future. The viability of decisions, actions and plans in the present depend on access to the truth about our past. It seems, therefore, to follow, that technology must find a way to emulate the mind's ability to integrate the past, present and future, in order to provide useful "time management."
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History alone, however, is not enough to overcome limited span of attention. We need time to visit the museum in order to discover and analyse relevant history. If there is not enough time for discovery, then we need someone to bring the museum to the people, as the storied farmer did. This requires a proactive process of investing time to capture, organize, analyse, identify and present the chronology that gives meaning to current events in a convenient form showing context and alignment with objectives, so that a manager, burdened by constant activity, can quickly find information for particular subjects at the time it is needed.
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What then can be done to give truth an ally?

Who has the time?
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The military has a long tradition using proactive intelligence. Why is intelligence needed in the military, but not in business?
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A major effort in military intelligence is capturing information on current and future capabilities, threats and opportunities. (see outline on scope) Another aspect of intelligence work is to organize, analyse, align, and verify the accuracy of new information. Intelligence is summarized to provide perspective for decision support on the "big picture." Links to critical details are maintained that ensure action is supported by the record. Analysis looks for patterns of cause and effect, from alignment with prior intelligence and history, that reveal nuance, correlations and implications, which support conclusions based on experience with similar circumstances about capabilities, threats and opportunities.
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History shows that, if relevant experience, i.e., the true story, is discovered in time, then mistakes can be avoided. If not, time imposes a harsh penalty as small mistakes grow into catastrophe under Aristotle's rule.
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Why then isn't intelligence needed in business?

The military is charged with preserving the life of the community, the nation, the entire culture. When the risk of error is high, then front-end investment to discover the truth in time to avoid loss is readily justified. Nobody demands cost savings for military intelligence that saves the nation. A business, however, that drifts off course, that fails to use good management for discovering the truth in time to avoid failure, can be replaced. Moreover, it can often sustain loss, due to lack of intelligence, and recover in time to avoid failure and extinction, thanks to the umbrella of the military that preserves the cultural environment which makes recovery possible for a business that drifts off course. Therefore, the need for intelligence is relatively less in business because the risk, size and pace of activity in business is smaller and slower than for the military.
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As a result, up until now, the advantage of intelligence to discover the "truth" in time to avoid problems, crisis, loss and conflict, and to capitalize on opportunities, has not been evident to business leaders, as it is to military leaders. (see POIMS)
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Today, leadership with a broader vision is observing accelerated growth in the pace of modern life through globalzation. Technology that compresses time and distance to enable economies of scale necessarily increases information encountered by the mind through ordinary sensory perception, primarily sight and sound. Increasing information density beyond the limits of human mental biology necessarily overwhelms people, and therefore requires investment and training to use complementary technology for intelligence support to help "connect the dots." Leadership that grasps Doctor Miller's exposition at Harvard on mental limits cannot help but see that mind numbing complexity dramatically increases error, loss, conflict, crisis and calamity under Aristotle's rule. The accelerated pace of information technology presents an irreversable force. Leadership with a broader vision diligently prepares for transformation to technology that converts information from ticking time bombs into the power of knowledge. (see locality principle)
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We cannot afford to continue creeping toward a future that is rushing toward us with overpowering danger of reaching critical mass from continual bumbling. Increased risk of error, loss and failure necessarily adds urgency for developing intelligence capability in the general population beyond traditional military practice.
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This new, emerging threat to the vitality of enterprise in a faster paced world requires a better partnership between technology and leadership at the dawn of the 21st century. Whereas military success is measured in victories on the battlefield realized by effective intelligence, success outside the military is measured by productivity, earnings and stock prices that rise and fall on the strength, i.e., quality of management. A direct solution to increased threat of error due to exploding complexity that defeats enterprise is adding intelligence to management that enables proactive discovery of problems for adjusting course before mistakes occur, and before opportunity is lost. Since communication precedes action, intelligence can be accomplished in enterprise by devising technology and support for analysis that enables people to keep up with the moving target of "truth" on the Information Highway of today.
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The new reality of the 21st century is that, without intelligence, the practice of management implodes toward an entropic model of mere guess and gossip causing continual bumbling, loss, conflict, crisis and calamity, reported by Fortune (June 21, 1999, page 69). The Tofflers, authors of Future Shock, maintain that continual learning is the only skill that enables people to meet the challenge of expanding complexity wrought by expanding technology. Learning is a mental process that integrates intelligence and communication in the architecture of human thought (see POIMS). As the 21st century unfolds, technology must aim to avoid continual bumbling by strengthening literacy through continual learning using a process of intelligence that enables proactive concurrent discovery, rather than allow the future to merely arrive with increasingly disastrous consequences.
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People think of "communication" as dialog and documents perceived in the moment for conveying information. Communication training mainly covers talking and listening that use natural biological talents for speaking, hearing, and seeing information, because these capabilities are overwhelmingly evident in life, and so seem to be the dominate force for getting things done.
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Visual images, icons and pictures are viewed as simple, direct means to acquire "understanding" as graphical expressions linked to basic values. The goal of communication is seen as "Winning people over," getting people to say "Yes!" An example is the proverbial "big picture" which connotes an image that ties understanding critical information together with the "bottom line" of important values, e.g., profit. Belief that talking and pictures are adequate communication reflects the success of "talking pictures" in the movies that seem to emulate daily life.
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This is a false, albeit alluring, prescription, however, because actual communication occurs in the human mind that processes information from speech and pictures into higher forms for decision making which is the lifeblood of civilization, i.e., knowledge, wisdom, vision.
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Convincing communication is crucial for leadership to make a sale, to get someone to say yes. But, the harsh new reality for the practice of management in the New World Order evolving from advances in technology is that truth is a moving target on the Information highway, and so now more is needed for effective communication to supplement convincing speech in order to perform the work resulting from leadership.
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The rush to be convincing will not be enough to avoid the calamity of false knowledge that flows when the balance between leadership, understanding and follow up is ignored. This reflects the fact that communication is more than talking and listening; it is more than giving orders and being convincing, that in fact...

communication

...has both short and long-term components

...similar to human mental machinery that uses a system of conscious and subconscious processes for managing the torrent of details encountered in a busy day.
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For the short-term, here-and-now, emotional appeal is critical; but, to get things done correctly and on time over the long-term, accurate understanding and timely follow up are critical. In today's world and the powerful new realities of the 21st century, the long-term components of communication now need daily directed effort to bring the museum to the people, i.e., history, chronology, causation, understanding.
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A more robust model of communication then includes...

leadership ...for talking people into saying "yes" (see POIMS), but must, also, include, in a faster, more complex world, support for... understanding
follow-up ..
In this model, communication is the bridge between past millenia of evolving information technologies (convey a message with talk, literacy, printing press, telegraph, telephone, television, wordprocessing, email, Powerpoint), and the future that now demands a culture of knowledge to connect the dots for understanding cause and effect.
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People are familiar with the leadership role of persuasion, talking people into saying "yes," e.g., to buy the Brooklyn Bridge. However, until now, the intelligence part of communication needed to build a strong, timely bridge, has been hidden under the mantle of "common sense." Executives are "common sense" people who like to talk.
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Talking and listening are here-and-now techniques for immediate conditions that are within our span of attention. As more and more time is devoted to talking and listening, there is less time to think. Thinking is the engine of understanding and follow-up, i.e., a mental process that links new information in the present to the lessons learned from the past, and to plans for the future. So, when people say they do not have enough time to think, they are crying out for help in converting the ceaseless noise of daily information into useful knowledge and ideas. The resulting loss of intelligence vitiates the vitality of intellectual capital that enables progress (see POIMS).
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Thinking is a natural human process. Like breathing that processes air to get oxygen, the mind processes information to get knowledge and ideas by connecting patterns of cause and effect that guide decisions about actions. This constantly expanding web of connections comprises the "intelligence" that requires more attention in the New World Order. (see also POIMS)
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Executives and managers feel they can make up for not having enough time to think by relying on "common sense." Experts teach that only 20% of daily details impact 80% of management results. Therefore, common sense says the "20-80 rule" enables relying on understanding the gist of things, rather than investing time to think that adds intelligence to information for producing actual knowledge.
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Conflicts between new patterns of information and what we already know cause caution, such that "common sense" -- our knowledge from past experience -- restrains taking new paths. Courage ignores (rises above) mental conflicts, leading to actions that defy common sense. Credible sources, authority figures (e.g., a boss, commander), a charismatic leader, or salesperson, all encourage actions which conflict with common sense.
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Experience changes "common sense."

Bad results lead to fear of change, or impart wisdom, i.e., "been there, done that," which restrains precipitous change, changing for the sake of change, change in the wrong direction. Favorable results broaden our vision to new possibilities that bring faith in trying new ideas, willingness to experiment and discover. Thus, common sense is unique to each individual. It is our life experience, our history. Its lessons are in constant flux, as each day, each hour, indeed each second, we gain new experience (history) that the mind uses to process subsequent information.
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As a result, without intelligence that connects summary to detail, and adds analysis, organization and alignment to information, "common sense" is an emotional roller coaster pulling the mind in whatever direction the most convincing speech of the moment happens to take.
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Leadership uses communication to build common alignment that filters out momentary sieches of impulse, doubt and division by creating a common story about common objectives that empower common action, called "cooperation," also, "collaboration." The result of strong leadership is a successful community in the form of a project, department, company, agency, city, state or a nation.
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In this model, history and action make communication a bridge between the past and future.

Since understanding history and planning follow-up improve the long-term chances of a community, (i.e., team, department, company, agency, city, state or nation) to succeed, these processes must be key components of communication. Despite the importance of understanding and follow-up, however, they are at war with human nature, which focuses limited span of attention on immediate concerns.
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In today's world, a constant flow of information makes people feel that communication is accomplished solely by talking and listening, primarily in meetings, and that understanding and follow-up are achieved by more talking and listening, i.e. more meetings, calls and email.
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The need for dedicated processes of...

thinking and planning

...or what might be called...

intelligence

...to organize and analyse information for alignment with controlling forces, is hidden by the social and genetic power of speech as the sole dimension of communication.
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This dynamic requires strong leadership to ensure that intelligence is added to information so that communication is a bridge between the past and the future, rather than a mere purveyor of...

guess and gossip ..
Talking and listening evolved as unique human strengths to enable cooperation for spontaneous and near-term decisions driven by emotional needs to survive.
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Communication enhances individual survival by leveraging common efforts that yield "community." For example...

We are hungry and cold.

You get the food, I'll build a fire. ...reflects obvious advantages of spoken language to coordinate efforts by conveying detailed human thought in a clear and unambiguous manner. The ability to devise a system of sounds that consistently signify the same objects, actions and ideas over time, and at a low enough level of detail for people to grasp critical distinctions that impact survival, enabled humans to flourish well beyond any other species. A system of consistent signals and reliable understanding from the sound of human speech is so critical to maintaining community that the process came to be called "communication."
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Two key features of early communication were...

Close relationship in time between speech and results.
understanding.

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Action provides feedback that shows communication is understood. Thousands of years using speech to satisfy immediate needs, leads to a focus in formal education, expert training, seminars and self-help books on talking and listening skills to improve the short-term, emotional component of communication for leadership and selling.
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The role of speech for human bonding in love, friendship and association, reinforces the traditional feeling that communication is a powerful, here-and-now function that is accomplished by talking and listening. Much of this kind of communication does not require understanding and follow-up. Talking and listening alone build short-term relationships, and so create the impression that talking and listening are adequate communication in the more complex arena of management practice.

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Welcome to the New World Order of Information Overload

The power and success of traditional communication that focused on leadership and selling through dialog and documents (i.e., pictures and sound) has created a new reality that will increasingly need greater proactive effort on understanding and follow up, more commonly called....
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l i s t e n i n g ..
At the dawn of the 21st Century, the success of civilization from success augmenting human capacities (e.g., mathematics, alphabet, printing press, science, ships, telegraph, trains, airplanes, telephone, wordprocessing, email, etc) has spawned new realities of technology that compress time and distance. The degree of compression is now reaching a point that makes civilization too complex for continued reliance on the traditional practice of listening solely by relying on innate mental biology for talking, hearing, and interpretting with memory and common sense. Increasing the pace of activity causes understanding the gist of the story to fall precipitously toward less than about 10%, (see report on September 26, 2000), creating a constant fog of war on the job. Peter Drucker urges people to prepare for growing complexity. He cites "planning" and "analysis" as critical, and suggests that growing pressures of limited time and attention can be met by following lessons from cognitive science. (see Atlantic Monthly, October, 1999)
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Drucker is correct on both counts: the new world order is increasingly complex, and the solution requires integrating management science, computer science, and cognitive science.
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Key new realities of this new world order are more...

People
Controls

Information

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More people talking, more things to talk about and more technology result in more time devoted to spontaneous, stream-of-conscious communication in meetings, discussions, email, fax and telephone calls. People feel frustrated that everybody's talking and nobody's listening. On the Information Highway, there is not enough time to listen, to understand nor to follow up, because information overload means there is...
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not enough time to think ..
It's too noisy!
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The result is less listening, i.e., less...

Understanding, i.e., organization, analysis, alignment, summary and feedback
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Follow up, i.e., planning, preparation, action
Earnings, i.e., action aligned with objectives

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How can we convert the growing cacophony of daily "noise" into useful knowledge that is organized, analysed and integrated into the work flow on a consistent basis. In other words, how can we add intelligence to information, not just once in awhile when the boss is looking, but rather, as Drucker calls out: routinely? How can we make good management routine, rather than sporadic and rare?
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Any such effort must begin with some hard fundamentals, i.e., "old realities."
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People like to talk, and are drawn to rely on pictures, because sight and sound are powerful biological gifts. Evolution over thousands of years has wired the human mind to overtly rely on these faculties. Subconsciously, a different faculty -- thinking, intelligence, reasoning, analysing -- processes input from sight and sound. But, there is little awareness of this task because it occurs spontaneously, without evident effort, time or cost. People, therefore, tend to consider investing time and money to improve sight and sound, for example, buying a telephone that leverages hearing, or buying a car that makes it faster and easier to observe remote locations, or getting an email program to see sooner what others write, and enable others to see sooner what we write, or buying a wordprocessing program leverages our information with convincing style and appearance that rivals the power of professional publishers, as more critical than leveraging the power of intelligence for understanding what to do by processing what we see, hear, say, write and think more accurately. Since this has not been done previously with technology, people are reluctant to invest time and treasure to improve thinking that doesn't seem to take any time, nor require any cost.
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The desire to speak to get spontaneous action, rather than invest time for thinking to understand, and planning to follow-up, is strong because rewards from relationships are high, and common sense from a lifetime of experience strongly indicates that speech works. Common sense says that more people means more relationships that require more time to build and maintain. If rewards are based on good relationships and good relations result from good talking and listening skills, then those communication skills will be emphasized.
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These dynamics skew rewards toward talking and listening because every communication impacts personal relationships.

Higher rewards for talking and listening come at the expense of thinking to understand and planning to follow-up, because there is not enough time to both talk and listen in constant meetings, calls and email, and, also, deliberate by thinking and planning. Strong relationships mean recognition, promotion and insulation from failure. At the extreme, this is the "apple polisher," the sycophant, who is more form than substance. Communication becomes a constant game of "guess and gossip," as people move up by talking their way out of accountability for mistakes, and talking their way into credit for good results, despite lack of alignment with relevant facts that support either conclusion. Population growth leads to communication as entertainment that engenders belief in the speaker to build relationships and provide relief from worry, rather than understanding and follow-up to get the work done correctly so that there is less to worry about.
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As a result, the frustrations and harm of failed communication from talking and listening, and its modern cousin, "email," will increase, unless the balance is restored by better technology to enhance understanding and follow-up, without impairing the natural drive for talking and listening.
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People are not going to stop talking long enough to understand and follow up.

Why?
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Why doesn't common sense work?

Why can't we just have another meeting so everyone understands, send more email to follow-up, and then go home? That's what everybody else is doing. It has always worked before? Why isn't it good enough now and in the future? What is changing that requires a change in the practice of management from traditional reliance on the gist of things based on good communication skills to talk and listen?
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The answer lies in Aristotle's insight about the role of time, and in cultural resistance to change where "common sense" flows from ignorance, which becomes fear and denial of change in the hope that talking and listening can meet the realities of a new world order.
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Ignorance can be overcome by work in Cognitive Science explaining how meaning and understanding occur in the mind, so that technology and management science can fashion a solution to the time/information problem. Fear can be overcome by demonstrating that better understanding and follow-up enhance productivity, earnings, and prestige by increasing the rate at which information can be converted into knowledge and ideas for managing effectively in the modern era of the Information Highway, similar to the way a backhoe is welcomed because it processes more earth into excavations than can be done by manual means.
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Denial can be overcome by leadership with a broader vision that provides opportunity for the team to transcend common sense by experiencing technology that lifts the capacity to think, remember and communicate. Without courageous leadership to encourage and sustain intelligence support, only hard won experience from continued failure can overcome ignorance, fear and denial, because common sense reliance on talking and listening to understand the gist of things is a powerful force in human affairs.
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The distinction between short and long-term communication can be seen from familiar communication when a baby cries and gets...
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feedback
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...in the form of a cookie. When the baby is calmed, the mother gets feedback showing there was a correct, or at least sufficient, understanding of what was intended. Experience growing up using speech to express needs, and getting feedback when people to take intended action, reinforces the power of talking and hearing to satisfy immediate needs, i.e., to command action from others.
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As in ancient times, short-term leadership through talking and listening (e.g., sharing knowledge and ideas, discussing options, giving orders and direction) was successful, because near-term action is a feedback metric of communication. Near-term feedback loops make talking and listening effective communication methods that encourage community, especially in hunter/gatherer settings where near-term collaboration enables a weaker species to pool collective strength and coordinate action for defeating larger prey and predators. This genetic benefit borne of a different time and circumstance, when immediate action was important to survival, creates a strong biological urge, impulse and drive to rely on speech for communication, and to assume that, having spoken, needed action will occur.
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But in modern times, most communication concerns action that occurs in the future by people other than those involved in the immediate discussion. Speech and correspondence affect a complex range of actions by people and organizations at disparate locations; much of it unclear at the moment, and most of it exceeds limited span of attention.
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As a result, today, once past the baby stage, there is less immediate feedback action in the communication process that verifies understanding. Impulse to express feelings is restrained in order to maintain civility by appealing to common interests rather than impose personal whim. Sensitivity and diplomacy in communication empower community action. Hiring, research, planning, design, finance, procurement, fabrication, marketing, distribution, and so on, entail speech disconnected by time from feedback action needed for effective communication metrics. This increases the burden to obtain proactive feedback during the communication process, by asking questions to clarify meaning and intent, rather than waiting day, weeks, months and years for action to occur that verifies understanding. These new realities are opposed by social dynamics that impede feedback, and thus reduce understanding, which causes continual bumbling under Aristotle's rule.
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New realities of communication are...

The passage of time between speech and action, in combination with social dynamics impair feedback to understand cause and effect.
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More information increases complexity beyond human span of attention, i.e., patterns of cause and effect are obscured.
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There is not enough time to think, i.e. to connect information and preserve patterns of cause and effect, because information flow is fast and constant.

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This fast emerging business environment spawned by success using traditional management methods of the Old World Order, require investing time in the long-term components of communication...

thinking to understand, and

planning to follow up ..
Why not leave thinking and planning to personal prerogative and simply perform them on-the-fly as in the past?

Because technology has created a New World Order, a new reality, where information flows too fast for old methods of management by remembering only the gist of the story, i.e., relying on whatever pops into the mind at the moment, to be effective. The risk and the cost of error and of overlooking opportunity are too high to ignore in the 21st century.
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Things must fit together correctly, i.e., physical objects and coordination of human effort must occur in the proper sequence based on an evolving framework of objectives, commitments, requirements, contracts, policies, codes, regulations and laws. In the modern era, this highly complex array of factors constantly exceeds human span of attention that is limited to only about seven (7) subjects, shown by Professor George Miller's research, reviewed on March 3, 1999. When people are engaged in the dynamics of dialog, which, itself, requires full attention to speak and hear, limited span of attention causes error due to oversight that is commonly excused by saying...

I don't have time to think!

Without effective listening to understand proper sequence and follow up to verify accuracy, then powerful communication skills for talking people into saying "Yes!" causes endless rework, frustration, anger, loss, failure, conflict, crisis and calamity, when little deviations in the beginning cascade over time under Aristotle's rule.

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New Realities Require New Science, Tools and Roles
Understanding and Follow Up Need Leadership with Broader Vision

This paper explains a technology and science to leverage the new realities of management in a way that supports the innate mental process of integrating time and information, commonly called intelligence, which organizes and analyses information to create knowledge, wisdom and vision, i.e., the derivatives of understanding.
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Follow up performs work using plans for getting things done. Feedback loops notify of perceived errors and omissions in planning, communication, and other instruments directing action, and further report experience performing work that guides plans for future action, including making timely corrections. Follow up and feedback are closely related intelligence support processes that refine accuracy of knowledge by integrating new understandings into the work flow in time to avoid mistakes, and exploit opportunities. Intelligence support for follow up and feedback occurs with correspondence giving written notice of perceived error, and/or through personal briefings that sound the alert. Granular addressability links feedback into Knowledge Space for clear, concise, complete communication that builds shared meaning, essential for collaboration.
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Without follow up and feedback linked to original understandings (see example on Nov 26, 1996), action flows naturally along the path of least resistance rather than align with objectives, requirements, and commitments. Continual bumbling, delay, failure, loss, conflict, crisis, and calamity occur when critical correlations, implications and nuance are overlooked due to complexity of information density. Skillful, convincing speech talks people into taking actions that conflict with controlling forces which are outside span of attention. Negative forces of feel good management are reinforced by strong resistance against timely feedback. As a result, without intelligence support, seemingly inconsequential mistakes are hidden by the fog of war and quickly compound over time under Aristotle's rule. People are led down the wrong path by the powerful enigma of Murphy's Law
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While it is no secret that intelligence is the engine of civilization, little consideration has been given to how technology can leverage this process. People snicker about Military Intelligence, but at least they are trying. Business, up until now, has ignored the opportunity to improve earnings by adding intelligence to management. This worked in the Old World Order of small organizations and information flow that was contained by geography and the limitations of human capacities. Today, however, technology has brought a new reality of unconstrained information flow that feeds the drive to manage by crisis, by impression, by hunch and hope, by guess and gossip. This new reality requires intelligence support for daily management, which can be accomplished by adding properly designed business metrics to communications, analogous to cost and schedule controls.
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The first step is distinguishing information from communication. Peter Drucker notes these are very different. This powerful insight suggests the Information Highway may be leading us down the wrong path. Shoving more information at people in a constant stream of dialog and documents overwhelms understanding and follow up, i.e., true communication fails.
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Leadership with a broader vision recognizes a simple fact: people are driven by genetics, culture and training to rely on talking and listening. These skills seem to offer a fast, easy way to achieve understanding. But, aligning new information to create the connections with prior experience and values that comprise true understanding is too complex for the mind to perform under new realities of a faster-paced world on the Information Highway.
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The solution is not to get off the highway, not to slow down information, but to speed up and support the process of...

i n t e l l i g e n c e

...that converts information into knowledge. Intelligence makes communication effective in building and maintaining shared meaning over time so that people can work together effectively to achieve common ends, i.e., cooperate in forming a successful community. One part of intelligence is organizing information into categories or subjects. Communication must use common subjects on which most agree; for example, everyone pretty much uses the common subjects in education of reading, writing, arithmetic, art, history and so on. Government has subjects of politics, police, justice, transportation... These long established subjects on which the community agrees comprise a "culture." Another part of intelligence is alignment. Individually, people align their plans and conduct largely with personal needs: food, shelter, safety and so on. Community, also, requires common values. The U.S. Declaration of Independence lists life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. These basic values are supported by laws and regulations, and they are pursued by common agreements called contracts. Daily activity is guided by guidelines, industry practice, policies, tradition and manners. Communication then requires alignment with a huge, complex array of values and subjects held in common culture. This is a big job.
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Intelligence is critical to effective communication that empowers the modern-day community by building and maintaining shared meaning in a constantly changing information environment.
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The Achilles' heel of communication is limited span of attention that is overwhelmed by an exploding universe of information and complex details of cause and effect.
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Span of attention varies between people. Some people focus well on only one thing at a time. Others have a broader attention span that covers 2, 4 or more issues at once. But, like a juggler, everyone's span of attention is limited. When it is exceeded, things fall by the wayside. Everyone sees the juggler's failure. Mistakes are a form of business metric that alert the juggler to slow down, use fewer objects, or get help to handle the work load. But, limited span of attention occurs within the human mind, beyond human sight; it escapes notice. (see also POIMS) When there is not much new information that requires attention, there is time to think. Thinking, i.e., adding "intelligence" to information, broadens our attention to recognize overlooked correlations, implications and connections of cause and effect that impact objectives, cost and success.
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As information flows faster, intelligence cannot process it fast enough to generate accurate connections with what we already know about what was said and what it means, i.e., history. We get only cursory impressions and overlook correlations, implications and nuance.
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Unlike the juggler, however, we cannot see overlooked subjects and alignment (i.e., failed "intelligence") until we bump into them much later as mistakes. The passage of time between mental oversight and its manifestation as a mistake, and because the original cause occurred outside our span of attention, results in there being no awareness of the true cause of mistakes. Our attention is on the here-and-now, so it is not evident that truth is a moving target. Stress, frustration and worry about consequences and accountability, further constrain our attention.
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We get mad, lash out at others, rush to apply the quick-fix that feels good at the moment; or, we ignore and cover up, delaying and often transferring eventual adjustment to another time and another person (accounting, contractor, customer, judge, surety, stockholders). We then move on until another overlooked factor is encountered, that is compounded by the first one that has been forgotten. Problems mount and reappear because neither ignorance, cover ups nor the quick-fix address the cause.
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Thus, limited span of attention compounds mistakes into crisis under Aristotle's rule, but reality is a feedback metric that forces previously overlooked and erroneous connections of cause and effect into our span of attention. This iterative process of correcting corrections is commonly called problem handling and expediting. It is a continuous cycle of rework that takes up most of management's time. Since executives and managers spend most of their time talking and listening to build and maintain relationships in complex organizations, and since this form of communication is vulnerable to limited span of attention. Lack of awareness about the cause of the rework is excused as Murphy's Law.
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If unchecked by strong leadership, rework grows into "crisis management." The desire to avoid accountability leads to fear of documentation. Lack of documentation reduces span of attention, resulting in feel good management that relies on guess and gossip, hunch and hope. Soon, there is talk of "reengineering" and downsizing.
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How can we break out of the rework cycle caused by limited span of attention being overwhelmed by the new reality of information overload on the Information Highway?

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Communication Metrics -- Leadership with a Broader Vision
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The rework cycle and crisis management can be addressed by expanding span of attention through a powerful nexus of technology with sound fundamentals that forms a new management science of Communication Metrics. Adding a specially designed business "metric" to the communication process supports understanding and follow-up that together leverage the dominant force of civilization: intelligence. Adding a new work role to create intelligence and deliver it to the team in a manner that is fast and easy to use, improves performance and earnings by reducing mistakes and discovering opportunity. Expanding span of attention makes information a powerful ally rather than an overwhelming burden.
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To see how these new forces can shape a better world, we must first look back at the Old World Order.

Legends, pictures, sculpture, poetry and song, even cliches and homilies are simple but enduring means by which each generation builds shared meaning and maintains it over time, despite the propensity of our mental machinery to forget the past while focusing on the here-and-now. Fundamental principles of survival encoded in art, ritual and tradition comprise the "order" that sustains culture. The evolution of writing provided another means to capture and preserve shared meaning over time.
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Writings in Commandments, the Magna Carta, constitutions, laws, regulations, guidelines, contracts all preserve and instruct us on implementing lessons of the past. The march of civilization is marked by the struggle for better ways to capture, preserve and apply intellectual capital, i.e., our knowledge and ideas, our guiding principles for effective community. Seemingly, from the beginning of time we have hungered for more and faster information. But today, technology has opened an Information Highway which for many has become a Pandora's Box of information overload, because an incessant flow of information overwhelms the mind's limited capacity to understand and follow-up, due to limited span of attention.
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Our short-term communication skills to talk and listen are strong thanks to technology, training and culture, where movies and television daily provide examples of how to speak effectively. An article in Fortune magazine (June 21, 1999 p. 69) on why CEOs fail, illustrates the power of innocent efforts and objectives that cause talented people to cause harm, conflict, crisis, and calamity by losing sight of time and context in the blur of daily work. Critical details suddenly seem benign and inconseqential because there isn't enough time in the New World Order for people to accomplish long-term components of communication: (1) understand context by "connecting the dots" showing cause and effect; so, naturally (2) follow-up looks like unnecessary overkill. As a result, individuals, organizations, entire nations lose perspective. We cannot see the gradual drift off course as each day small deviations from the true state of affairs go unnoticed due to the pace and turbulence of near term events that occupy our span of attention. As a result we cannot align new information with history and objectives, essential to stay on course.
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The tapestry that shows the right course is in the museum. The law is in a book at the courthouse. The contract is on our desk, but we are in the CEO's office, or on a plane. The letter is in our files. Email is in the computer. We don't have time right now to be prepared, i.e., go to the museum, check the law, the contract, the files or the email, but intend to do so later. When later comes we are too busy to check our notes, because, without precision access, nobody can find relevant details on immediate needs. Instead of checking the record, we recall that no one objected to anything at the meeting, so it seems safe to assume everything was accurate. Just to be sure, we call a colleague and ask if he remembers anything different. He says no; remembering the gist of the meeting is about the same, but will check his notes and call back. We go to another meeting. The colleague doesn't call back. Questions on accuracy of the previous meeting are forgotten, while concentrating on the current meeting, call, or document.
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A week later the president asks about key understandings from the meeting. Since the president asks, everyone now invests time to find the notes. After much scurrying and consternation, a secretary finds a Powerpoint presentation filed in a "fax" folder of the Microsoft Outlook program (example on April 6, 1996). The secretary remembered her boss faxed out a copy to someone, and so creating a "fax" folder for the file seemed like common sense at the time. Initially, we're all relieved to satisfy a request by the president. However, looking through the Powerpoint file the meaning of pictures and cryptic comments is not at all clear without the commentator's narrative, and the context of participant questions. Looking further, several people find handwritten notes on what was actually said (see example on October 23, 1996), but key phrases jotted down with arrows pointing here and there are not as clear today, because there wasn't enough time to write down the connections to prior events, memos, commitments, calls and email that seemed clear to everyone at the time. An attendee was assigned to prepare meeting minutes for understanding connections to context, but there wasn't enough time. The colleague apologized for not calling back, as promised. He found his notes, but the meaning wasn't clear, so he hoped everyone would forget about it.
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Still, no one has checked the law, the contract, and the files for "connecting the dots" to understand cause and effect. Life goes on, because the president has forgotten his request for assurance on accuracy of understandings from the meeting, because the customer, who asked about it, did not call back either. Everyone wants to be told about the tapestry of events that control success, but nobody makes it to the museum! In fact, nobody has time to be prepared, because there is no repository of "knowledge," nor other source of organizational memory, to consult with precision access for guidance and wisdom in meeting the exigencies of daily management.
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There is no repository of intelligence (also, intellectual capital, analysis, organizational memory, history) to guide daily management, because there is not enough time in the New World Order to "connect the dots." As Drucker notes, a constant stream of impressions from dialog and documents does not yield knowledge essential for communication (see review on November 30, 1994). Instead, nearly all of the connections for understanding cause and effect occur solely in the minds of people (executive, manager, engineer, doctor, lawyer, carpenter, mechanic, salesman, seaman, beautician, administrator, politician, i.e., everyone), and are in constant flux reacting to each new crisis of the moment. Limited span of attention necessarily avoids investing time for cognitive overhead. Many good reasons drive failure to check the files. People get tired, falsely confident, or feel there is not enough time to verify accuracy of personal memory, because authenticating knowledge of cause and effect takes a lot of hard work using traditional information technology (see review on March 7, 2000). Reliance on assumption seems fast and easy. Risks of error in the future are out of sight and out of mind, i.e., beyond span of attention. However, as time passes, variance from ambiguity remembering only the gist of the story grows dramatically distant from the truth, leading to Aristotle's rule, these days more commonly called "Murphy's Law." As the saying goes: Paperwork never catches up to actual work.

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Meaning Drift is the Devil in Murphy's Law

Strange as it seems, common, ordinary management scenarios played out every day, all day long, create a kind of meaning drift where the disconnect between summary impressions and relevant details widens until understanding cause and effect is lost due to sole reliance on short-term sensory components of communication using sight and sound. Talking, hearing and seeing things in constant meetings, calls and email become a frenzy of "guess and gossip," as information management devolves over time into entropy. More talking means less analysis, less review, so decisions are founded on mere hunch and hope, because there is no proactive means to maintain alignment. Deviations from good practice that make people feel good in the near term give the appearance of success because consequences are deferred well into the future, and often are borne by others from continually transferring and compounding little deviations, as originally observed by Aristotle, until suddenly, and without evident warning, people encounter the...

Devil in the Details
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What horrendous devil occurs in the details of business meetings, calls and discussions, when people are working hard to talk things out, listen, expedite, and avoid paperwork so that everybody feels good? It is the inherent and involuntary meaning drift that occurs within each human mind, compounded by limited span of attention, that makes communication the biggest risk in enterprise (see POIMS absent proactive measures to maintain alignment under new realities of information overload.
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In other words, the power of human intelligence that connects summary to details is fragile. Cognitive science explains the mind recodes new information into convenient "chunks" that facilitate remembering by connecting chains of chronology that indicate cause and effect. Paraphrasing is a common practice of overt recoding that greatly aids memory by understanding new information in relation to personal paradigms and experience, which is necessarily unique, and so at variance from momentary context. As a result, recoding to aid memory, causes connections to original context to gradually slip away over time. Initially, we remember most, then some, and later we can recall only the gist of the original story. This is not a problem if action is taken before meaning slips away.
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"Turn the heat down" has clear meaning to take immediate action for someone standing at a stove with a pot boiling over. However, most communication in daily business occurs through meetings, calls, correspondence and reports that do not require immediate action. Effective business communications actually delay taking action for days, weeks, months, even years in the future, because management is a forward-looking process of planning to be prepared for success. This delay between describing action in a plan, and later taking previously planned action breeds meaning drift in what is described in the plan. Additionally, the normal gradual "slipping away of meaning" is accelerated by encountering a lot of information, because continual recoding in the human mind changes the meaning of what is already understood.
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The ability to quickly process a lot of information that changes perspective, and to deftly adjust course according to evolving context is a huge advantage in an environment that requires immediate response to danger. A mind that can maintain alignment for only a minute-or-so can survive under the rule that separates the quick and the dead, because danger and opportunity arise quickly on the African savanna, where humanity is thought to have originated and formed the modern brain. Information from sensory perception of sight and sound in communication (see situational awareness) enables snap judgements essential for immediate action to survive. The biology of human memory instantly constructs assumptions connecting cause and effect associating paradigms from relevant life experience within contextual boundaries of current perceptions. Historically, the pace of bucolic life affords time for the subconscious mind to form connections of cause and effect. Accurate memory from mentally reporting past events makes experience a valuable asset using the power of knowledge to predict the future through planning. Command and control performing present events in the order determined from experience yields control of future results by following the plan. This plan, perform, report design of the human brain that forms connections of causation gradually through the experience of time makes intelligence seem free and mysterious. The subconscious mind is not aware of expending energy to connect cause and effect that yields the power of knowledge. The complementary power of consciousness uses sensory perception to form situational awarness for reacting to momentary events. Conscious awareness of time and effort to gather information has naturally spawned technologies that feed and leverage sensory capacity for taking immediate action.
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Gathering food, arranging shelter and securing safety are examples of the human brain using sensory information immediately to meet biological necessities. Stream-of-conscious mental effort for email, and speaking and listening in conversation and dialog that occurs in discussion, meetings and calls, also, entails immediate use of information. Long pauses in speech are socially discouraged, because spontaneous speech connotes power to react, which is useful for meeting danger, and for entertainment, which is useful for relieving worries about danger. Speech is the dominate force of human life because communication enables cooperation that leverages individual powers to form civilization. The role of human speech for communication creates a strong drive for more information. Alphabet technology, mail systems, printing, telegraph, telephone, television, email all enable faster communication for talking, hearing and seeing information. As a result, information technology (IT) has created a civilization in the modern era, where most immediate dangers that drove the evolution of the human brain have been eliminated. The new danger, the new risk to human endeavors, is information overload that overwhelms limited span of attention, and changes the meaning of verbal communications in ways, large and small, that impact action in the future.
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The fragility of human memory that can maintain meaning and alignment for only a minute is a growing risk, as communication becomes a larger share of daily work. This risk increases as people spend more time consuming information in constant meetings, calls and email, because that leaves less time for the mind to create connections with past experience that form understanding of cause and effect. In other words, constant consumption of information, crowds out time required for mental biology to exercise the intelligence process that grows new knowledge. Like a zebra grazing in a Garden of Eden with endless pastures that satisfy immediate needs, when people forage on a continuous diet of information from meetings, calls and documents, there is no time, nor evident need, for adding organization, analysis, alignment, summary and feedback that converts information into knowledge of cause and effect. Without time for deliberation, and without fast access to an accurate record to make deliberation effective, then gaps and errors in understanding both proliferate and are overlooked, i.e., mental errors remain a secret until a physical conflict occurs that gives visibility to the conscious mind.
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Fortunately, culture helps overcome limited span of attention. Culture informs the farmer that planting the next crop is necessary to ensure a bountiful harvest, because that is what father and grandfather did, and that is what all the other farmers are doing. Similarly, culture guides parents to arrange for their children to invest time in education, essential for raising a rich crop of productive citizens. When problems occur, people go to a meeting, have discussions, make calls and send documents because information is the dominate force in human culture. No matter how busy we are, culture guides conduct. What is less well understood, however, is that the character of civilization is changing from being enabled by technology for using information in the moment, as taught in school and practiced on the job, to a new environment that requires technology for a culture of knowledge.
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Time is a critical factor for converting information into knowledge, when the fog of war permeates meetings on the battlefield and in the office.
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For example, when the commander yells "charge!", most everyone will take the appropriate action upon seeing the enemy approach in the field of vision. In that case, the time between communication and using information is negligible. There is little danger of conflicting interpretations. If the commander gathers the troops and says "In 10 minutes the enemy will attack. When I say 'charge,' A Company will attack the left flank, and two minutes later, after the enemy turns to meet that challenge, then B Company will charge from the rear," this presents a risk of error, because communication has to be relayed to the troops by intermediary leaders, who have some time for interpretation based on personal experience. Generally, communication that has immediate utility for shared experience is successful because situational awareness of context triangulates accuracy in real time. However, as time and intermediaries increase, the risk of error increases dramatically due to the influence of interceding activity that impacts interpretations of meaning in relation to diverse experience. This accelerates recoding, explained above. Instead of carrying out communication immediately, or in 10 minutes, as in the military example, above, if information is for use in 10 days, 10 weeks, 10 months or 10 years, there will be widening disparity in accomplishing original objectives, absent proactive measures to maintain alignment. As time passes, some will respond to a common instruction by charging a battery; others will charge the cost of a vacation, while others will charge ahead with a new initiative of the moment, wholly unrelated to objectives from the original source.
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The fog of war is now a growing new reality that places daily communication on the job at constant risk of error, because, like the battlefield, the flow of information is essentially constant.
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For example, if five (5) people attend a meeting, the meaning of information presented is different for each, because it has a different relationship to what they already know. During the meeting, context and feedback can draw people toward shared meaning to plan complementary action that greatly leverages individual skills and strengths. Indeed, collaboration for planning and carrying out complementary action on common objectives is the essence of community that makes communication the most powerful asset of humanity. After the meeting, each person will have different experiences that impact original meaning in different ways, because it is hard to remember context, i.e., connections of summary to relevant details. Since knowledge is fragile, over time people only remember the gist of original information, about 5%. The rest is forgotten or mis-remembered by re-construction that commingles unrelated events based on near-term needs. The degree of deviation depends on the amount of new information received, absent reinforcement of original context. This correlation between time and information from rarely getting new information, to regularly getting some information, to constantly getting a lot of information, commonly called information overload, causes people to take conflicting rather than complementary action, because alignment with original meaning drifts away.
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Our imaginary five (5) people communicate with others, who in turn tell others and so on across a wide matrix of complex relationships leading to people somewhere eventually performing the work planned in the original meeting. Each time the story is told, the people hearing it construct a paraphrase to aid memory, that is necessarily slightly different based on personal experience.
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As with the popular, after-dinner telephone game, re-telling stories through conversation and email accelerates meaning drift, unless proactive measures are taken to maintain alignment Like a virus spreading through an organism, communication infected by meaning drift degrades into mere guess and gossip, hunch and hope that relies on momentary feelings of common sense, rather than facts, which greatly increases the rate of error. Poor productivity from lack of understanding and follow up escalate costs and delays performing rework to correct continual bumbling. Without proactive alignment, communication metrics for accuracy fails because meaning drift is multiplied by information density driven by the irreversibility of time. Disorder quickly transforms complexity from a powerful asset into a crushing liability that overwhelms span of attention. Mistakes cause loss of life, time, and earnings. (see review of complexity theory on March 12, 2004)
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For example, in health care an analyst might write a pathology report on image testing (e.g., MRI, CT, PET) that describes symptoms of a rare, aggressive disease with high mortality that requires immediate treatment, but omit such warning in the report, and instead simply say that "symptoms present similarly to known cancer, corrleate clinically." If such an alert is presented in the middle of a long paragraph with other language that offers an alternative, benign theory (e.g., reaction to radiation, surgical scar tissue, etc.), and further if prior reports from months earlier (now out of sight and out of mind) describe the same problem with different terminology, then a busy physician (engineer, executive, customer, mechanic, etc.) will likely fail to "correlate clinically" without tools and support that make working intelligently fast and easy to check correlations. Due diligence performing hard work for reality monitoring that verifies accuracy fails, when there is not enough time using familiar tools and methods for situational awareness to "connect the dots" showing alignment that points to diagnosis in time for taking effective action.
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These dynamics devolve communication from the strongest asset for leveraging productivity through complementary action into a devastating force of conflict, crisis and calamity, under the second law of thermodynamics. Every meeting, every call, every email sows the seeds of error, absent proactive efforts adding energy to maintain alignment under the locality principle that converts information into the power of knowledge. A strong culture from shared experience and training, along with diligence and hard work help maintain shared meaning to keep the team on course, acting like the rudder and engine of a ship. However, information overload overwhelms hard work, just as the most powerful ship is blown off course by incessant winds at sea. The only solution is to strengthen the rudder by adding intelligence that maintains alignment, so that understanding and follow up get things done correctly and on time.
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Alphabet technology beginning about 700 BC in Greek culture evolved a tradition of literacy that uses an external, objective method to arrange pictures that represent the sounds of language (i.e., symbols) in order to replicate, assess, revise, improve and preserve internal thought processes. This new way of working with language, using external objects (i.e., symbols) to craft and improve innate thinking, significantly augments natural intelligence by strengthening human memory, which previously had relied on oral communication methods, like poetry, parable and exaggeration, to prevent connections of important stories from slipping away over time. About 300 years later, around 400 BC writing evolved to do more than merely record what was said. A practice of adding analysis (also intelligence) emerged to craft a coherent story, summarize and organize information, align it with related past events and objectives to yield correlations, implications and nuance. This new practice of writing history placed new information into context that enables discovery of patterns and trends which reveal, through implication and inference of causation, future consequences. As a result, analysis adds value to understanding the past, by enabling action in the present, and planning for the future. This strengthened prior practice of oral culture that used legends, strident language and awe inspiring embellishment to gain attention and preserve memory by conveying memorable information to guide decisions for taking action.
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These advantages of literacy that improved prior sole reliance on oral communication for collaboration, also, leverage natural intelligence for understanding that enables effective action. This powerful cognitive aid has been the core engine of civilization over the past 2,500 years, particularly since the time of Gutenberg in 1455, when the printing press and related technologies made reading and writing (again, literacy) widely dominate in the culture by making it cheaper to create, distribute and maintain information.
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However, information overload in the modern era now presents a new threat of reversing two millennia of culture. Limited time and social pressures endemic to organizational life, encourage oral communication and aver literacy, leading to management by guess and gossip, hunch and hope, that relies on remembering the gist of things, rather than the actual record of events.
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Since oral communication is inherently error prone, absent proactive methods to create and maintain shared meaning that is aligned with objectives, commitments, requirements, policy and law, then mistakes, losses, failures, recessions, and wars, are the calamities that result under Aristotle's rule that reality is the ultimate metric. This leads to a modern corollary...

Communication is the biggest risk of enterprise!
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Management standards have long recognized this risk, as seen from the original meaning of religion to avoid false knowledge by maintaining alignment.

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Law is a Slow, Costly Metric of Business Communication
Lawyers are the Only Source of Intelligence in Business and Industry

Today, we call Aristotle's point about small deviations being multiplied by time, Murphy's Law. We use litigation in place of physical combat to adjust performance that drifts off course or does not measure up. Litigation requires a showing that original understandings were followed, for example the requirements of a contract... ..
Who was notified?
What did we say?
What did we intend?
What did we hear?
What did we see?
What was considered?
What did we do?
When did we do it?
Where was it done?
Why did we do it?
What should we have done differently? ..
These are the simple questions asked in a lawsuit for which no one knows the answer, because everyone is too busy on the Information Highway of constant meetings, calls and email to capture the record of organizational memory and create the connections of cause and effect that yield accurate knowledge about the context of daily details. As a result, the legal process is the only intelligence role for the practice of management where the web of connections is at last stitched together to reveal correlations, implications and nuance from understanding context. (see also discussion in POIMS) Of course, we all feel bad when the microscope of the law discovers the critical mass of errors everyone had earlier attributed to Murphy's Law, as a complement to the worry about the Devil in the Details.
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When there is not enough time to discover that communication is not aligned with requirements, the devil and Murphy go on the march. Most losses caused by bad management are absorbed. Managers prefer to buy-off mistakes through reduced earnings, because intelligence, required by contract notice provisions for timely feedback to create a record of organizational memory that enables discovery in time to avoid mistakes, also, brings accountability. When problems are ignored to save time and money, because, in the moment, fixing inconsequential details seems like overkill, people want wriggle room to avoid accountability, rather than feedback for intelligence to mitigate damages. These personal and cultural dynamics spawn an official view of reality that spirals into ignorance and then cover up, as managers maneuver to avoid accountability, while gaining credit for success through good communication skills. Written records are feared and averred in favor of reliance on talking and destroying records in hopes of providing latitude for deniability, commonly called wriggle room. Limited time and culture reward facile verbal skills to tell a plausible story so that people can talk their way out of accountability for mistakes, and talk their way into credit for success. Formal management systems, traditionally called "documentation," are pejoratively dismissed as "paperwork," because they are expressly aimed at accomplishing management accountability. Instead of earning 10% - 20%, management accepts 3% - 5% by arguing that intelligence is overkill, so there is no budget for proactive problem handling under the excuse of saving time and money.
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However, where accountability can be attributed to others, a lawsuit is filed. A lawsuit can be seen as a highly focused, very expensive metric of management quality. It usually shows that nobody follows an agreement because management lacks an intelligence, process, an internal metric, to discover miscommunication before it impacts performance. Therefore, the law imposes an external metric to force a course correction, an adjustment called adjudication.
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How does the law determine the correct course? How does this differ from daily practice on the job by executives, engineers, salsemen, accountants, and mechanics? Can these methods be brought closer together in a manner that avoids mistakes, and thereby reduce the need for adjustments by outsiders called "lawyers"?
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In court people tell their side of the story. They talk about understandings of what was said, intended, agreed and then actually performed. Decision-makers listen. Writings are examined. Experts testify and standards of practice are presented from papers, books, magazines and other sources. Witnesses are questioned about differences between what is said by different people at different times and with what is written that is conflicting on important matters.
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So far, this is pretty much the same as daily management practice of dialog and documents. Managers talk and listen, consult experts and ask questions in order to avoid mistakes in deciding what to do. Managers ask about planning, budgets, schedules, policies, indeed everything that affects an organization. They ask why actions were taken, and investigate whether a different course would have been better? This inquiry is often in the form...
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"Tom, what's the story on widget delays?"
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When managers and executives don't like the story, they regularly adjust course by changing employees, vendors, policies, products and so on. In the courtroom, the information that management relies upon to discover needed adjustments is called "evidence." When these decisions are adjusted in court, managers, executives and engineers often complain about being "second-guessed."
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But why?

If managers are gathering evidence and making adjustments everyday, why is there fear about similar "second-guessing" in the courtroom?
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Here is a difference!

In court, people are sworn to tell the truth, and the judge is paid to hear the truth. Penalties for lying encourage getting an accurate record. This helps overcome emotions of embarrassment, hurt feelings, fear of reprisals and accountability that conceal truth on the job. Accurate, comprehensive understanding enables analysis to discover the root cause of problems that justify adjudication.
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In court, someone writes down what everybody says in a "transcript" to compare, align and contrast testimony. Writing things down and connecting things up in court reveals more conflicts than can be recognized by conventional management practice that relies on personal memory and cursory notes hurridly scribbled in notebooks, and email during and after meetings and calls on the job. Another difference is that a lawsuit is focused on a few narrow subjects, whereas a manager has to consider all of the subjects that impact the work. The players and the process in a lawsuit are not impeded by limited span of attention because they are paid to devote the time and attention needed for everyone to be carefully questioned about what was said and intended, and to check the record on what was actually done.
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Adjudication of legal disputes in court occurs many years after events have transpired. Judgement rests on discovering evidence of causation, i.e., discovering cause and effect, by assembling an accurate story from a multitude of complex and conflicting stories.
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At trial, evidence from testimony and documents is organized into a well ordered record that shows causation based on the chronology of events (see scope for working intelligently). The trial record enables precison access for uniform reference by everyone involved. Each line of text in transcripts and briefs is assigned a number for efficient navigation and communication using citations to the record. Citations link cause and effect into an "audit trail" that reduces the time to verify accuracy and understand context. Accuracy understanding chronology enables analysis to discover the root cause of problems that justify adjudication.
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Daily work on the job, including for lawyers and judges not considering a specific lawsuit, does not enjoy the luxury of a well ordered record with uniform references using granular control of each line, because events are still unfolding. Documents and conversations in daily life are scattered in computers, filing cabinets, rooms, buildings, sometimes cities and countries, desk drawers, the back seat of the car, and mostly in the minds of a great many people. Since business technology is designed to make documents look good to make a sale, rather than enable good management (see POIMS), nobody has command and control of the record, until a lawsuit is filed, and very high-priced people are paid to slow down long enough to use technology that organizes a well ordered record for accurate understanding.
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"Meetings" in court use communication experts, called "lawyers," to write a story that makes sense of complicated problems and complex events based on objectives, requirements, and commitments. Legal briefs (the lawyer's "story") select relevant portions from the "well ordered record" developed during trial to explain, argue, and advocate chronology shows causation for subjects (also "issues") in dispute based on alignment of particular facts with requirements and commitments, such as a law, regulation, contract, a letter, etc. This Hansel and Gretel root cause analysis process of writing and discussing a story with many paths of alignment cites precise line numbers that control location of text. People can quickly find their way back "home" to original understandings in a well ordered record for checking accuracy and expanding understanding of context. Accurate understanding of complex stories is an additional step in legal practice that takes more time and costs more money than daily management on the job that relies on conversation and remembering the gist of the "story" in hopes of expediting to get things done.
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Of course, in court, an impartial judge hears everyone's "story" on the witness stand. This is different from the way things are done at the office, where most everyone is partial to the story they are telling, and so colors both the story and judgements based on personal experience and interests.
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In management, people, who get good at telling "stories," move up. Strong "people" skills use conversation to "communicate" that expedites the work with feel good management practices that avoid accountability for mistakes, and maneuver to gain credit for success. Since people only remember the gist of things, the story is shaped in re-telling to emphasize different aspects of agendas for different audiences with different objectives in different meetings, calls and correspondence, all directed at getting people to say "yes!" As noted, re-telling stories causes meaning drift.
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But, in court, everyone's story is analysed for alignment with the record showing controlling forces in commitments, contracts, laws and regulations. Despite assiduous efforts to destroy the record under feel good management practice (see POIMS), information is discovered from vendors, staff, customers, agencies and other sources. As a result, merely being good at telling stories is not sufficient for success in court. This may be one reason why managers fear the courtroom, and decry second guessers. The extra time and expense of analysing the story by adding alignment uncovers conflicts that need adjustment, which are overlooked in the practice of management that predominately relies on stream-of-conscious communication through precipitous action based on conversation and email. Executives are disappointed and frustrated that the intent to save money and expedite by relying on conversation and email, rather than invest time for aligning organizational memory with controlling forces, turns out to cost thousands, or millions, of dollars more than the cost of analysis needed to improve the first-guess, so that there is less need for second-guessing.
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Thus, the courtroom objective to reach an impartial, objective decision by analysing alignment of evidence for root cause analysis, conflicts with the common sense of "feel good" management that relies on "guess and gossip," and "hunch and hope," from remembering the gist of the story, rather than developing a "well ordered record" of organizational memory that supports decisions. As a result, practitioners of conventional management practice fear accountability.
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Since people are not going to stop talking, Communication Metrics says use technology to improve the first-guess so there is less need for second-guessing in order to get the "story" right, under Aristotle's rule about the cost of errors in our story.
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What should the technology do?

Since the full story can cover a lot of details, and since judges have limited span of attention like everyone else, legal briefs summarize related bodies of detail into headings, similar to headlines in a newspaper or magazine.
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Headings are summarized at the beginning of the brief so that the meaning of a vast amount of detail, including months of testimony, endless exhibits and hours of argument can be absorbed quickly for initial, cursory understanding. These headings provide a link or pointer, like a table of contents in a book, to the details that support the meaning of each heading.
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This practice is an analog of the human mental process that connects summary to detail.

Mental pointers of summary understandings, however, become disconnected over time from relevant details of original sources, due to commingling in the mind of intervening events that have similar elements of fact patterns. This creates ambiguity in the mental state alternatively called "cursory," "seat-of-the-pants" or "snap" judgements. Top managers have learned that a lot of money is saved and earned by investing time for analysis to avoid ambiguity that causes mistakes due to snap judgments. This lesson takes time to learn. Most managers are too young to have discovered the secret of investing intellectual capital. They and their organizations pay a heavy price in lost revenue, legal expense and adverse judgements that underscore another difference between standard management practice using "guess and gossip" for making snap judgements, and the legal process.
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In court, people are paying for carefully weighed judgements.

The law does not guarantee a "correct" decision, but the process is designed to enable the decision maker to carefully weigh all of the facts, correlations, implications and nuance that bear on reaching a "correct" decision.
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Therefore, legal briefs use an organizing system that essentially "hard wires" the connections of summary to details so that the details can be quickly retrieved for analysis of alignment with original sources and controlling authority, in order to verify the correctness of understandings drawn from a heading and thereby improve the chances of getting a correct judgement. It is more accurate than cursory, seat-of-the-pants methods, but it also takes a lot of time, expense and expertise.
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Finally, when everyone is satisfied that the facts are established, a carefully prepared history of similar subjects is used to determine an appropriate adjustment. This history is called "case law." It is like case studies used in management, except case law is linked back to original sources so that alignment of meaning is easier to recognize and to maintain for use in future cases.
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The crucial difference then between legal practice and management practice can be summarized in the concept of "time."

Executives write things down, ask questions, listen to experts, and apply company policy and case studies. Their focus is on getting things done in a cost-effective manner. They do not overlook conflicts on purpose that are later exposed in court. But managers in the New World Order do not have enough time to think, much less to write everything down and create the links that expose conflicts, nor to consider the full range of subjects that impact performance. They do not have enough time to link daily cursory, seat-of-the-pants decisions to the details that justify a course of action, or point to a different, more strongly supported judgement.
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Limited time causes limited span of attention, the Achilles heel of communication. Only when a lawsuit occurs, is there enough time to understand, because the legal process forces everybody to slow down and invest in experts, called "lawyers," to align communications for the full range of subjects that effect performance. Lawyers spend endless hours linking the record with contract provisions and authority in laws, codes, and professional practice; they spend a lot of time talking to people in depositions getting feedback on relevant documents. This meticulous intelligence process of communication metrics is a microscope of discovery that verfies accuracy by adding organization, analysis, alignment and feedback to the record handed over by the client. Legal "intelligence" discovers many correlations, implications and nuance that reveal little deviations, which previously were overlooked by everybody due to limited span of attention on the job, and so escalated into loss, crisis, and calamity that requires adjustment by the court. (see Aristotle)
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Thus, legal adjudication is a slow, costly metric that enables people to discover critical understanding long after events transpire, when it is too late to avoid mistakes. It provides "lessons learned" for next time, but only if there is enough time to align the daily flow of information with the relevant lessons that fit within limited span of attention.
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Traditional legal practice is therefore not conducive to daily management.
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People on the job need a system of dynamic intelligence support to capture a well ordered record of personal and organizational memory that enables accurate understanding in time to discover cause and effect, and follow-up to adjust course before mistakes are made, and at a time when adjustments often cost little or nothing. Usually it costs the same or even less to do things correctly, as to do things wrong. Lack of awareness separates serendipity from calamity. Many elements required for intelligence support are already available to provide Concurrent Discovery.
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A system of Concurrent Discovery is analogous to "concurrent engineering" that avoids conflicts in schematic details by cross-checking between engineering disciplines, as design progresses, rather than wait to perform all of one discipline, then hand off completed drawings to the next team. In the same way, the "metric" methodology in legal practice can discover the "truth" while communication in meetings, calls, documents occurs, rather than wait for errors to become painfully manifest, when work collapses, causing loss, tragedy, and conflict, then hand off the project record to a lawyer for discoverying what went wrong. Using "metrics" to support leadership is gaining currency in professional standards. PMI's Guide to the PMBOK (reviewed on July 21, 1995) describes "leadership" as aligning people through communication. (see section 2.4.1) "Aligning" entails measuring accuracy. Lawyers routinely use Communication Metrics of accuracy when documents and testimony are compared with what was written and said previously. The PMBOK standard suggests that alignment should be maintained concurrently, otherwise work drifts off course into bigger and bigger problems. (see POIMS) Clearly, truth needs an ally in the modern era of information technology (IT) that overwhelms human memory. Concurrent Discovery makes technology a powerful ally for proactive leadership to work intelligently.
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Without Concurrent Discovery, people are forced to rely on personal experience and short-term communication skills for talking and listening, because it is fast and easy to rely on what we already "know" by using "common sense." In daily business, people spend hours in meetings, have 5 or 6 calls and receive 10 email, then summarize meaning in a few comments to the boss, a colleague or customer. These routine exchanges become input for conveying cursory impressions to third parties, resulting in a daily "communication" process of guess and gossip, because there is not enough time to connect summary to details. There is not enough time to check the contract, the policy, the regulation, lessons learned inventory, and on and on... When there is not enough time to check the record, error creeps into the work stream, causing continual bumbling.

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Feel Good Management, Guess and Gossip
Crashing on Information Highway

Often direct experience on a current issue is not available, so managers go by what feels good at the time. The "warm, fuzzy" feeling, that the literature says is the basis for most management decisions, is simply a heuristic link in the human mind to disparate events that seem to apply at the moment because we do not have enough time to investigate, listen and learn. At another moment, we may feel less confident about the warmth and fuzziness of a key decision. But the next meeting, call, seminar, or plane trip crowds out careful consideration of the painful prospect that a decision deviates from original sources, e.g., law, regulation, contract, policy, a meeting with the customer, or professional guidelines.
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A heavy schedule makes it easy to believe that the next meeting is more important than fixing mistakes from the last meeting. Speeding on the Information Highway heightens the slippery slope of "feel good" management. We don't have time to use good management practice from MBA class, the seminar, and company policy on traceability to original sources for an audit trail to verify accuracy and discover context. Without a well ordered record, looking up sources to align understandings takes a lot of time, so shortcuts and fudging on principals seem helpful to "expedite" action. Limited time forces reliance on what "feels" right at the moment, and limited span of attention conceals the need for careful consideration. However, lack of alignment causes deviations from the truth to take root. Things fall through the cracks. Soon, the team is guided almost entirely by guess and gossip. Mistakes are overlooked, then ignored, followed by cover-ups, conflict, lawsuits, losses, reengineering, recessions -- as Aristotle warned so long ago.
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This is fertile ground for improving management. Projects and organizations are a "community" of skills, interests, capacities and perspectives, shaped by genetics, education and culture. Communication focuses this diversity through leadership on common objectives by creating and maintaining shared meaning over time so that people can work together effectively, i.e., cooperate by taking complementary rather than conflicting action. Like sunlight focused through a prism, skills and efforts are magnified through the synergy of effective communication.
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New realities of faster information technology, globalized dealings and increased regulation comprise a more complex business environment that requires adding a "metric" to supplement short-term communication skills of seeing, talking and listening (i.e., sight and sound). The industrial age brought tools to leverage human physical strength to see, hear, lift and travel; thus, the telescope, telephone, television, cranes and airplanes. So, too, in the emerging new world order, long-term communication factors of understanding and follow-up need a new kind of tool that leverages mental strength for converting information into knowledge by adding intelligence to traditional management processes.

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Communication Must Transcend Human Mental Biology
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The need for Communication Metrics comes from two fundamentals...

Human intelligence innately manages complexity using a biology that is constant over thousands of years, but the...
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Complexity of human life is expanding exponentially due to information technologies that overwhelm the mental process of converting information into knowledge, i.e., information overload.

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This conflict between the conscious and the subconscious mind that uses an involuntary, biological process of summary, called intelligence at the conscious state of awareness, in order to avoid being overwhelmed by the complexity that occurs in the microcosm of the mind, more commonly called the "subconscious," means that an increasing share of information falls outside the conscious span of attention (see analysis of George Miller's work on March 3, 1999). Decisions therefore increasingly reflect only the gist, rather than the facts, and "gut feelings," "warm fuzzy feelings," "common sense" and other impulsive reactions lead to stress, error, loss, conflict, crisis and calamity for which there is no evident explanation, because there is not enough time to discover the connections of cause and effect. (see again Miller) It seems, therefore, to follow that, since the biological capacity of the human mind is relatively stable over thousands of years, the expanding complexity of life is a central challenge of the New World Order, where an Information Highway now overwhelms limited span of attention. Some authorities describe a knowledge management dilemma, but few have focused on the core of the problem, i.e., a constant mental biology that must bear the burden of an exponential expansion of information.
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People are forced to work from summary that gradually becomes disconnected, and then grows into conflict with the details of decisions. If unchecked, this is a recipe for management imploding on itself, as seen from lower management productivity in the face of increased use of information technology (IT) like email, fax and cellular phones, which greatly accelerate the flow of information to the mind, resulting in less time to think about each new body of information.
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Since the genetic capacity of the mind is constant over thousands of years, it has become less able to deal with the accelerating pace of its own creations. There simply is more to think about than ever before.
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In effect, the human mind is creating a world for which it is not well suited. The mind is numbed and overwhelmed by a steady diet of information; yet today every business is striving to make its organization better "informed," frantically acquiring tools of self-destruction, because there is no evident means to improve intelligence so that information can be processed into what people really need...

connections

...between...

cause and effect

...that produce...

knowledge and ideas.
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Recent work in biology indicates that real "thinking" occurs beneath the conscious mind. This is where information is aligned with objectives, history, documents, people and time. These linkages settle into patterns of understanding, called "knowledge," and are compared with innate paradigms comprised of personal values, needs, and cultural influences that evolve over time. Meaning is given to everything we experience, and information is organized rightly or wrongly, for action. Paradigms are decision rules for various patterns of action, like a model, or template, that trigger belief about cause and effect. Comparing new information with patterns of our life experience that match a paradigm, yields "meaning." (see also Devil in the Details people draw different meaning from the same information, due to variations in life experience, that make communication the biggest risk in enterprise.)
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Once we settle on what information means, once we "understand" it within our personal framework of paradigms, and patterns of experience, then we have "knowledge."
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"Understanding" in daily management practice essentially means getting desired results.

If desired action is taken, the leader assumes that people got the message, i.e., "understood" what was intended. Such assumptions, however, sometimes turn out to be mistaken. Near term action can align with leadership direction for reasons other than those put forward by the leader, and those other reasons can later lead the team off course. This suggests a deeper sense of what "understanding" means. It seems related to the underlying reasons for action and the connections or linkages to desired results, i.e., objectives.

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Technology Positions Meaning in Knowledge Space
Knowledge Space Empowers Understanding and Follow Up
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The legal profession uses "causation" to describe the connections between events, chronology, reasons and objectives that comprise "understanding." Similarly construction people recognize the importance of connections that support a structure.
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"Understanding" is so critical in construction that specialists are used, called "engineers" and "architects," to figure out the right connections, and to carefully position the details using dimensions of length, width and depth. Locating details in dimensional space ensures alignment and provides a simple, direct means to find specific details when needed. Architects and engineers inspect the actual work against original objectives set out in a data base, called "plans and specifications," to ensure the connections are correct so that the building will stand up under the loads it will encounter.
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Similarly, lawyers inspect to see if testimony will stand up under what they call "scrutiny." They use "discovery" to create a data base of management details analogous to the architect's data base of construction details.
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Organization and control processes in construction, manufacturing and in legal practice reflect the TQM notion of business "metrics" to see how management measures up. Adding a metric to the main activity of management, "communication," therefore leads to a concept of...

Knowledge Space

... analogous to dimensional space used by architects. Just as location in dimensional space is critical for understanding the strength of a building, location in Knowledge Space yields understanding of chronology and alignment of daily details with objectives, history, policy, requirements law, commitments and history. Positioning information in Knowledge Space through chronology and alignment provide context that enriches information, based on nuance, correlations and implications, commonly called "meaning." Technology that manages context with organization, analysis, summary and feedback facilitates follow up that makes management strong enough to succeed in the new realities of a more complex, fast paced, high risk business environment, cited by Peter Drucker.
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Understanding in the management context can be grasped from its root words that suggest a connection between something that "stands under" or supports something else. In a building, a column supports a beam. In management, "understanding" is a set of facts and objectives that supports a decision for action. Without adequate support, i.e., understanding, eventually a structure of concrete and steel, or of decisions taken by managers, will fail. Thus, leadership that convinces the team to take action where there is no understanding of connections between cause and effect will likely not achieve the aims of communication to build a better community, but rather will lead people down the wrong path.
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"Understanding" in management is bi-directional with respect to time. It looks forward and backward from the present. The leader must grasp the correct connections between objectives and the record of prior performance as support for setting direction. The team must be helped to see the connections between the direction set to reach specific goals in the future, and their skills and awareness of constraints and opportunities. This often requires conveying information about some of the reasons for setting direction, i.e., sharing understanding, in order to form shared meaning that can sustain conflicting influences which arise over time.
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What are conflicting influences?

When people leave the leadership arena, e.g., a call, a meeting, they continue to be influenced by subsequent events and analysis, which often is emotionally charged, causing lurches in varied directions due to momentary crises. Therefore, maintaining shared meaning requires building consistent "understanding" over time. New information must be continually aligned in a manner that either supersedes subsequent influences, or is seen to be consistent with them, including personal goals. This means associating desired action with goals commonly recognized to be highly desirable, e.g., survival, promotion, higher earnings. Leadership that fails to make this alignment will fail.
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In today's environment, people go from meeting to meeting and receive a constant barrage of calls, documents and email throughout the day. All events impact the meaning of each event and thereby influence, i.e., change, understanding about facts, goals, strategy, methods and feelings which lead to ultimate conduct. Information that is outside span of attention, changes the meaning of what is occurring consciously. Since this change in understanding occurs without conscious awareness, i.e., subconsciously, it must be resisted by a conscious effort to maintain alignment.
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How does what the leader said in meeting "A" align with what is in our contract, or with what a different leader said in meeting "B," "C," telephone call "K" and email "D." Since people are getting 70 email a day, how does each conveyance of information impact the meaning of correlations and implications that are drawn? How does this impact earnings due to mistakes and missed opportunities?
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Clearly, the more we communicate about a wide range of issues the greater the web of connections becomes that requires alignment through proactive intelligence for effective leadership. This increases the chance of making a miss-connection. So leadership must not only "align people through communication," it must also have in place a continuous support process to build and maintain shared meaning over time, as people are subjected to a constant stream of other influences. Otherwise, initial alignment drifts away. Organization, management, command and control devolve toward entropy with the irreversability of time under the second law of thermodynamics. (reviewed on March 12, 2004)
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This point seems to follow from work by Dr. Thomas K. Landauer in his paper on cognitive science entitled....

A Solution to Plato's Problem:
The Latent Semantic Analysis Theory of Acquisition,
Induction, and Representation of Knowledge
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Dr. Landauer describes a study showing that human mental understanding changes as a function of new information. Initially, this does not seem very insightful. We all hope to become more "knowledgeable" by getting more information. That is why we go to school, read books, newspapers, watch television and attend meetings at work and seminars. Dr. Landauer's point, however, is that this change in knowledge state, i.e., understanding, often occurs without volition or awareness, which normally accompanies our thirst for knowledge.
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An obstacle to leadership then is that having motivated the team through effective, short-term communication (i.e., dialog), common understanding of the vision, strategy and tactics, at time "now," will later, at time "now + t1," (a day, week, month, year), drift off course, absent proactive effort to maintain shared meaning. Since it occurs slowly and incrementally, people are unaware of meaning drift that leads them down the wrong path, into conflict where none should exist, and into loss that was rightfully gain.
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Executives are particularly burdened because they are less subject to being questioned about what they know by the people they encounter in daily work. The absence of a daily "metric" to link communication back to original sources, and provide timely feedback, reinforces belief that our knowledge is consistent when in fact it is drifting off course under Landauer's finding of induced meaning from the constant flow of information. Thus, leaders and followers alike gradually float in circles of "guess and gossip." Like a ship without a compass, the team drifts in a sea of information, reaching its destination only after the most arduous journey.
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Because meaning drift occurs slowly it is hidden from the conscious mind. i.e., it is a secret we have from ourself! Leaders are therefore drawn to the common sense conclusion that others have not told the truth, or are less dedicated to working hard than they are. Only rarely do executives get the chance to discover that their "knowledge" is mistaken, as when being asked in court about documentation that conflicts with testimony. Those occasions are often dismissed as "blowing things out of proportion," and "second guessing," rather than recognized as opportunities to adjust practices and technology in order to avoid the malady of false knowledge due to the mind's limited span of attention that allows individuals and organizations to drift off course.
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Clearly, if we make the wrong connections, then we are mistaken about what we "know." Since the capacity to think is limited by human biology, information technology that increases demand for intelligence to create connections that convert information into useful knowledge, means more connections will be missed that fall outside span of attention. When understanding connections of cause and effect fails, more mistakes occur with less time to recover. Therefore, drifting off course is faster, easier and more harmful on the Information Highway that compounds complexity, unless complementary technology is adopted to leverage human intelligence in the New World Order of faster information.
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As time and distance are compressed by technology, geography no longer contains the impact of error. A mis-machined part in Hamburg causes disaster in Tuscaloosa. A $4 billion error in Hong Kong harms investors around the world. When harm can strike quickly and widely, the value of being correct, of avoiding error, of making the right connections, quickly, skyrockets.
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Clearly, more information reduces productivity unless a faster way is found to convert information into knowledge. This requires nothing less than a new technology to lift human capacity to think, remember and communicate. Instead of simply absorbing information going from one meeting to the next, and hoping our mind will convert it into knowledge, we need a technology and proactive efforts to make sure that the "bottom line" and the "big picture" are linked back to the correct details. POIMS technology enables an intelligence process of connecting cause and effect from daily management under a concept of investing intellectual capital by capturing a greater share of organizational memory day-to-day, and organizing it within the context of objectives, requirements and commitments. These connections support the mental process of analysis, alignment, summary and feedback that converts information into knowledge. Thus, POIMS technology that aids knowledge is essential to make information technology (IT) a useful asset, rather than a harmful liability.
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The value of mental "connections" can be seen from an organic structure of human thinking in the table below.
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Intelligence resolves the dilemma of inherent binary circularity that dominates existence, also, shown below. This vast complexity is ultimately managed in the microcosm of the mind with simple patterns of cause and effect that make sense of the world, relative to human needs and experience at the conscious level of awareness where action occurs. Organizing the complexity of needs and relevant experience by growing simple binary elements into powerful indexing structures, like DNA grows life itself, enables locating relevant experience quickly that guides action moment to moment for sustaining and enjoying life. The ability to maintain connections of organic structure ensures that follow up action to accomplish the "big picture" at a future time will be guided by accurate understanding of relevant history, and aligns with objectives, requirements and commitments. The same connections that strengthen understanding, and extend organizational memory, also, enable communication that creates shared meaning for collaboration in taking complementary rather than conflicting action. Leveraging the power of people to cooperate in getting things done is the engine of enterprise that drives productivity and earnings.
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Mental maps connect momentary summary impressions, at the conscious level of attention, to the vast array of details derived from total life experience, which are, in turn, connected into chunks of chronologies organized by context in the subconscious mind. Organized chronologies of cause and effect that can be drawn from the subconscious into the conscious span of attention comprise "knowledge" that is held as belief.
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Belief, that is not sufficiently grounded in experience, is exposed as false knowledge, when reality eventually intrudes to produce conflict.
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Belief born out by consistent experience is wisdom.
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Those with knowledge of cause and effect to accurately foresee future consequences are called wise. Technology that leverages intelligence enables people to capture, manage, and accurately remember a broader spectrum of history and experience for "connecting the dots" to understand subtle and complex forces of cause and effect. Augmenting intelligence to organize, analyse, align, summarize and manage feedback for accuracy significantly advances the information paradigm to a culture of knowledge, where wisdom and vision can play a more dominate role performing daily tasks and planning the future. (see again POIMS) Leveraging the power of human cognition with instant precision access to relevant experience is therefore the lever that lifts civilization to a higher plane. The invention of alphabet technology to grow, maintain, and manage information transformed people into superhumans (see Douglas Lenant). For hundreds of thousands of years people foraged for food, huddled in caves for shelter, and wielded rocks and sticks for protection. Today, after 2,000 years using information technology, the same people press buttons that leverage physical strength for transportation, lights, water, and other necessities. So, too, moving up the scale of cognition to tools that leverage mental strength necessarily transforms civilization into a super culture of knowledge.
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Common mental maps that construct shared meaning from the constant stream of details day-to-day are the foundation that enable diverse people to cooperate in building an effective community. This makes creating the link between communication, cooperation and community a key task of leadership. Communication Metrics empowers leadership to create and maintain alignment of mental maps in the conscious span of attention at much lower levels of organic structure than has previously been possible. New information can be integrated into individual memories, which necessarily have unique and conflicting history, usually not consciously recognized, and yet still maintain shared meaning, so that collaboration is strengthened.
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This is accomplished with an innovation described as "organic subject structure." Computers provide power and speed of associating, organizing, remembering and retrieving related information, though without exotic, complicated programming. Work in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and in Knowledge Management (KM) are making important advances; however, Communication Metrics does not propose "automating" intelligence that "thinks" for people. Rather the magic is providing technology that enables people to think for themselves by consistently using good management practice cited by Drucker, Covey and others for capturing organizational memory, and structuring it for retrieval and pattern recognition that improve understanding cause and effect for making decisions and taking action.
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Automated connections based on time and context (i.e., subjects) magnify the value of information by creating external mental maps that explain the history of daily work through stories in diaries and journals, which can be readily managed using technology to understand context at much lower levels of detail. This solves the problem of time degrading human memory until only the gist of critical experience can be remembered. It, also, avoids error from commingling and distorting memories, so that people do not get mixed up by new waves of information that flood the mind. Fast, accurate memory is strengthened by connections of cause and effect using DNA-like organic subject structures that relate the continuous flow of information, encountered day-to-day, to human needs and aspirations, which vary in size, importance, frequency and visibility on a vast scale. The combination of better memory and better intelligence leverages the gift of time and the power of knowledge among people, teams, projects and enterprise to lift civilization.
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As seen from DNA in biology, nuclear energy, and computer chip design, controlling lower levels of organic structure yields significant power, cited by George Gilder in his book Microcosm (Simon and Shuster, 1989 p. 345). Gilder calls this the "Law of the Microcosm." Under the reasoning of this "law," Aristotle's point that time multiplies the impact of small errors, implies significant improvement in productivity and earnings occurs by adding "metrics" to communications. Improvement occurs because communication is a predicate to action. For example, on a construction project, there are a lot of meetings, calls and documents, then we dig the ditch. Checking alignment of communications with objectives, requirements and commitments using organic structure to track small, but critical, details, significantly increases the chance that the ditch will be properly aligned, as well, days, weeks, even years later, when actual digging is performed. Communication Metrics that harnesses the power of the microcosm to ensure a ditch is properly aligned, also, gives people much greater control of details on everything from which meaning and action are determined that impact productivity, earnings and stock prices, minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day, over weeks, months and years.
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Managing the organic structure of context is much like tending a Garden of Knowledge, which occurs constantly in the subconscious mind, as people perform daily tasks. In the same way that alphabet technology externalizes construction of information using pen and paper, wordprocessing, etc., externalizing the common mental process of growing organic structures to manage knowledge (e.g., ontology, epistomlogy, taxonomy, subjects, categories, classifications, topics, etc.) makes Context Management a powerful new way of working that complements traditional literacy. Augmenting natural intelligence further lifts the capacity to think, remember and communicate by enabling people to shape, craft, modify, preserve and convey personal and organizational memory across a wide range of professions and work roles (see examples in education, government, health care, technology, etc., listed on July 8, 2002)
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The Information Highway that accelerates the pace of daily life compounds complexity that obscures, hides, indeed, buries critical details in the microcosm of the mind, and so adds urgency for a solution. It, therefore, magnifies gains from Communication Metrics. Realizing this gain, requires a new kind of technology to capture a greater share of organizational memory, and, also, leverage the subtle relationship between time and context. People can navigate in Knowledge Space through a sea of details to create connections that form understanding, knowledge, wisdom, and ultimately a shared vision that strengthens collaboration. Better teamwork improves productivity by people taking complementary action, rather than being busy doing rework to correct problems caused by conflicting actions (see discussion above). Getting things done quickly and accurately flows from synergy between granular subject indexing, granular addressability, and the granularity of time in the flexible structure of Knowledge Space that together enable dynamic linking. Creating connections within a few seconds that show causation and verify accuracy, based on situational awareness, make precision access fast and easy, and are therefore essential to reduce mistakes and discover opportunity in time to be effective in a faster paced new world order.
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The process of connecting binary structures from bits and pieces of meaning (i.e., details) into larger mental constructs for managing a complex world occurs along a continuum of cognition, commonly called...

Intelligence

Vision
Wisdom
Knowledge
History
Experience
Understanding
Common Sense
Meaning
Information
Data
Words/Numbers
Bytes
Bits
0,1

Seeing the future from knowledge, history, experience
Uncommon sense, transcends span of attention
Connects patterns of cause and effect on all subjects
Writing stories that connect experience into patterns
Accumulates stories of understandings into paradigms
Connects cause and effect into a coherent story
Cause and effect applied in the moment within span of attention
Summarize information makes sense by associating cause and effect
Language consciously connects sensory perception into information
Technology manages bits, bytes, words, and numbers as data
Sensory perception subconsciously connects bytes and bits into data
Subconscious construction of bits into sensory perception
Begin processing organic structure of cognition
On off, yes no, right wrong, male, female... life death

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Binary structures define existence with difficult dilemmas at the lowest level of sentience in the microcosm of the mind...

profits and credits
thinking planning
k n o w l e d g e
investigate
command
accurate
control
cause
pain
man
day
yes
life
on
0

or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or
or

losses and debits
doing reacting
i g n o r a n c e
impulse/bumbling
empowerment
errorneous
creativity
effect
pleasure
woman
night
no
death
off
1

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Information technology (IT) is excellent constructing cognition by connecting the simplest forms of binary structure using "0" or "1" to register "on or off" - "yes or no" - "life or death," etc.
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More complex structures for resolving common dilemmas of cause and effect, choosing immediacy or accuracy, thinking or doing, speaking or writing, contesting or agreeing, all move up quickly on the scale of cognition to the realm of knowledge that overwhelms information technology (IT). Better technology for creating more information, in-turn, overwhelms human mental biology, because innate intelligence cannot accurately convert faster information streams into knowledge. Hence the complaint: nobody listens -- it's too noisy! (see "new realities")
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IT has progressed over the past 50 years to provide a faster means of converting "data" into "information," yielding the Information Age, Information Technology and an Information Highway. This has produced data pollution and information overload that together reduce productivity and earnings because "truth" is a target that moves too quickly for human span of attention to track with innate biological intelligence processes.
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Clearly, success creating technology that now overwhelms human thinking demands a new class of tools and support for transformation from information to a culture of knowledge. This new technology supports the intelligence process of creating and retrieving connections of cause and effect, and maintains connections over long time spans between summary and the details that convert information into knowledge faster and more accurately. Since knowledge is a more powerful resource than information, then, just as the alphabet was an explosive technology 2,000 years ago for leveraging mental biology to create information at low levels of organic structure, the same power using new tools that augment intelligence to leverage knowledge promises another big leap in civilization. This forms a powerful new nexus between religion and technology.

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Back to the Future: "Religion" as Management Science
Hansel & Gretel Connect the Dots to Find the Path of Enlightenment
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Religion? Today, this means going to church, prayer, faith in a transcendent existence? But it is also the world's first management science: a system of quality control that links information to show alignment with original sources. The word "religion" derives from "religare" meaning "to bind back," also "to tie fast;" in other words, to connect or link back. The ancients found that, while the human mind is well suited to deal with the vagaries of nature, people need help to accurately remember complexities of civilization. They discovered that once truth was revealed through hard-won experience, it was necessary to "connect the dots" so that, like Hansel and Gretel, people can find their way back to critical knowledge, ensuring that, at a future time, passions of the day do not lead everyone down the wrong path following the sweet sounding music of the Pied Piper, (see also reminding)
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Creating and preserving the right "path" is the process of converting information into knowledge, which empowers communities to build and maintain shared meaning, essential for working together by taking complementary, rather than conflicting action. Drucker then is correct. Communication requires more than information. Our forebears recognized communication requires connections to context for understanding cause and effect. Only the power of knowledge can keep the team on course. Without connections and the ability to retrieve them quickly when needed, in time we fall prey to Murphy's Law under Aristotle's rule.
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This was the seminal recognition of the interplay between time and information, where a correct decision may be hidden in faded memories; or is remembered, but seems incorrect in the moment, because interceding events have created new paradigms of cause and effect from which the mind's inherent need to summarize and paraphrase (i.e. recode) produces false knowledge, due to meaning drift. The original meaning of "religion," to link back to original sources, reflects the idea of knowledge as information linked to align with objectives and experience, i.e., relevant history, for sustaining human life based on an essentially fixed biology. In other words, since civilization increases complexity, and human mental biology remains fixed, the mind devises tools that augment and leverage intelligence in order to cope. Alphabet technology (literacy) and religion evolved into a foundation that enables progress in science, agriculture, governement, education, health care, and everything else that makes life today heavan on earth compared to life 2,000 years ago.
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The practice of religion tells poignant stories that communicate wise counsel across generations over centuries and millennia. (see wisdom) Weekly mass review of shared values in church along with confession of error, and prayor for strength to improve yield quality control that lifts quality of life for individuals through the harmony of "community." Religious dicta optimizes productivity with positive synergy between (1) resisting disruptive behavior, e.g., "thou shalt not steal"; and (2) encouraging cooperation with mutual aid and comfort, e.g., "love thy neighbor." An established body of written stories reinforced with weekly review in church guides conduct toward common ways despite lapses of biological memory inflammed by passions of the moment. Thus, reliance on the "word of God" in the Bible leverages community life with the power of knowledge inherent in the tools of literacy (see alphabet technology in POIMS). Writing the stories of religion, and attending church once a week interlinks God with the "word," i.e., they are essentially the same power that enables people to flourish. Indeed, regular reinforcement magically enables consistent performance that advances community life, because objective standards tested by time and devoid of personal agendas engender belief and faith.
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Religiously linking chapter and verse back to original sources further prevents meaning drift (see also POIMS) that otherwise routinely occurs, when retelling stories from memory. When the Bible began to evolve more than 2,000 years ago, people were painfully aware from sole reliance on oral communication that, without written history to authenticate conversation, small deviations in memory and paraphrasing compound over long time spans into wholesale cultural drift, and that devestating consequences flow from gradually turning away from lessons learned long ago. (see again Aristotle) They discovered that, as original participants pass from the scene, without a religious tradition to strengthen commitment, new generations have no personal experience that warns to avoid conduct, which appears benign, and often attractive, absent knowledge of relevant history. Religion therefore assiduously links back to reveal consequences, which flow from patterns of cause and effect that are drawn out over time, sometimes years, decades, even centuries, and so are too complex and remote for the mind to perceive danger in the moment, when decisions are made that launch irreversible events.
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As a result, religion became the science of life that preserves and drives civilization.
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Understanding patterns of causation for navigating the complexity of daily life is not always easy. The ancient fable of The fox, the cat, and the hen illustrates the challenge of complexity. How to transport all three (3) across the river in a boat that can carry only two (2) at a time, because unattended the fox will eat the cat and the hen, and the cat will eat the hen. Devising a plan to avoid risk of loss represents a class of wicked problems that require subtle, counterintuitive solutions, which do not spring immediately to mind from merely observing momentary conditions. The ability to see beyond the moment by looking more deeply than the mind perceives from observing and hearing daily events is a powerful form of meditation that may lead to a theory of spirituality and enlightenment common in the practice of religion.
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The 2-tier model of cognition (see POIMS) normally processes a constant stream of new information in the conscious span of attention from ordinary sensory perception. Conscious perceptions are instantly and continuously compared with memory of relevant history stored in the subconscious to construct meaning for taking action in the moment based on human needs and desires. This model provides another powerful form of discovery when sequential conscious processing and subconscious parallel processing briefly combine to concentrate mental strength into a single cognitive process through the practice of meditation.
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While the subconscious mind stores knowledge of experience and constructs connections in the background that support conscious reasoning to understand sensory perception of evolving events in the moment, this takes time that necessarily limits mental processing to only immediate perceptions within span of attention. Closing the eyes and eliminating sound, however, presents a decidedly different mental state of rest, or at least semi-rest, where the conscious mind is not receiving an otherwise continuous stream of data for interpretation, which, if sustained, normally leads to sleep and sometimes to dreaming. While the role of the conscious mind during sleep and dreaming is not fully understood, everyone shares the common experience of thinking, pondering, and worrying for the few minutes between laying down and closing our eyes, and when actual sleep occurs. Meditation, particularly in the Buddhist religion, has formulated practices that prolong this state for the purpose of focusing on particular subjects. The Judeo Christian tradition uses prayer in a similar way with the eyes closed and sound restrained for quiet reflection and communion with God. In both cases, prayer and meditation yield strength, solace, and confidence for facing the work-a-day world.
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These common practices of meditation and prayer seem to meld conscious and subconscious dynamics for dealing with an evolving environment into a single step of processing only internal thoughts and memories. Experience has shown that creativity in the form of personal relations, designing health care systems and individual treatment, writing, and software development, to name a few examples, often encounter very difficult, wicked problems that prevent progress. We cannot see a solution. Authors complain about "writer's block," engineers object to conflicting data, and despair of endless "debugging," doctors and patients struggle with the dilemma of investing time in a project that ultimately fails, and we all decry human frailities in a complex world with the common refrain: Why doesn't the government do something? Spirituality in the form of religious prayer and meditation provides solace, and, in many cases, lights the path to solutions based on the 2-tier model of cognition, leading to a powerful form of enlightenment.
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How does enlightenment help solve wicked problems like transporting the fox, the cat, and the hen safely across the river?
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Meditation that invests 5 minutes to an hour or so for introspection necessarily concentrates internal thinking. Without the burden of processing external stimuli from sight and sound, the conscious mind can focus the subconscious on a single subject, rather than the vast diversity of continuous sensory perception. This helps solve the common problem that attention to work in progress blocks further progress. For example, when a writer cannot construct a textual solution, often what has already been written becomes a dead end that requires significant change, or abandonment and starting over. Similarly, complex software may be a dead end, sometimes requiring the merest of changes, but visually observing the existing code prevents discovering a successful path, because the mind is striving to extend the current path.
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Closing the eyes and avoiding sensory perception retains what has been done as a possibility in the mind, because the mind created it, but when the eyes no longer see it, the initial idea is no longer the sole gateway to the subconscous that poses an insurmountable bias toward what has already been conceived. As a result, mental processing time is freed up for other possibilities to compete. In many cases, concentrated attention miraculously imagines many paths for solving complex problems that are otherwise blocked by the overhead of consciously processing new information. (see also cognitive overhead) The fact that the brain is totally enclosed and is getting no external data invites the model of heightened synergy between conscious and subconscuous processing. Melding the power of creative parallel processing by the subconscious with the power of sequential (logical) conscious analysis can often test out alternatives to lighten the most promising path.
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Enlightenment through concentrated internal attention (meditation, thinking, pondering, prayer) on a particular subject that occurs without sensory stimulous can often yield fresh ideas, hints, hunches and possbilities which can then be formalized, tested and refined to achieve breakthroughs for solving wicked problems, under the common rule that knowledge is ultimately derived from experience. In other words, mere possibilities are not solutions, but are essential to start the process of discovery. Eventually, sufficient experience is gained through trial and error for comprehensible writing, study, and scholarship to formalize craftsmanship into established knowledge for general use. Religious writings, like the Bible, illustrate the power of spirituality derived from faith and meditation applied across the ages.
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Research on April 5, 2005 shows physiological grounding for the model of increased attention from focusing brain power during meditation and prayer by reducing sensory perception of external stimuli. An article Pure Consciousness in Meditation and the Self by John G Taylor , who is associated with the Department of Mathematics, King's College, Strand, London WC2R2LS, UK, reports on MRI and PET scan studies of mental states during meditation (i.e., pure conscous experience - PCE) and concludes... ..
These physiological study support the claim that PCE is a distinct state of consciousness, corresponding to one in which attention is attending to itself alone. ..
A.T.Arenander offers a cognitive science rationale citing physiological changes during meditation and prayer in an article -- Global neural ground state: coherent brain mechanisms associated with transcendental consciousness -- that discusses in part transcendental meditation (TM)... ..
During the TM technique, the mind effortlessly attends to a specific object and automatically transcends the normal boundaries of conscious perception: experiencing a shift from active, waking consciousness to one without boundaries, pure consciousness. Past research suggests that the TM technique produces a state of profound rest and relaxation in subjects. Objectively, measurements of blood chemistry, skin galvanic response, and EEG recordings while subjects are practising the technique indicate profound changes occur in the physiology. ..
Indiatimes Spirituality says in part... What is meditation?
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The basic idea generally associated with why people meditate is that during our day we are constantly subjected to sensory input and our minds are always active in the process of thinking.
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We read the newspaper, study books, write reports, engage in conversation, solve problems, so on and so forth. typically, as we do these normal activities we engage in a constant mental commentary, sort of an inner 'the drama of me'. usually people aren't fully aware of all the mental thought activity that we are constantly engaged in.
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Meditation has been and still is a central practice in eastern religions, for contacting 'god' or one's higher self.
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Christianity also has semblances of meditation, such as the biblical statement - "the kingdom of heaven is within you." churches have a meditative atmosphere.
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Meditation deals with contacting something within us that is peaceful, calm, rejuvenating, and meaningful. whether one calls this something 'god' or 'soul' or 'the inner child' or 'theta-wave activity' or 'peace' or 'silence' is not important. it is there and anyone can benefit from it regardless of what they believe. ..
George Muller in his series the ABCs for Christian Growth -- Laying the Foundation, writes in Appendix 8: Soul Nourishment First... ..
It has pleased the Lord to teach me a truth, the benefit of which I have not lost, for more than fourteen years. The point is this: I saw more clearly than ever that the first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day was, to have my soul happy in the Lord. The first thing to be concerned about was not how much I might serve the Lord, or how I might glorify the Lord; but how I might get my soul into a happy state, and how my inner man might be nourished. For I might seek to set the truth before the unconverted, I might seek to benefit believers, I might seek to relieve the distressed, I might in other ways seek to behave myself as it becomes a child of God in this world; and yet, not being happy in the Lord, and not being nourished and strengthened in my inner man day by day, all this might not be attended to in a right spirit. Before this time my practice had been, at least for ten years previously, as an habitual thing, to give myself to prayer, after having dressed myself in the morning. Now, I saw that the most important thing I had to do was to give myself to the reading of the Word of God, and to meditation on it, that thus my heart might be comforted, encouraged, warned, reproved, instructed; and that thus, by means of the Word of God, while meditating on it, my heart might be brought into experiential communion with the Lord. ..
Religious practice builds strong commitment to spirituality with majestry, ritual, and the power of writing to both spread the word and preserve enlightenment through hypermortal stories in the Bible. The power of the mind to envision new possibilities by hearing the "inner voice of God" justifiably builds faith in the power of prayer. In many respects, meditation, collaboration, and mechanisms for documentation give leadership a broader vision for daily work that reflects the model of spirituality where religous practices of prayer, communion, and the word of God are guided by authority and continuity of church hierarchy. In both realms (on the job, and in religion), reliance on traditional practices for deep understanding and problem solving are strengthened by new practices in a new world order that today increases complexity by compressing time and distance far beyond innate capacities to accurately remember, distinguish, and associate. Without new tools to augment human thinking for understanding correlations, implications and nuance, growing complexity necessarily escalates error and hides opportunity.
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Religion lights the way for expanding span of attention to discover enlightenment. Transcending the dilemma of sclerotic dogma paralyzing progress with immutable doctrine only occurs when enabling forces align. Time to study, faith to take the first step experimenting to gain experience, vision to see truth, and courage to release the power of knowledge comprise a rare constellation of luck and leadership with a broader vision. Today, the historical equation for enlightenment is strengthened by technology that leverages time and truth.
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Thinking through writing applies POIMS requirements for integrating time and context that reveal deeper understanding of causal connection. Adding chronology, context, and connection significantly expand traditional alphabet technology by augmenting natural intelligence through a new practice of enhanced literacy. Enlightening correlations, implications and nuance, which otherwise remain hidden in plain sight by ignorance, fear, and denial reveals the power of knowledge through routinely connecting the stories of daily life. Cognitive overhead for writing, reading, listening, study, analysis, deliberation, and meditation are all aided by capturing events, and adding organic structure that "connects the dots" with objectives, requirements, and commitments. Integrated tools for precision access yield a Knowledge Space that solves the problem of expanding complexity in a new world order by expanding span of attention with continual reminders that enlighten conduct. Constructing connections on a foundation of accurate understanding provides crucial lessons learned from experience seasoned by the wisdom of historical context.
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Discovering and implementing enlightenment revealed from historical experience seems evident in religious tradition that guides daily conduct with a strong moral compass.
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Assembling stories and connecting lessons in the Bible provides a simple, direct way to overcome the weakness of human memory in order to consistently apply perceived truths that enable humanity to endure within the framework of an essentially fixed biology operating in an environment of complex, evolving threats and opportunities. Perceived truths that endure are the compass for "good" conduct that avoids calamity over generations and centuries. The revered word of God provides wisdom that maintains a steady course through the storms of daily life. Enlightenment ensures perceptions of truth align conduct with revealed experience of history, rather than impulsive urges of the moment.
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Consistent use of good conduct builds successful communities which offer the best chance for individuals to realize most of their personal aspirations, despite limitations to avoid "bad" conduct, that often appears attractive in the moment. Getting a lot of people to act consistently in a few common ways, rather than pursue transitory biological urges, builds "community" through the power of cooperation, which is the basic purpose of communication. Large communities make civilization.
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The Bible is therefore a powerful path to advance civilization.
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If we look closely at the related practices of religion and law, we see the continuing power of this idea that strengthens our culture, exemplified by the story of Hansel and Gretel. Aligning communications using traceability to original sources builds a connected body of case studies that enable a process of continual learning, which only recently has been recognized in published management standards like the PMBOK and ISO 10006. The power of these new standards can be seen from their roots.
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Attending church and reading religious text reveal generous use of references to other sources that support assertions of meaning. The clear message from this tradition is that to grasp the meaning of what is before us today we must consider its genesis -- its cause, its source, its support. People voraciously seek, indeed cry out for understanding; yet, few are aware that it is a continuous process of identifying connections that support, i.e., stand under, an inference of cause and effect, derived from the tradition of religion.
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The mind by itself suffers ambiguity which causes incorrect connections between cause and effect. Writing out understandings is a window into the mind's connections. Comparing current understanding with past perspectives, i.e. analysis and alignment, provides a metric that reveals deviations which cause harm. Such discovery enables adjustment in advance of taking incorrect action, thus avoiding harm, loss, stress and conflict.
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The tradition of writing things down in order to avoid ambiguity from reliance solely on mental processing is applied in the law, which emanates from religious tenets, for example the Ten Commandments. Legal decisions are assiduously linked back to related cases, called precedents, to ensure consistent application of sound reasoning. Legal precedents recycle human experience in a more careful way than managers apply case studies to reach daily decisions. A similar process is used in publications, where a bibliography links text to original sources that demonstrate due diligence.
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Linking to original sources gives credence to new information through corroboration. What is less apparent to the reader is the benefit to the writer of creating the links (citations). The process forces greater consideration of critical points than occur in the absence of linking back. In other words, the exercise of linking itself lifts understanding, which is another form of the idea that "religion" brings "enlightenment."
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Not being writers nor scholars, most of us miss out on the experience of being enlightened by looking up related sources. It takes time to check sources. It is easier to passively accept what is printed, to swallow information whole without checking sources. Integrating and connecting a constant flow of new information with experience and original sources to produce knowledge takes time and directed thought. In addition, traceability in the modern era is impaired because visual and auditory perception from dialog and pictures occur instantly without intervening analysis of competing information and values, as occurs in constructing meaning from symbols through reading and writing that implement alphabet technology.
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This creates a bias for more meetings and pictures that together summarize complexity in simplistic impressions that stifle understanding, but are comforting to a busy mind, particularly when delivered by highly skilled speakers. Sight and sound from short-term communication seem to impart instant knowledge, but instead impart emotional impressions that lead to precipitous actions, because there is no fast and easy means to apply the metric of aligning new information with original sources that brings understanding and enables follow up to correct deviations from the truth that worried Aristotle.
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The traditional practice of relying on innate mental capacity to convert information into knowledge worked well when the flow of information and the rate of decision making was low, so that the preponderance of time was devoted to implementing decisions, i.e., applying knowledge. Applying the same knowledge over and over develops skill, as in hunting, shaping a spear, throwing a rock or doing an interview on television. The mind has time to settle on the right connections and to give an alert when links seem to fail. So, if we do not understand, our mind can report being "confused." That environment existed for millions of years and so shaped the evolution of the human mind.
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Confusion is the best state for managers and executives. Facts and implications are fighting for space in our span of attention. Managers are alerted by this "battle" to obtain more information and analysis to make the connections needed to remove confusion. Savvy managers realize that when frustrated it is essential to think more carefully, to check sources and premises. They know it is critical to slow down in order to succeed faster.
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Some, however, lash out in frustration with the demand:

Tell me what I need to know in 25 words or 30 seconds!

Show me the big picture and the bottom line! ..
This extreme demand for summary evolved from historical notions of leadership when it was critical to convey orders quickly that expedite response. Direct input from sight and sound worked well when survival depended primarily on sensory perceptions of immediate physical conditions that fit within the mind's limited span of attention and required relatively little "intelligence" for making management decisions that impact future events.
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Today things are different. Physical labor has been automated to the point that management makes up a much greater share of labor cost. This means managers, i.e., decision-makers, are the "workers." Raw materials are detailed information and the product is knowledge comprised of the connections from endless meetings, calls, documents, and email that impact future events.
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Historical leadership methods of relying on pictures and sound, barking out orders, do not work well for figuring out what to do, when, methods, materials, coordination, safety, fairness and the thousands of regulations impacting the modern workday. Plus, today's democratic mores encourage us to persuade, rather than to direct. However, the impulse from millions of years relying on sight and sound, and tradition from thousands of years for managers to summarize, create a powerful genetic and cultural bias against reading and writing for organization, alignment and analysis, i.e., intelligence.
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The natural drive to react to sight and sound encourages spontaneous response to seeing and talking, even when there is plenty of time to organize, analyse, align and plan so that critical action is both timely and effective. Management is designed to be proactive by looking ahead, rather than impulsively reacting only in the moment. However, this design is frustrated by the Information Highway in a New World Order.
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People like to work by conversation because biology makes understanding seem fast and easy by relying on sight and sound. Standards, regulations and laws that require investing time for proactive management get ignored, because a constant stream of meetings, calls, and documents present an illusion of being informed in the moment. When one moment passes to the next, attention quickly moves to the next crisis, before there is time to discover conflict and error in the prior moment. Additionally, executives like to work by conversation because it does not leave a paper trail for lawyers to discover. Fear of accountability combined with biological drives for fast and easy communication leads to the dilemma of feel good management that omits due diligence with the excuse of good intentions to save time. Without diligence to work intelligently, management degrades to entropy. Time and cost accelerate on the slippery slope of guess and gossip, where truth is hidden in plain sight under the guise of Murphy's Law.
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Henry Kissinger describes in his book, Diplomacy, the core knowledge management dilemma leaders face of choosing between speed and accuracy, which too often devolves into bumbling and entropy. (Simon & Shuster, 1994 - see p. 834). Technology encourages reliance on pictures and conversation, which quickly impart strong beliefs. However, convenience and expediency are merely delusional because people cannot trace the source of their beliefs to understand why (see example from medical management); and, worse, we are unaware of ignorance due to limited span of attention (see POIMS). The mind is numbed and overwhelmed by a steady diet of information from meetings, calls, email, pictures, graphs, radio, and television intended to "communicate." However, when understanding fails, only miscommunication occurs. Information without "intelligence" is an Alice in Wonderland world, where people are constantly late, have no time to say hello, nor time to understand and follow up on the moving target of truth, which worried Aristotle even before an Information Highway existed.
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The elusive goal to improve management productivity can only be realized by recognizing that management's primary task is communication, and better communication requires understanding and follow up, which are impeded by too much information. Since information is not slowing down, indeed is speeding up on the Information Highway in the age of technology, the only viable solution is to invest in tools and people. who can speed up the process of adding intelligence to convert information (talking and listening) into knowledge. It seems axiomatic that this New World Order portends a new vision of intelligence work, and a new work practice to support understanding and follow-up in order to make leadership effective in the 21st century. Communication Metrics summarizes this new vision because communication is the main process of management, and business metrics are a traditional way of improving work processes.
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But managers worry that there isn't enough time to think, much less do research to convert information into knowledge. Historically, managers have been paid to get things done, to expedite the work, not to look up dusty recollections of yesteryear and create CYA memos showing the whys and wherefores.
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Communication Metrics argues that "management" is mainly what Peter Drucker calls "knowledge work" that is a constant process of creating and applying intelligence, i.e., investing intellectual capital. What should be done, by whom, when; who is paying for it; how will it be done; what laws, policies contracts, commitments, guide performance; has the proposed action been tried, when, in whole or in part, with what results? This is the daily diet of management that requires correct connections to original sources, alignment with controlling forces, and analysis of implications. New realities of technology that create information overload, now require a combination of better technology and work practices to convert information into knowledge faster and more accurately, i.e., better management requires intelligence.
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New standards like PMBOK and ISO 10006 spread awareness through Risk Management criteria that processes for traceability and continual learning, which lead to knowledge growth, are critical in a faster paced world. However, tools to accomplish these tasks quickly are also critical to ensure consistent use of these new management standards. What seems startling is the prospect that such tools have the effect of leveraging the capacity to think, remember and communicate.

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Automated Thinking: Leveraging the Capacity of the Mind

Since it occurs innately, "thinking" is considered an immutable trait that cannot be improved. Managers therefore strive to improve the externals of information creation and transfer by, for example, using fax, email cellular phones.
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How can "thinking" be improved?

We have to consider time and information as an integrated process in the human mind. The mind remembers by drawing on similar parts of disparate events, rather than assembling all elements of each event. Its only rule is to assemble a consistent "story." Thus, we feel confused when the mental story we conjure up seems inconsistent with our experience of how the world usually works according to rules of cause and effect, also, paradigms. For example, if a dish slips from our hand, we apply a paradigm, or rule, that this event will cause an immediate effect of the dish falling to the floor. If the floor looks like concrete, we expect the dish to break. If the dish doesn't break, then the conflict with our paradigm about the way the world usually works causes "confusion." Mental processing pauses to formulate a theory, or explanation, that aligns with our understanding (i.e., knowledge from prior experience) of the way the world works, because, if we do not understand how the world works, we are at constant peril of failure to be effective meeting threats and opportunities, and this knowledge induces fear of failure that paralyzes taking action to get things done. For example, in the case of a dish falling to the floor and not breaking, various theories might be that the floor may look like concrete, but is actually something else, or the dish may look and feel like glass but is actually plastic. The common practice of relieving confusion by resolving conflicts between actual experience and our sense of paradigms about the how the world works is often called "common sense." When common sense fails, however, people pause to investigate.
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"Confusion" then is a powerful mental safety valve that forces the mind to pause for reflection, investigation and analysis when gaps in the story conflict with our experience, so that action can procede cautiously to avoid harm from taking the wrong action due to erroneous understanding. An obvious example would be if the dish in our analogy did not fall to the floor, after slipping from our grasp; but, instead rose in the air. Such an event would cause virtually everyone to pause, because it represents a huge gap in understanding of the way the world works, such that any further action would be at immediate risk until the conflict is satisfactorily resovled.
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The critical point for augmenting intelligence is that the human mind is equipped to function without complete accuracy by summarizing complexity through paradigms, based upon situational awareness of threats and opportunities. When time is short, the human mind forces a best-fit understanding, by turning a blind eye that ignores and denies some facts, in order to react immediately to subjects that fit within span of attention.
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Although crucial at times of personal peril to enable short-term action, cursory understanding, due to limited span of attention, causes management to fail, because "managing" is a process to guide long-term consequences. The disconnect in time between failure and its cause, poor decisions based on cursory understanding, makes the cause of failure difficult to recognize. It seems like a mystery, and so is simply called "Murphy's Law."
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The seeds of Murphy are sown when there is a lot going on. The mind overlooks mistakes, rather than recognize confusion. Like an actor on stage, we feel a rush of adrenaline charged by accolades from colleagues for handling a lot of difficulties with confidence and dispatch. This nurtures the seeds that grow false knowledge into belief and faith, thereby preventing inquiry and foregoing feedback to verify alignment with objectives, requirements, commitments and history. When we make the wrong connections, speedy, confident implementation conceals the error, and sets the clock ticking on the time bomb of Murphy's Law. The New World Order of more meetings, calls, email, documents, budgets and schedules means there is greater chance for error and less time to feel confused in order to recognize and correct deviations that lead to costly rework, delay, loss, conflict, crisis and calamity.
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Cultural hierarchy impedes discovery of false knowledge. If we feel we should understand, then social pressure urges overlooking slight deviations. "Just do [this]," is the precursor of "Just do [that]" in an endless cycle of "correcting corrections" spawned by the need to summarize and supported by fear of authority. Organization and technology are evolving to impair the key component of success: creating and retrieving knowledge!

POIMS Technology

Plan, Organize, Integrate, Measure
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Because communication - telephones, mail, reports, meetings, discussions, fax and email - takes up most of a manager's time, it offers a major opportunity to improve productivity. If we can automate and integrate key aspects of how a manager spends his or her time, then productivity should improve.
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How to do it?
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In Management, Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices (Harper Business, 1993), Peter Drucker says that productivity of knowledge work, like executives, doctors, engineers, scientists, lawyers, writers, etc., is mainly a question of quality in analysis for making decisions. (see review on November 30, 1993) The idea that accuracy is the critical metric of knowledge work, combined with the ISO 10006 quality standard (discussed above), points to another powerful but seldom-considered purpose of communications: continually "connecting the dots," or tracing back, information to original sources that measure accuracy from the weight of evidence, determine context from related history, and learn implications for future consequences from predictability in the chain of causation.
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Thus, another purpose of communications is discovering connections that ensure the correctness of understanding before telling others what we "know." If Drucker is correct, it seems to follow that a bigger investment in discovering connections to avoid miscommunication will produce better results than waiting until the end of the month to discover the results of schedule and cost metrics. In other words, communication control (i.e., "metrics"), which is proactive, may be more valuable than cost and schedule control, which are reactive, measuring after-the-fact results of failed communications.
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This leads to the idea of...

Concurrent Discovery
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Rather than waiting for a lawyer to discover the critical mass of miscommunication that caused the team to drift off course, use automation to make the connections that link current understandings to original requirements so that alignment is maintained. Use integration to accomplish related tasks with a single step, so that planning supports action, action helps reporting, and reporting enhances planning. Automated integration of the Management Cycle links time and information to maintain the alignment that avoids miscommunication, and endless hours and expense of litigation.
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Automation means speed and accuracy. Speed provides more time to do things for which previously there wasn't enough time. Accuracy means fewer mistakes despite increased speed. Doing things faster and more accurately means better productivity. Instead of using automation solely to generate information, use it to create the connections between cause and effect so that people can discover those little deviations Aristotle found are multiplied by time. This accomplishes Drucker's idea of management productivity related to quality of decisions. Better decisions mean less time fixing mistakes, less rework, fewer lawsuits and losses.
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Intelligence New Way of Working Integrate Locality and Complementarity
Civilization Advancing to a Culture of Knowledge

Aristotle's caution in the 4th century BC that time compounds small errors into complexity and chaos is feared in the modern era as Murphy's Law. Mysterious, inexplicable mistakes arise from the immutable force of nature formalized by the second law of thermodynamics. (reviewed March 12, 2004) People, however, can choose to intervene and expose secrets of nature by discovering enlightenment that makes sense of complexity to avoid mistakes and discover opportunity. Intelligence support aids discovery with a new way of working using the power of knowledge based on the locality principle (see below). Equally, the holism model in quantum mechanics recognizes randomness compounds complexity. Daily affairs confront uncertainty that overwhelms span of attention, causing error, conflict, and chaos. Predictability to increase control emerges from synergy integrating locality and complementarity. (see again review on March 12, 2004)
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The irreversibility of time pushes all processes toward entropy, causing complexity, confusion, and chaos to rise, unless energy is added to maintain order. In evolutionary theory, order, structure, and pattern applied through organization and communication make expanding complexity a powerful asset by focusing and leveraging energy, skills, and diversity to increase productivity. (see Schombert's lectures on 21st Century Science at Oregon State Univesity reviewed on March 12, 2004) Complexity increases productivity through knowledge of predictability that flows from order connecting cause and effect. Conveying "order" in organizations occurs through communications. Synergy leverages the power of knowledge when communication applies complementarity between chronology, context, and connections derived from daily meetings, calls and documents. Integrating locality with complementarity enables predictability from discovering the correct order of cause and effect that makes sense of expanding complexity. As a result, productivity rises from expending energy to create, share, collaborate, and distribute knowledge for command and control of daily work. This requires people to "connect the dots" from constant communications day-to-day, moment-to-moment with objectives, requirements, and commitments for working intelligently to get things done correctly in time to be effective. However, when new realities of technology compress time and distance, information density rises above the capacity of human mental biology. Without tools and practices to leverage intelligence, a hectic schedule with constant information overwhelms span of attention. Meaning drifts furtively toward rising disorder that weakens the power of knowledge to control the future, because mental connections of cause and effect are erroneous, overlooked, forgotten, even reversed by confusion in the fog of war.
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When people do not have time to think, mental connections are largely tacit, implicit, and assumed, without express inquiry, analysis, and verification. Nobody is aware that causation is missing, ambiguous, or erroneous. Truth becomes a secret hidden in plain sight by an official view of reality reinforced by the weight of collective peer-pressure. Desire for safety (i.e., avoiding punishment, keeping a job, getting a raise, promotion, assignment, recognition) encourages being a "team player." Go along to get along reduces incentive to care about accuracy enough for people to ask questions that lift the veil of secrecy to expose the fallacy of assumed causality. (see false knowledge in POIMS)
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Complexity from large organizations can have positive or negative effects on productivity. As noted, positive synergy leverages productivity from energy that maintains order of complex strategic assets, e.g., people, buildings, information.
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Disorder has negative consequences.
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People get sick, and eventually die, buildings decay, eventually into rubble, and information degrades toward error and chaos. Like people, office buildings and factories are very complex systems. Highly intricate structures significantly leverage productivity through efficient collaboration and movement that focuses human effort. They are easy to maintain, because disorder is evident from direct sensory perception. Wastebaskets overflow, floors and windows get dirty, light bulbs burn out. People are self-maintained for large parts of a normal life-span. Maladies are treated, when pain signals disorder. Cancer, however, often sends no signal until disorder has reached critical mass that makes treatment and recovery problematic. Similarly, information management constantly degrades toward chaos and confusion.
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Disorder prevents finding information piling up in filing cabinets and computers in time for effective use to guide daily work. Since we cannot see disorder in the record, useless information grows like cancer. Confusion mutates into meaning drift for a long time, seemingly without cost or harm. Constant information from meetings, calls, and documents accelerates confusion, when chronology, context, and connections are not maintained in a well ordered record. Since disorder prevents predicting the future, positive synergy from planning for efficiency in big, complex organizations mutates into "time bombs" furtively waiting for enabling forces to align. Complexity then accelerates negative synergy. The power of organization explodes confusion from disconnected information into mistakes, bumbling, and conflict. When too many people are having too many problems, rising entropy from false knowledge understanding cause and effect degrades productivity toward zero. Individuals, teams, companies, communities, entire economies fall into chaos and calamity (see also "... hope that bad management saves time and money is a mirage).
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Disorder from implicit confusion makes complex organization a crushing liability, because random error compounds through efficient communication in many directions under Aristotle's rule. When work is not aligned with objectives, requirements, and commitments, disorder dissipates energy randomly, noted by Kissinger. The second law of thermodynamics paralyzes productivity in a frenzy of meetings, calls, and documents, because, without predictability from "connecting the dots" of cause and effect, communication, command, and control collapse organization into the black hole of bureaucracy and paperwork none of which reflects the actual work. People are simply overwhelmed. (see again US Air Force Institute of Technology study on rising entropy driving big projects toward failure, reported July 7, 1997)
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The locality principle recognizes that energy transfered from "connecting the dots" of cause and effect yields the power of knowledge for predicting the future across the linear dimension of time, i.e., past is prologue. While debate continues from the 1930s among Einstein, von Neumann, Hermann, Bohm, Bell, et al, about the microscopic world of quantum mechanics, scientific interlocutors seem to agree that locality provides a practical principle in the macro world of daily life experienced by mechanics, executives, ball players, lawyers, engineers, pastors, doctors, bus drivers, scientists, clerks, judges, students... Defining "knowledge" as understanding connections of cause and effect closely parallels connectionist theory in Cognitive Science (see POIMS), suggesting the biology of human reasoning innately relies on locality. In other words, the brain evolved to apply powerful forces that shape the universe. The universal reach of the locality principle combined with complementarity solves Aristotle's dilemma, and Murphy's Law for every person on the planet. Drucker's call to execute the power of knowledge with anlaysis of sequence applies locality to discover order that makes sense of complexity. Obviously, accurate understanding avoids confusion, ambiguity, and error. Accordingly, command and control of the record to find the correct order connecting cause and effect in complex history drives productivity in management, science, education, health care, agriculature, military, law, construction, etc.....
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Locality is intrinsic to statutes and regulations governing accounting practices for an "audit trail," and in the law of notice using citations. Scientific research, and management standards require traceability to original sources (e.g., ISO, PMBOK, reviewed July 31, 1995), which is implemented with traditional "documentation" (e.g., Federal Acquisition Regulations - FAR, reviewed May 4, 2002). Accountants and lawyers use links in citations to connect audits, case law, and legal briefs. Professional writers use footnotes and bibliography.
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Why, then, are traditional connectionist practices applying the locality principle to improve accuracy and productivity absent from routine daily work, even for accountants, lawyers, and authors.
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Due diligence to work intelligently constructing a well ordered record of cause and effect that saves lives, time, and money is not fast and easy; but, rather, takes a lot of time.
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Cognitive overhead studying causation with conventional documentation requires hard work to search, find, discover, and enter alignment in the record. This is expensive. Since reliance on assumption is fast and easy and cheap, requirements in law, regulations, professional standards, contracts, and policies for implementing the locality principle with trails of associations connecting cause and effect are pervasively ignored, as unnecessary overkill (see again the study on May 4, 2002). Taking short cuts by relying on assumptions rather than check the record is excused with good intentions to save time, and avoid accountability.
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However, hope that bad management saves time and money is a mirage.
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Ignorance of causation stifles innovation, and causes continual error that compounds delay and accountability. The price people pay for the cost of rework soon explodes into conflict, chaos, and calamity (see examples) Rather than enlightenment from continual learning "connecting the dots" to work intelligently, ignorance breeds continual bumbling, and colossal failure. Earnings, equity, and pensions evaporate when disorder accelerates under the second law of thermodynamics (see review on March 12, 2004; and see further Reuters reporting that the economy falls into recession from ripple effects, when too many people are having too many problems, December 7, 2000).
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Why do executives fail to execute due diligence performing the central task of management?
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Fortune magazine attributed refusal to use good management to psychological reasons, i.e., attitude - people just don't feel like it. (reviewed June 25, 1999)
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But, why?

Research on March 7, 2000 found that, without the right tools, the linear mechanics of knowledge management take a lot of hard work to connect cause and effect for learning predictability. People work hard for immediate rewards, but hate investing time and energy for deferred rewards from study, analysis, and planning (see cognitive overhead). Intelligence support "connecting the dots" to understand order, and managing context for command and control of the work are stressful. People don't like stress. Bright people learn to be creative expediting and saving time by telling stories that interpret requirements as mere suggestions to use good management, which can be ignored. (see NASA Chief Administrator Sean O'Keefe's testimony before Congress on August 26, 2003) Unlike laws of man, the locality principle is an inexorable law of nature with devestating consequences when ignored again and again and again and..., as noted by Aristotle 2,000 years ago.
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Intelligence is the process of making connections that transform information into the power of knowledge. The locality principle defines "knowledge" as predictability from connecting cause and effect. Discovering and maintaining the correct order of cause and effect takes time to make sense of complexity because sensory perceptions seeing and hearing information create confusion and ambiguity from conflicting impressions as events unfold in daily life. The second law of thermodynamics offers a powerful rationale for "management" to save lives, time, and money by investing time to make sense of complexity. People have long relied on "records management" for storing documents in folders, and filing cabinets that organize the record chronologically according to context. Records are searched with alphabetical indexing, for example 3x5 cards, card catelogs, Dewey Decimal, etc., to find history on specific subjects. Trails of connections show causation from documents ordered chronologically in file folders. Case studies reveal long term trends assembled from filing cabinets.
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Diligence creating and checking the record for accurate experience avoids confusion and ambiguity from hasty first impressions that devolve into mistakes, loss, conflict, and calamity. However busy people rely on assumptions that increase mistakes understanding the order of cause and effect. When there is not enough time to create an accurate record, nor to be prepared by checking the record for relevant documenation (i.e., organizational memory), and, even when there is plenty of time to check the record, but nobody can find relevant history because the record was never created, or is incomplete and out of order, i.e., incomprehensible, then people pay a price for misunderstanding context that controls success. Increasing productivity and earnings by avoiding mistakes is commonly called "risk management"; equally, discovering opportunity in time to take effective action so that small deviations do not escalate over time into major problems (see Aristotle) is called "proactive management." These concepts from science and management can be integrated through computer technology that vastly increases ability to create, organize, and find trails of associations for the correct order of cause and effect that controls the future. Better speed and accuracy that reduces time and diligence makes intelligence work fast and easy and fun solving the mystery of meaning. Accordingly, technology that leverages personal and organizational experience with efficient usability optimizes human potential for making sense in a new world order of rising complexity. This yields a rigorous, principled theory of Knowledge Management.
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Practical processes for managing chronology, context, and connection are complementary elements of intelligence support for routinely converting information into knowledge that controls the future. Technology aids constructing work product and transmitting deliverables. Networking computers with the Internet and secure intranets provide economies of scale that leverage individual knowledge by empowering many people to work quickly and accurately. Positive synergy from spreading accuracy rather than error exponentially increases productivity, under the law for conservation of knowledge. (see POIMS for eight (8) steps of Communication Metrics) Basing knowledge on experience fits the common place notion that belief from direct experience is a valued asset of personal and organizational memory, and further supports Peirce's observation that accuracy of knowledge is continually refined by experience, noted as well by Einstein.
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Human intelligence continually constructs an audit trail of mental links "connecting the dots" between cause and effect. Navigating through Knowledge Space is a journey of discovery. The mind constructs and finds correlations, implications, and nuance to make understanding clear, compelling and accurate on threats and opportunities in relation to objectives, requirements, and commitments. The scope of support for human intelligence can be derived from the military, where well established objectives, methods, and roles are aided by technology. Integrating computer science, management science, and cognitive science strengthens and expands intelligence support for general application. This new way of thinking, learning and working gives truth an ally meeting the challenge of new realities in a new world order.
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POIMS is markedly different from artificial intelligence that strives to replicate, replace, and/or obviate human cognition by improving accuracy of automatic processing performed by machines being run by people.
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POIMS technology lifts the capacity to think, remember and communicate by expanding span of attention to strengthen the weak link in cognition that makes truth a moving target. Leveraging mental strength for conscious processing to verify understanding based on situational awareness is similar to an automobile augmenting physical strength for carrying heavier loads farther and faster.
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Artificial intelligence strives to actually "think," popularized by IBM's computer that plays chess. An example might be to determine what is needed at the store by inventorying the refrigerator and cupboards, querying past purchases, then drive the car to the store, make selections, choose alternates when items are out of stock, drive home and store eveything in the right place, all without human intervention. Rule-based processing correlates with innate subconscious thinking based on paradigms. Limited success has occurred in specialized fields, like playing chess, and robotics for manufacturing assembly, where rigid boundaries limit freedom of action. Practical use of artificial intelligence has not been achieved for dynamic, complex environments, like daily management, because rule-based processing is error prone. (see POIMS)
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Since the future will have both people and machines, POIMS and artificial intellingence are working a common problem from opposite perspectives in the 2-tier model of cognition. (see POIMS)
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Military intelligence (discussed previously) commonly entails gathering data, analysis to fuse disparate information into actionable intelligence for command and control, based on situational awareness, distribution for taking coordinated action, and feedback to refine accurcy and adjust course. The military has excellent programs studying artificial intelligence; yet, in the main, relies on human analysis for decision support. Human analysis linking information to discover trends, intentions, capabilities, and targeting has been the weak link in intelligence: costly, untimely, inaccurate, and inept. (see reports on September 11, 2001) "Connecting the dots" can be strengthened with technology and expanded tasks in the military, and to meet growing demands for intelligence support that solves information overload in the broader community, yielding better education through continual learning, and better productivity to save lives, time and money on the job.

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Military Intelligence Process and Work Product...

Gathering data.
1. Direct sensory input from participants and friendly observers, including debriefing actual participants.
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2. Direct sensory input from non-friendly observers, i.e. spies, including debriefing actual participants.
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3. Documents created and obtained by authorized and friendly participants and by unauthorized, unfriendly participants who are spies.
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4. Sound and video from recording equipment, from sensors, and from strategic systems like satellites and drones (UMV).
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5. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can perform some processing of data to provide useful input, which requires human analysis to produce actionable intelligence.
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Analyse data and information to produce knowledge that yields actionable "intelligence."
1. "Connect the dots" from multiple sources into a comprehensible story that makes sense of complexity in relation to threats and opportunities for advancing objectives, requirements and commitments.
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2. Organize to focus on priorities for objectives, requirements and commitments.
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3. Compare by "connecting the dots" (blend, combine, fusion) from multiple events to evaluate...
  
  1) Continuity that imparts accuracy (believable) to support taking action.
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  2) Completeness to account for, and make sense of, all the data; and, to invest time for gathering more data when needed to avoid false knowledge from unsupported assumptions filling in the gaps of an incomplete story.
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  3) Trends that impart intentions and opportunity for setting strategy.
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  4) Weight of evidence (repeatable information scenarios) that supports decision to take action.
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  5) Assemble relevant details from complex data for planning to take effective action based on the organic structure of context (i.e., specific targets of opportunity).
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4. Summarize analysis with links to relevant details that facilitate decisions.
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Distribute "intelligence" for...
1. Decision support for strategy, planning and immediate action based on situational awareness.
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2. Collaboration for teamwork on developing "intelligence" and implementing decisions requires timely, uniform distribution to affected parties.
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3. Coordination to obtain comprehensive story and take complementary action requires timely, uniform distrubution so everyone "gets the word" and is working on the "same page."
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4. Confidentiality to protect vital interests.
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Feedback to refine accuracy of analysis based on results of taking action to adjust strategy, planning and action to meet evolving conditions.

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Intelligence Support Roles and Responsibilities
New Tools and Roles for New Realities in a New World Order

Intelligence support for a practice of Knowledge Management strengthens leadership, management, and innovation. New tools and practices based on the locality principle connect cause and effect that yields the power of knowledge to control the future. This solves the dilemma of new realities in a new world order where faster technology increases complexity and compounds risk by compressing time and distance beyond the capacity of human cognition to cope. Intelligence makes sense of expanding information from meetings, calls, and documents by leveraging situational awareness with tools that integrate personal and organizational memory. These new tools support eight (8) steps of Communication Metrics to manage chronology, context, and connections. Organizational memory enables timely analysis to "connect the dots" that yield actionable intelligence for saving lives, time and money. Fusing multiple information streams with a strategy of common storage, and adding granular addressability for precision access saves time and increases accuracy. Uniform, timely distribution through networks, e.g., the Internet, empowers people to routinely discover secrets that are otherwise hidden in plain sight by the fog of war on the job each day. Timely distribution, and feedback further transform traditional practices for documentation into a new way of working intelligently that strengthens proactive management. The scope of military intelligence sets a baseline for expanding support with technology and practices that enable a general and broadly based advance for civilization by lifting (i.e., augmenting) innate capacity to think, remember, communicate, comparable to introduction of the alphabet. (see review on November 11, 1999)

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Intelligence support defined by POIMS
Transformation to Culture of Knolwedge a 3-layer Architecture

3-layer architecture for technology, practice, and transformation to a culture of knowledge solves enigmatic new realities that compress time and distance...
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People, Process, Time - integrating tools and practices of cognitive science and computer science leverages intelligence for a new way of working. Increasing speed and accuracy of human thought with precision access to understand cause and effect increases the power of knowledge to predict the future in a world of rising complexity.

1) People need support for accurate communication, and for constructing common storage in Knowledge Space to "connect the dots" in organizational memory that grow knowledge and ideas defined by the organic structure of context.
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2) Process integrates the plan, perform, report intelligence cycle for "connecting the dots" of cause and effect that yield the power of knowledge for predicting the future under the locality principle.
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3) Time management integrates mental metrics that coordinate past, present, and future for understanding causation in order to get things done. ..

Clear, concise, complete communication implements technology that augments intelligence using judicious review practices.

1) Read documents without opening links.
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2) Open links to research points of disagreement for sources and authority.
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3) Take action and provide feedback notifying what was done, and advise on points of concurrence, or disagreement, with links to relevant information for clear, concise, complete communication that continually refines accuracy. ..

Transformation to a culture of knowledge requires a better partnership between leadership and technology that adds value to increase productivity without everyone investing time and expense to learn a new way of working. (see POIMS)

1) People use existing tools and skills to create information in meetings, calls, and documents, redeeming investment in training and infrastructure.
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2) Granular addressability and explicit links enable everyone to strengthen accuracy by adding connections that verify alignment in organizational memory; people can work intelligently based on situational awareness; everyone benefits from reducing mistakes, without investing additional time.
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3) Analysts add intelligence to "connect the dots" -- organize, analyze, align, summarize, and provide feedback that refines accuracy -- using precision access into Knowledge Space that leverages investment in training and infrastructure by making access fast and easy for everyone to work accurately and collaborate on saving lives, time and money.

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Communication Metrics for intelligence support. applies...
1. Eight (8) steps (see POIMS)
  
  1) Report - write story to understand daily work history
  2) Organize - create assign subjects
  3) Analyse - make sense with correlations to related events
  4) Align - connect the dots adding links between cause effect
  5) Summary - headlines encapsle complexity
  6) Action Items - identify follow up issues
  7) Schedule - implement results of analysis
  8) Feedback - refine accuracy understanding ..
2. Accuracy and access are common "metrics" of communication using chronology, context, and connection.
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3. Information units for Communication Metrics are easy to calculate for assessing accuracy and value at risk.
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4. Summary connected to details constructs operational understanding on objectives and grows awareness of history that drive productivity through continual learning with links that verify accuracy and expand span of attention on context with precision access to background and sources.
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5. Diligence verifies accuracy under the rule: look before you leap.
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6. Linking connects cause and effect, and aligns work with requirements using traceability to original sources. Precision access saves time performing due diligence to verify accuracy with granular addressability and explicit links in Knowledge Space.
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7. Finding relevant sources to verify accuracy and create connections with links.
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8. Context Management improves accuracy with precision access using granular division of organic structure that expands innate biological limits on span of attention to quickly discover and accurately comprehend the meaning of events relative to subjects, classes, categories, and topics, i.e., context.
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9. Clear, concise, complete communication enabled by links and the organic structure of context improve accuracy with precision access.
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10. Judicious Review practices expand the power of knowledge by opening connections that make due diligence fast and easy for taking action.
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11. Triangulation in Knowledge Space strengthens accuracy.
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12. Feedback continually refines accuracy.
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13. Collaboration contributes to organizational memory with feedback, and is aided by accuracy and access to shared meaning for taking complementary action.
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Analyst -- professional role for intelligence support captures contemporaneous record; research relevant history, and prepare analysis with alternative arguments.
1. Applies model of pilots, leadership, and accounting making everyone more productive (see Drucker on the power of management), by using computers to make the power of knowledge a highly leveraged asset under Moore's Law.
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2. Constructs Knowledge Space for organizational memory;
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3. Facilitates getting things done by writing things down, like the ancient scribe;
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4. Adds links to connect things up using Communication Metrics and Context Management to grow and tend the Garden of Knowledge;
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5. Alignment, access, and feedback enable good management by strengthening diligence and analysis to overcome strong biological drives to feel good that encourage bad management;
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6. Command and control saves lives, time, and money.
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Knowledge Space performs records management with a flexible platform to construct and navigate common storage of information based on time and context, e.g., books, meetings, movies, laws, calls, contracts, reports, correspondence -- the whole of personal and organizational memory. Computers greatly reduce time and cost to organize work history into a well ordered record for command and control of the work. Printing, filing, removing, and replacing papers from file folders are eliminated by storing information once with precision access using granular identities to manage the vast microcosm of expanding history. Everything in the right place at the right time helps people find and "connect the dots" to understand cause and effect across time and distance -- 10 days, weeks, months, years ago are all equally accessible. The paperless office paradigm of Knowledge Space replaces traditional documentation. Efficiencies of electronic records management significantly leverage structure, order, and pattern that yield predictability. Converting information from daily experience into a spreadsheet for knowledge increases command and control of the work getting things done with better speed and accuracy.
1. Precision access moves instantly to information with precise relevance to situational awareness. Instant access solves the problem of cognitive overhead with flexible structure that provides extensive granularity for addressability, subject indexing, and record segments to identify unique units of information. Complementarity between efficient usability, granular addressability, and granular indexing for quickly finding the "dots" to link enables precision access. Positive synergy from dynamic linking makes constructing an audit trail fast and easy. Trails of associations througout Knowledge Space provide traceability to original sources for understanding cause and effect. Accurate understanding of complex experience increases innovation. Productivity rises by reducing mistakes. Under the locality principle connecting cause and effect enables predictability from the power of knowledge that controls the future. Granular identification for precision access enable a new way of working intelligently by expanding the traditional linear model of thinking based on alphabet technology for converting information into stories, history, and knowledge.
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2. Operating System for People and Organizations routinely grows knowledge with the plan, perform, report intelligence process using specialized functionality with efficient usability that optimizes human potential to "connect the dots" from daily experience into patterns showing cause and effect for taking action based on situational awareness in the moment, and deliberative analysis of relevant history within the time available.
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  When time is short, spontaneous reaction to take immediate action is better informed from experience constructing Knowledge Space.
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  When more time is available, strategy and planning for being prepared to make action effective, can rely on lessons learned by quickly asembling relevant experience in Knowledge Space into case studies.
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3. Multi-dimensional axes define a well ordered record to work intelligently making sense of complexity (see adjudication). The following extended grammar constructs a spreadsheet for knowledge to accurately understand cause and effect in time to save lives, time, and money.
  
  1) Time imparts cause and effect based on the inherent sequence of chronology.
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  2) References manage documents, files and citations with a consistent flexible structure.
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  3) Context Management based on organic structure.
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  4) Line numbers provide an overarching shallow outline of linear nodes that complement links, subjects, and headlines for precision access to navigate in Knowledge Space, similar to pleading paper in legal briefs. Like the law that relies on a well ordered record, line numbers expand traditional punctuation for granular control of narrative text. Flexible structure of line numbers enables efficient communication about records with thousands of lines. Shallow outline can time stamp parts of a record to show the flow of work; single line headings complement Control Fields, headlines, and formal outlining to increase command and control of the record expressed as written narrative.
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  5) Segments associate information with flexible structure to make sense of complex details by constructing multiple views to understand meaning based on context.
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  6) Headlines summarize details into multiple views that enable people to quicky understand dynamic complexity by managing context in relation to objectives, requirements, and commitments.
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  7) Summary connected to detail expands span of attention for navigating through complex Knowledge Space. Linking connects information in the chronology of history that imparts causation, and further empowers people to instantly verify accuracy of momentary first impressions, i.e., summary, and further to learn more from a continually expanding encyclopedia of personal and organizational memory by finding critical information in time to impact performance. Expanding the power of knowledge through continual learning by connecting summary to relevant details significantly augments intelligence for planning and getting things done correctly under the common rule: past is prologue.
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  8) Control Fields manage record segments; enable single source data entry for accounting, payroll, cost and schedule control linked to history for traceability to original sources; and, manage context by assigning multiple subjects to fit a flexible body of narrative into the flexible structure of knowledge that can be assembled into multiple views for perception, organization and interpretation to understand meaning. ..
4. Information Units identify control criteria in the flexible structure of Knowledge Space that calculate a range of Communication Metrics
  
  1) Records
  2) Time
  3) Line numbers
  4) Contacts
  5) Documents - books, letters, reports, plans, movies
  6) Words
  7) Paragraphs = anchors = granular addressability
  8) Links = connect cause effect yield power of knowledge
  9) Headings
  10) Segments = control fields
  11) Subjects = organic granular indexing structure of context
  12) Action Items ..
5. Flexible structure combines traditional line numbering with common outlining, granular addressability, subject indexing, and record segments to uniquely identify information units at the paragraph level, and construct relationships that support analysis, knowledge, and intelligence for daily management tasks....
  
  1) Schedule for planning and time management.
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  2) Diary for organizational memory grows knowledge by "connecting the dots" that add intelligence to information.
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  3) Contacts for tracking people and organizations.
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  4) Documents for formal and official representations.
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  5) Context Management using organic structure. ..
6. Triangulation supports accuracy for navigating through Knowledge Space with...
  
  1) Context Management sets boundaries for organic structure at any level of detail, and expands span of attention to understand complex meaning;
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  2) Alignment compares and evaluates new information with prior understandings and original sources; and
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  3) Feedback refines correlations, implications, and nuance for understanding evolving conditions that require adjusting course. ..
7. Interoperability stengthens integration for "connecting the dots" in work product created with a variety of software programs. (see Evaluation on October 20, 2003) Integration with other technologies leverages investment in training and prior work, and applies a common command center for explaining relationships between files created with multiple tools, as set out in POIMS.
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Organizational Memory is the work product in Knowledge Space.
1. Analysis captures the sequence of events based on chronology. Rather than rely on impulse and impression from personal memory in-the-moment, thinking through writing applies deliberation to construct a narrative "report" or diary (see POIMS). Writing a continuous, comprehensible story to make sense of daily working information in relation to prior work yields organizational memory for continual learning with precision access to relevant history. Analysis explains who, what, when, where, why, and how experience in meetings, calls, and documents impacts objectives, requirements, and commitments. Linking, reporting and, feedback performed in the organic structure of Knowledge Space are critical aspects of deliberative analysis for discovering and studying correlations, implications and nuance that are overwise overlooked in the fog of war. Analysis leverages the power of knowledge for getting things done by expanding creativity, revealing opportunity, and avoiding mistakes to save lives, time, and money.
  ..
2. Concurrent discovery occurs through analysis, reporting, linking and context management to identify emerging risks and opportunities in time to take effective action that avoids disputes, conflicts, loss, and tragedy by increasing accuracy.
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3. Organization applies context management with Control Files to segment the record for comprehension and meaningful construction of cause and effect in relation to the organic structure for objectives, requirements, and commitments.
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4. Command and control of the record ensures content is useful, accurate and accessible.
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5. Summary for perspective linked to detail for accuracy and timely access.
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6. Feedback continually refines accuracy in constructing an encyclopedia that integrates personal and organizational memory and management (POIMS).
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7. Common terms for organizational memory.
  
  1) Knowledge
  2) Experience
  3) Organizational Memory
  4) Records Management
  5) Evidence-based Management
  6) Filing
  7) Common Storage
  8) History
  9) Intellectual capital
  10) Intelligence
  11) Report
  12) Analysis
  13) Root cause analysis
  14) Chronology
  15) Causation
  16) Cause and effect
  17) if then
  18) Discovery
  19) Understanding
  20) Case studies
  21) Lessons learned
  22) Continual learning
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Context Management using subjects, topics, categories, classification, ontology, and the like, adds meaning to daily events by "connecting the dots" to understand complex sequence (chronology), correlations, implications and nuance in relation to objectives, requirements and commitments (see POIMS). Managing the organic structure of context is like tending a Garden of Knowledge, where everything is in the right place at the right time for discovering, saving, finding, and understanding critical details.
1. Organic structure of context applies traditional methods for Management by Objectives (MBO), records management, filing, accounting, planning and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) practices, similar to library work for managing taxonomy, and ontology that define the whole of existence, where there is a place for everthing, and everything is in the right place using common storage for Knowledge Space. Granular reporting enables precision access by quickly assembling multiple views that find the proverbial needle in a haystack using multiple paths and connections based on situational awareness.
  ..
2. Control Fields segment the record of organizational memory with accounts from the organic subject structure, similar to traditional 3x5 cards and library management; multiple subjects can be assigned to a record segment for expanding span of attention with alternate meanings based on situational awareness.
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3. Reporting applies expanding subject accounts to assemble record segments for specified subjects into chronology showing causation, case studies, root cause analysis and lessons learned. Synergy between constructing organic structure, and thinking through writing in the context of knowledge enables clear, concise, complete communication.
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Linking dynamically connects the dots that construct alignment showing traceability to original sources that reveal and enlighten with the power of knowledge for predicting the future...
1. Dynamic links apply synergy between time and context based on situational awareness. Precision access to relevant background and authority can be constructed at will within a few seconds to expand and refine accuracy of automatic links, similar to the way the conscious mind refines accuracy of subconscious mental processing. (see POIMS)
  ..
2. Accurate understanding is preserved with an audit trail of permenant links that "connect the dots" in a reliable record of common storage, enabling timely, reliable memory of relevant knowledge, as called out by industry standards and government regulations for traceability to original sources, often called "documentation."
  ..
3. Reminding about tasks, correlations, implications and nuance occurs naturally with increased frequency from creating and accessing links that connect seemingly useless information into an expanding mosaic of Knowledge Space for understanding cause and effect.
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4. Finding relevant information and knowledge is fast and easy, essentially instantaneous based on situational awareness.
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5. Access to verify accuracy is fast and easy, essentially instantaneous based on situational awareness.
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6. Discover correlations, implications and nuance to comprehensively understand cause and effect that is otherwise overlooked, in the absence of linking, due to information overload that obscures the context of objectives, requirements and commitments in the fog of war.
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7. Precision access to specific locations with granular addressability and explicit links that identify information units at every paragraph complements granular indexing for Context Management to make finding critical details fast and easy in the flexibel structure of Knowledge Space.
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8. Granular addressability is automated and integrated with SDS flexible structure and Knowledge Space to make linking fast and easy based on situational awareness. Reducing the time to verify accuracy and expand span of attention to near zero, makes clear, concise, complete communication a powerful and practical 3-layer architecture.
  ..
9. Explicit links at every paragraph integrated with automated FTP support construct a paperless office (also virtual office) environment on the Internet, and on secure company intranets; productivity improves by providing anytime, anywhere intelligence, where a few people using SDS constructs organizational memory that helps everybody using familiar tools in familiar ways without learning anything new.
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Reporting invests intellectual capital by capturing a greater share of daily experience in a written narrative of organizational memory, where understanding and accuracy are continually refined for decision support using case studies for root cause analysis that yields lessons learned. Writing in the context of knowledge with tools for outlining, flexible structure, and links to original sources strengthens the quality of analysis, and reduces the time to construct a comprehensive story that makes sense of complexity. Daily experience grows into knowledge of history that can be accessed quickly when needed.
1. SDS finds and assembles information into chronologies that construct patterns of cause and effect to drive command and control of the work, based on the organic structure of context for objectives, requirements and commitments. Reports over days, weeks, months, years and decades are assembled in seconds. Simple changes to organic structure specifying reports immediately yield alternate patterns of correlations, implications and nuance. Positioning the same information in multiple views discovers risks and opportunities that are otherwise hidden, i.e., a secret to participants of events. (see POIMS)
  ..
2. Decision support flows from understanding causation by integrating time and information to produce chronologies linked to original sources; additionally, "reporting" constructs case studies for root cause analysis that yields lessons learned. Examples include...
  
  1) $40M savings root cause analysis finds inaccurate plans caused by owner's failure to perform plan check, meeting December 1, 1989.
  ..
  2) Root cause analysis to understand complexity often seems like unnecessary overkill! Feel good management excuses losing time and money on grounds of having good intentions to reduce "paperwork," and expedite by being reactive (i.e., penny wise and pound foolish) that causes endless mistakes (see Kissinger on continual bumbling when analysis is omitted), instead of being proactive to discover correlations, implications and nunace in time to save time, money, November 23, 1991.
  ..
  3) $500M loss root cause analysis shows ship sank because attention was diverted to "wrong" problem, so work was not aligned with requirements, case study June 11, 1994.
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  4) Knowledge Management case study shows failure to advance beyond information technology, September 24, 2001.
  ..
  5) $10M loss Broadwater Dam planning decision support to recover based on root cause analysis showing misunderstanding from communication not aligned with requirements causes hydro-electric plant to fail, January 20, 1992.
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  6) $30M loss case study command and control failed, not enough diligence to find savings using conventional technologies, October 27, 1998.
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  7) Cancer recovery case studies show symptoms and test results require changes in treatment that are missed by busy doctors; concurrent discovery using root cause analysis is critical for effective health care, May 17, 2004.
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  8) $300M Challenger Space Shuttle lost due to O-ring failure, because communication not aligned with requirements, case study reported on October 21, 1991. Information sore subject at NASA/JPL.
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  9) Cal Tech reported case study for root cause analysis traced links in thousands of communications over many years in documents, phone logs, RFIs, and email to discover cause for failure of Space Shuttle Challenger in 1996, May 24, 1997.
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  10) $125M loss Mars Space Probe crashed due to little deviation that was multiplied over millions of miles -- root cause analysis traces problem to email, October 1, 1999.
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  11) NASA morphed "requirements" into goals, guidelines, and suggestions that are "nice" to meet, when there is enough time and money using existing skills and approved tools, rather than insist on performance for payment, and for "go" or "no go" flight status; NASA Administrator, Sean O'Keefe, reported to Congress that the root cause for loss of the Columbia Space Shuttle is a culture of denial that morphs good people into proponents of bad management, which eviscerates diligence for doing accurate work, August 22, 1993.
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  12) Bureaucracy makes analysis look like unnecessary overkill; demonstrates need for technology that enables diligence for performing root cause analysis within time available, February 3, 2004.
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  13) Root Contradition Analysis reviewed on September 5, 2004, along with another list of 10 or so case studies solving difficult problems related to production measurements. ..
3. Case studies for root cause analysis and continual learning required by industry standards flow naturally from reporting on organizational memory assembled into chronologies based on context, and can be continually expanded and refined by managing the Garden of Knowledge in the organic structure of subjects. (see examples under Decision Support)
  ..
4. Root cause analysis, study, review, brainstroming all flow from intelligence support (see examples under Decision Support) under this scope in several ways...
  
  1) Traceability to original sources using automatic and custom links in organizational memory that "connect the dots" into an audit trail required by industry standards to identify both correlations and contradictions from comparing language that explains daily experience, and language that describes the context of objectives, requirements, commitments.
  ..
  2) Granular reporting on organizational memory enabled by Context Management using organic structure to assemble case studies showing chronologies that provide multiple views of causation based on the sequence of events.
  ..
  3) Constructing organic structure with tools that quickly create multiple views of context imparts deeper understanding from parsing explanations of experience into smaller components. Alternate work breakdown structures point to causes that are otherwise hidden by complexity, and also to solutions from vigorous analysis of problems. ..
5. Lessons learned are continually derived from organizational memory assembled into case studies for root cause analysis, based on chronology and context (see above) and can be easily distributed for comment and refinement to affected parties. (see also examples under Decision Support)
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Reminding and prompting are powerful derivatives of precision access in Knowledge Space that expand span of attention to discover and remember correlations, implications and nuance, i.e., critical details.
1. Knowledge Space integrates a critical mass of capabilities using multi-dimensional axes for chronology and context that inherently expands span of attention by providing instant access to collateral and relevant information,
  ..
2. Links inherently position the mind, when both created and accessed, in a broader context beyond initial focus and concerns of the moment. Since linking is fast and easy, taking a few seconds to create connections for finding the path back to original sources encourages people, like the story of Hansel and Gretel, to gravitate toward a practice of increasing the number of links that save time and money by verifying accuracy to avoid mistakes. This change in conduct, being more diligent without expending more time, increases visibility by an order of magnitude. Seeing more details relevant to current context, in turn, generates a powerful synergy that augments innate intelligence for "connecting the dots," and remembering critical details by drawing attention to a wider range of issues, which are otherwise beyond biological limits for human span of attention. (see POIMS)
  ..
3. Reporting based on the organic structure of context has an even greater effect for expanding span of attention. (see the prior section)
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4. Action items are fast and easy to create, as a matter of volition, based on situational awareness; and, can be assembled in seconds, ad hoc, at any time, and for any level of detail. Tasks pending to be performed are presented in the context of who, what, when, where, why, problems and solutions. This intelligence enables people to get things done correctly, on time and within budget.
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5. Organic structure of context constructing and using subject accounts to manage Control Fields and call reports, inherrently brings into span of attention closely related subjects that may require investigation, but which are otherwise overlooked.
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6. Feedback is emotionally difficult, but critical for Communication Metrics in two (2) ways....
  
  1) Distribution through the Internet makes feedback fast and easy to continually refine accuracy and avoid mistakes (see POIMS) by conveying how communication in meetings, calls and documents is interpretted based plans for follow up, i.e., disclosing how what was presented will be applied in taking action. Timely notice of planned action empowers people to correct misimpressions and align understanding with actual intentions so that complementary actions are taken in time to be effective and conflicts are avoided.
  ..
  2) Feedback from people correcting the record refines accuracy of organizational memory, and reminds of alternate interpretations that permit early investigation for taking timely action.
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User interface optimizes human potential for working intelligently.
1. Efficient usability transforms the drudge of diligence performing hard work into a paradigm of discovery, having fun like playing a piano. Switching from negative feelings about diligence, to positive synergy of play with rythm and harmony that people enjoy doing drives productivity by orders of magnitude.
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Command and Control of the work empowers people to discover correlations, implications, and nuance for working intelligently, and in time to be effective saving lives, time, and money, as explained in POIMS, and entails the following scope...
1. Control achieves results aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments.
  
  1) Clear, Concise, Complete Communication enables accurate understanding, and access to expand span of attention for timely follow up.
  ..
  2) Reporting controls content of the record.
  ..
  3) Distribution leverages the power of knowledge to enable anytime, anywhere intelligence.
  
  a) SDS makes uniform distribution fast, easy and cheap to all affected parties by managing common storage on the Internet, and on secure networks using intranets, so that people can control what to share in the same way that people decide what to speak and write. Explicit links empower everyone to quickly expand distribution of critical details and analysis to leverage organizational memory for collaboration.
  ..
  b) Decision support requires timely and consistent distribution of intelligence showing reliable evidence of cause and effect.
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  c) Collaboration requires timely, accurate, uniform distribution so that people can be effective working together on common tasks.
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  d) Coordination requires timely, accurate, uniform distribution of intelligence that positions everyone on the "same page" performing complementary tasks to reduce conflicts, mistakes, rework, and thereby save lives, time and money.
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  e) Confidentiality requires a range of controls to tailor distribution that protects vital interests.
  ..
  4) Judicious Review enables clear, concise, complete communication by opening only links that are relevant to current requirements, and opening other links that are relevant on other occassions with different circumstances.
  ..
  5) Feedback continually refines accuracy of the record and informs participants of meaning for timely clarification that avoids mistakes and imparts correlations, implications and nuance in time to take effective action, and which is otherwise overlooked.
  ..
  6) Control Fields enable SDS users to manage a continuous information stream with segments that the human mind can readily understand and apply for constructing larger meanings through association with other information when assembled with SDS command mechanisms for reporting.
  ..
  7) Headlines give SDS users the power to define multiple views for understanding the meaning of complex details in relation to objectives, requirements and commitments.
  ..
  8) Headlines can be instantly captured, and then quickly applied at will for defining multiple views with organic subject structures that manage the context of daily experience; this makes growing knowledge fast and easy, similar to the way that DNA grows inert molecular structures into the miracle of life.
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  9) Situational awareness (SA) is the perception of information within a contextual frame bounded by space and time, using intelligence for comprehension of meaning, and knowledge of consequences to choose a course of action in time to be effective.
  
  a) Sensory perception of context from sight and sound, and remembering paradigms (i.e., rules, lessons) connecting cause and effect from relevant experience is limited by span of attention that is overwhelmed when information comes too fast. Awareness of a dominate context often crowds out construction of mental pointers to alternate, subsidiary contexts in the same situational frame. Comprehension falls with the rise of complexity compounded by limited time (see example understanding the "Big Picture" on May 23, 1989). People frame and remember contextual boundaries based on emotional charge of reward and danger (applause brings joy, delight, daring; opprobrium brings pain, anger, fear, doubt, delay). People remember only the general gist of situations for subsidairy contexts (see hidden context ) to make sense of the "Big Picture" also on May 23, 1989). Without precision access to an accurate record of organizational memory, people cannot point to relevant context, and so are forced to rely on assumption, which often works. Otherwise, people point their finger in accusuation and blame by molding the gist of the story into false knowledge that fits the situation in the moment. When time is available for sober assessment, traditional study, analysis, and deliberation expand attention beyond the moment to perceive multiple views of context; e.g., driving home, we recall a lot of details that were not remembered during the meeting. POIMS requirements improve literacy to further leverage innate mental capacity for study, analysis, and deliberation, even when time is short. A wide variety of paths and natural reminders enable people to perceive, manage, and remember multiple views for situational awareness, rather than the one (1) view that seems "important" at the time.
  ..
  b) Comprehension of meaning applies ordinary mental metrics to calculate alignment with objectives, requirements, and commitments, which continually drifts with the natural tides of constant information, but is held on course with triangulation.
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  c) Knowledge of consequences is leveraged by using SDS to draw timely, relevant experience from an accurate history of situations with comparable context in organizational memory that reveal patterns of cause and effect to guide taking action under the common rule: past is prologue.
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  10) Reality monitoring is a mental exercise of cogntive overhead that applies due diligence cross-checking accuracy of multiple sensory perceptions against experience for taking timely action responding to situational awareness under the common rule that separates the quick and the dead. (reviewed November 18, 2002)
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  Intelligence support technology reduces the time for reality monitoring under the locality principle that save lives, time, and money by increasing productivity with fewer mistakes and more innovation. Technology reduces the burden of cognitive overhead to permit greater diligence for reality monitoring within the time available.

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Intelligence scope presented in this outline clearly provides an effective model for both process and work product.
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Comparing traditional military practice with POIMS support for a new way of working, shows commonality...

Intelligence

POIMS	Military
1. Organize	1. Organize
2. Analyse	2. Identify/correlate
3. Align	3. Aggregate/Resolve
4. Summarize	4. Interpret/Determine/Predict
5. Feedback	5. Assess and Adjust
	6. Visualize feedback and redirect

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While technology for military intelligence has focused on big ticket items like satellites, sensors, and drones (UMVs) largely for gathering data, and to some extent artificial intelligence for analysis, POIMS defines technology to leverage innate biological mental strength for memory, understanding, and analysis by an order of magnitude. POIMS summarizes five (5) elements of knowledge into an "intelligence" cycle of "plan, perform, report" that converts information from daily events into the power of knowledge to get things done by "connecting the dots" to discover cause and effect under the locality principle. In both the military model and POIMS, work product is routinely called "intelligence." Generating work product with POIMS technology enables a new way of working accomplished with a practice using eight (8) steps. The combination of new tools and practices forms the science of Communication Metrics.

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Changing 5,000 Years of Management Practice Takes Leadership
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Better results require new tools, skills and roles for intelligence, but fundamental advance is resisted by the viscosity of culture. Resistance of culture is useful to avoid precipitous change, so that tools and methods can be applied productively. Without the stabilizing influence of culture, nothing would ever get implemented to produce actual improvement, because once a good idea is discovered, it takes time to figure out effective deployment that lifts civilization. The challenge is balancing the need for stability to get things done with proven tools and methods, like alphabet technology, while being alert to the prospects of improvement, and open to continual learning. Since improvement can be disruptive and learning sometimes difficult, resulting in people losing jobs, position and stature, i.e., image, resistance to change may not reflect lack of merit, but rather fear of learning, of exposing lack of personal competence, and desire to maintain status, without the effort to improve. The biological drive for self-preservation raises the bar very high. There must be a big need for change; the opportunity for improvement must be real; and a path must be available for making a transition, in this case from information to a culture of knowledge.
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Therefore, the threshold ingredient for improvement is the courage of leadership with a broader vision to launch the effort that empowers people to discover a new way of working in a new world order. Culture, social pressure and paradigms foster ignorance, fear and denial that improvement is necessary, particularly in the case of communication methods and management practice, which have evolved together over 5,000 years. Such deeply ingrained notions are not easily changed. The momentary impulse to speak and take immediate action, based on cursory understanding, overwhelms the need to invest intellectual capital that produces organizational memory, which is essential for making action effective in a more complex world that exceeds the limits of traditional practices for communication, management and learning. As a result, the only way for improvement to occur is for leadership to launch the ship of discovery, just at Queen Isabella launched Columbus on a voyage in 1492 to the West in order to find riches of the East. Recall the Queen did not send the entire fleet, but rather commissioned a pilot test of only three ships to discover a new world beyond the horizon. Initial results were modest; but, leadership persisted, and in a few hundred years a whole new way doing things exploded on the scene in constitutional government that secures the blessings of liberty and enterprise.
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Three (3) things are needed to fulfill the vision of better knowledge work today....

Leadership
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Management science
Technology

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As just noted, while change, for good or ill, is inevitable, proactive change for improvement, rather than change driven by the mere chance of whatever washes ashore with the tides, can only occur with courageous leadership. Accordingly, leadership is the top priority in the transformation from informationn to a culture of knowledge, and so is discussed last in line, as the most challenging ingredient of transformation.
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Management science in this context can be defined as a set of related practices and responsibilities designed to accomplish a specific business purpose; in this case, converting information into knowledge by adding business metrics to communication. The foremost requirement for a new management science, is a new...

professional role

...to forge a stronger partnership between leadership and technology, discussed in detail below.
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Information technology (IT) encompasses computer hardware and software that creates, stores, processes and retrieves information. CPM, spreadsheets, word processing, contact managers, calendars, notebooks, all are examples of IT. Some of these tools are classified as Personal Information Managers, or PIMs. Groupware is a class of software that enables a group of people to work on software programs and/or contribute to preparing a document, like a contract, or product specification, using version control and tracking change history. Those, who have worked with IT, know well, however, that software programs for particular tasks do not improve the practice of management. The missing ingredient is integration that emulates the mental faculty of synthesizing separate tasks into a fluid stream of information connected into chronologies of cause and effect based on human needs, also, called objectives, subjects, categories, etc, which in total comprises the knowledge needed to function productively.
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Therefore intelligence support requires a new science of Communication Metrics and a new technology standard...
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P O I M S

Personal and Organizational Integrated
Management Support ..
POIMS technology aids the common management tasks of planning, feedback, organization, analysis, alignment, integration and measurement. It was introduced in the Proceedings (p. 493) of the 25th Annual Seminar/Symposium held in 1994 by the Project Management Institute (PMI).
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POIMS pays homage to the original use of poetry to preserve historic events and complex ideas through rhyme and meter. Technological advances like written language and the printing press displaced this function, yet, still today the power of poems is evident in our respect for those gifted few who inspire us with songs of love and hope. POIMS fulfills our hopes for a better future by using automated integration to leverage the capacity to think, remember and communicate.
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Only within the past several years has it become possible to automate this linking process. Now software that implements POIMS is emerging in the marketplace, and experience shows it is even more helpful than expected. The Schedule Diary System (SDS), for example, has been used at Pacific Gas & Electric Company, and by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to integrate time, information, people, documents and objectives.
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Using SDS corrects meaning drift that otherwise causes failed communications.
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Lotus Notes, Microsoft Outlook and other Personal Information Manager (PIMs) tools are beginning to implement POIMS to some degree.
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The critical factor is "human-centered" design (also usability engineering, empathic design, user centered design) that makes computers useful to the management process of continually converting information into knowledge. As a result, one test of useful technology for managers is how many hours a day the technology is used to improve the work? Minimal use reflects minimal value. A technology that can be used every day, all day long, to improve thinking, remembering and communicating adds considerable value.
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Improvements in Web browser technology show growing support of POIMS requirements for integrated tools that augment intelligence. In particular, the Internet and secure intranets comprise a powerful structural platform for Knowledge Space that makes improves efficiency and accuracy by advancing toward a paperless office model. Timely, precision access on demand makes intelligence support a powerful new reality for saving lives, time, and money throughout industry and government. Many who touted this "dream" in the early 90s, later gave up because getting technology to improve "management," which is mainly a "thinking" process, is hard to accomplish. It takes more than throwing a lot of money at the problem. Only the right design, that balances technology, management science and strong leadership can produce cost savings from productivity gains that are inherently the promise of a paperless office.
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Of course, introducing change into a mature culture is a major effort. Many, who have been disappointed by earlier efforts to automate management, are now wary of the idea that automation can help managers think, remember and communicate. They properly ask, "How can we use a computer to manage? Management is talking and dealing with people, setting objectives, scheduling our time. I don't to sit behind a computer all day!"
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These views make clear that computers, alone, cannot get the job done. Only an integrated strategy of management science, technology and a professional role (explained below) can do the job. During the early stages, when the culture is discovering that faster information destroys productivity and earnings, strong leadership is critical to help people overcome fear of change so that people can further discover that using intelligence for proactive alignment of communication adds value that compliments alignment of finances that uses accountants to assess results of communication.
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Some resist the idea that communication "skills" can be aided by technology, and further recoil at the prospect of leveraging intelligence. There is a natural desire to rely on natural talent for thinking, hearing, seeing and speaking.
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This overlooks the distinction between "leadership," which persuades (sells, wins people over), and "understanding" (recognition of alignment with original sources) which needs connections and follow up to ensure shared meaning is maintained over time. Without understanding and follow-up, leadership soon finds the team is drifting off course. Communication Metrics can be seen as an "automated experience machine" to create and smoothly integrate new knowledge and ideas into the daily work flow, so that leadership is effective.
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This definition leads to idea that communication has three parts...
Leadership
Understanding
Follow-up
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Traditional management training and education in communication focuses solely on the short-term, here-and-now component of leadership. How can we talk people into things, get them to listen, get them to buy our product, motivate them to follow our lead, and do what we want. Consultants who teach better listening are helping the leader get the team to pay attention to what is said.
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Experts teach feedback and note taking improve listening to refine accuracy of knowledge and understanding so that opportunities are discovered and mistakes are avoided. This objective is incorporated into legal standards for notice, commonly applied through contract notice provisions, discussed above.
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This "teaching," however, overlooks powerful social dynamics....

Fear and ignorance make feedback a psychologically demanding task that is often strongly resisted. People fear asking questions and are reluctant to offer a record that refreshes recollections. We fear angry reprisals from people who strike out at questioners. People fear offering a record that may err, or otherwise differ from how others remember events, and so get mad, rather than engage the process of refining accuracy. Anger and fear flow because stopping to investigate feedback is traumatic to a mind biologially wired to act in time to avoid harm and loss of opportunity. As well, feedback that conflicts with personal memory creates self-doubt about personal competence, and may cause embarrassment and loss of face. We often prefer to avoid immediate pain from hurt feelings more than future harm to others from taking the wrong action, under the common rule...
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Do anything even if its wrong!
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Often there isn't enough time to ask all of the relevant questions.
All of the relevant questions are often not evident at the time a meeting, call, or discussion occurs.
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Speech goes too quickly to recognize gaps in reasoning and alignment, and participate in discussion while jotting down cursory notes. Talking is discursive so handwritten notes are initially a jumble of half-sentences, keywords, arrows and doodle diagrams going in all directions, that have some meaning at the time, but soon appear Delphic like the Dead Sea Scrolls, even to those who prepared them.
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The record of related information is too big to align in a way that allows people to discover deviations from the truth, which Aristotle found cause difficulties in human affairs.
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Management training does not teach how to avoid getting tired, and how to expand span of attention in a climate of expanding complexity, longer hours and constant information flow.
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More time devoted to attending conferences, meetings, calls and reviewing information means less time is available to prepare a record for obtaining feedback, and less time for others to review, recognize possible deviations, and formulate feedback response.

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Thus, social dynamics and the biology of human speech, hearing, cognition, and emotions constrain feedback metrics for accurate alignment. Without alignment, verbal communication becomes a constant stream of "guess and gossip." Sole reliance on talking in hopes of expediting the work most often causes misunderstanding (i.e., false knowledge), rework, delay and extra cost.
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What to do?

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Anytime, Anywhere Intelligence Makes the Internet an Asset

One more piece of technology is helpful for business intelligence. The Internet has been designed and sold as "anytime, anywhere information." As seen, this reduces productivity, because people are overwhelmed by too much information. The Internet can, however, in conjunction with POIMS technology, efficiently deliver useful business intelligence created by integrating time and information using Communication Metrics, as discussed above.
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Rudimentary Web Browser skills enable a wide spectrum of people to get timely, accurate intelligence in a form that can be absorbed quickly. Managers can use traditional cursory methods of summarizing complex fact patterns to prepare for meetings, calls and documents in daily decision making; yet, when needed, they can obtain underlying details and connections for understanding relevant history and controlling policy, regulations, requirements plans and specifications. Second, follow-up Actions Items can be linked to original sources, so that alignment is maintained between daily events and objectives.
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The Internet can be converted into an asset for managers, adding critical value to business intelligence by delivering the connections that bring understanding and timely follow-up so that communication can leverage knowledge, wisdom and vision anytime, anywhere in the world.
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We have some tools and methods to create and deliver business intelligence, but not enough time to use the tools.

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Intelligence Brings Creativity and Skill

The science of Communication Metrics provides new skills for working intelligently in a New World Order that demands leadership with a broader vision.
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In the same way that the power and mission of an airplane needs a pilot, someone must use SDS tools to grow and maintain the garden of knowledge for delivering intelligence as an integrated process of proactive management. Civilization has evolved a new world order that now needs a new work role for a new way of working using a new kind of technology to align daily communication, and, thereby, complement the traditional role of accounting that aligns daily finances. New technology and work practices yield innovation for a new science of Communication Metrics from integrating management science, computer science and cognitive science.
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Just as a few specialists in accounting use spreadsheets for double-entry verification of finance that enables the team to focus on getting things done, so too, we need a new form of scribe to leverage communication for discovering correlations, implications, and nuance essential for execution of strategy, planning, and meeting commitments. A few specialists using SDS for triangulation can quickly double check accuracy and track follow up. Routinely "connecting the dots" of cause and effect between daily action, and objectives, requirements and, commitments makes organizational memory a highly leveraged asset that strengthens diligence for better listening by everyone. Rather than pulling in different directions that eviscerates collaboration, intelligence support makes communication effective for getting things done correctly, on time and within budget (see below on calculating cost savings from working intelligently).
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The military uses intelligence officers, analysts and specialists. Stockbrokers use analysts to study and report on company prospects for financial growth. In religion, disciples wrote the story to maintain alignment of principles. In law a combination of court reporters capture the record and lawyers provide extensive analysis that aligns the story with controlling authority. However, the legal arena is reactive intelligence for business. Proactive management must generate intelligence before mistakes are made, before conflict arises due to misalignment with requirements and commitments, before money is lost that causes legal action.
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Traditional business culture does not have an Intelligence department or role. Analysis is part of Strategic Planning; but, proactive intelligence to obtain feedback, and organize, analyse, align information, and link summary to details is a new role, and a new, proactive, method to avoid mistakes and seize opportunity in time to be effective.
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Johanna Neuman observes in her book Lights, Camera, War a dilemma of leadership throughout history seeking advantages of technology for power and wealth; yet, also, requiring continual change to improve work habits so that decision making is not overcome by information overload from faster and faster technology.
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Leaders from past eras used specialists to write things down. For centuries, only scribes used the alphabet to write, perserve and convey communciation. The English historian Havlock (reviewed on November 8, 1999) notes that in the beginning, from about 700 BC, alphabet technology was only used for accurate memory of speech by leadership, e.g., pharohs, emporers, and kings. Sacred texts revered the word for preserving and expanding religious power in the Ten Commandments, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Bible. About 300 years later, beginning in 400 BC literacy skills expanded to organize, analyse, align, and summarize writing to construct and expand understanding of complex events. People discovered that written analysis to intrepret cause and effect from history provides stronger guidance for planning the future than reliance on fragile memory of personal experience. In the modern era, writing has evolved into specialized practices of "history" in education, "reporting" in journalism, and "planning" in governement and business. (see bureaucracy analyzed on February 3, 2004) The practice of writing things down to record important experience and work out understanding of deeper meaning was formalized into mathematics and applied in accounting for financial metrics to aid leadership in managing costs and rewards. More recently cost and schedule engineers were introduced to supplement accounting. Intelligence support and Communication Metrics continue the progress of civilization introducing a new class of work to bridge the widening gap between existing methods and the realities of a faster, more complex New World Order.
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Today, everybody can write things down, which is a big advance in literacy; but, nobody has time to think, to orgainze the record, analyse, align, summarize, and obtain feedback that refines accuracy. There are many highly skilled professionals who can organize and analyse, but the volume of information on the job overwhelms the capacity to make information useful by constructing an effective record of organizational memory for getting things done, because nobody can find critical details when needed. This makes decision support a house of cards based on spontaneous guesses and assumptions. (see study on May 4, 2002 citing Henry Kissinger's worry reported on June 6, 1994 that daily management is becoming an Alice in Wonderland of continual bumbling)
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SDS fills this gap with intelligence support that provides a simple, direct means to reengineer knowledge work by adding a professional work role that helps solve the weak link in management - limited span of attention. (see POIMS) This new role ensures that, even though executives, managers, engineers, and other professionals do not have time to think, critical "thinking" gets done, and is distributed in time to be effective using the Internet, and secure company intranets for...
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Anytime, anywhere intelligence
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Intelligence support applies a model of...
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Clear, Concise, Complete Communication
A common recommendation for business writing says...
Clear and concise. The less you write, the less chance for misunderstanding or misinterpretation. The clearer you are, the more likely the message will be understood and acted upon. Don't offer an opinion if it isn't essential. Stick to the facts.
PMI seminar, Asilomar, CA July 15, 1996) ..
A dilemma of leadership is being clear to avoid confusion on action to be taken; and, also, complete on context that makes action effective. As seen, authorities recommend concise communication for clarity on responsibilities, liabilities and entitlements. Added length for complete context on authority, background, commitments, and rationale help induce and guide successful action, but reduces clarity that can lead to failure of notice, because there is not enough time on the job to read everything. Clear and concise communication seems like the remedy for information overload. "Complete" communication, however, seems inherently conflicting with being "concise." How can this conflict be resolved to improve the quality of communications with limited time?
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A 2-tier architecture of cognition reconciles the conflict. Subconscious processing (1st tier) automatically links sensory perception from conscious awareness of evolving situations (2nd tier) to relevant experience. In other words, when clear and concise communciation is received, the mind automatically makes a lot of connections for understanding and follow up. Most of these mental links are filtered out of conscious awareness to yield summary interpretations, feelings, impressions, impulse, and "gut reactions." Accuracy therefore varies because the subconscious mind creates links based on near-term events. Emotions, in combination with limited time and limited access to accurate, relevant contextual experience, cause the mind to forget, overlook, and commingle chronology of unrelated events in constructing links to understand cause and effect. Recent experience is given priority, rather than invest time to find original sources. Therefore, first impressions from subconscious links between clear and concise communication, and memory of experience is often incorrect. (see POIMS)
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The design of innate human mental biology makes writing a coherent summary with links to relevant details a powerful aid for clear, concise, complete communication.
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Why?
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Limited time attending meetings, making calls, and handling documents often prevents checking accuracy in the moment. Since consequences of error are deferred for days, months, even years, failure to check the record becomes a slippery slope that grows into habit, rather than rare exception. Speed and ease of feel-good management succumbs entirely to rule-based subconscious processing (i.e.,paradigms) that avoids the trauma of expending cognitive overhead to resolve conflicting impressions from situational awareness. Initial fragments of memory instantly construct assumptions by remembering the gist of the story and constructing association with settled paradigms. Assumptions avoid investing time for reflection to discover knowledge (i.e., justified true belief based on evidence, see again POIMS) that predicts the future by "connecting the dots" of cause and effect to make sense of dynamic, complex information flowing constantly day-to-day. Limited time in league with culture and peer pressure generate assumptions that instantly resolve ignorance, doubt, and fear with confidence from warm fuzzy feelings about prospects for taking immediate action. Confidence satisfies powerful biological drives to feel good (safe, secure, certain) in the moment. However, like following the Pied Piper, reaction on impulse to the fools gold of assumption leads people down the wrong path to false knowledge, prejudice, discrimination, and the official view of reality. Enabling forces eventually align assumptions on small, innocuous issues into critical mass that suddenly explodes into conflict, crisis, and calamity, as Aristotle predicts. (see case study reported June 11, 1994)
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The practice of diligence evolved for quality control that checks assumptions using alphabet technology to debug human thought by "checking the record." (see POIMS) Cognitive science recognizes an innate subconscious process automatically performs reality monitoring to cross-check accuracy of perceptions from multiple sensory paths (e.g., sight, sound, order, touch). Intelligence checks connections of cause and effect from situational awarness against memory of experience in order to take action that can succeed. Order and structure from adding energy for accurate mental connections yields the power of knowledge that controls the future, under the locality principle of predictability.
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Due diligence augments innate intelligence by consciously capturing the record of personal experience, rather than rely solely on mental biology. Writing things down in letters, books, reports, specifications, and contemporaneous notes provides a source of personal and organizational memory for due diligence to verify accuracy with reality metrics. People check the record of documentation to investigate subconscious processing by investing time to consciously find sources that verify accuracy of first impressions. Diligence recognizes that first impressions are often misleading, and so accurate comprehension requires reality monitoring with comprehensive review of correlations, implications and nuance. As explained above discussing religion, common practices for diligence are bibliographies in professional writing, and citations in legal work. Saying that so-and-so ...religiously provides original sources, means someone is very diligent ensuring accuracy, based on the close cultural association between religion and commitment to practice. However, when complexity exceeds span of attention, diligence wains. Good management suddenly looks like "wasting time" on a lot of hard work. Denial resists the burden of hard work for cognitive overhead simply by assuming that accuracy is unnecessary overkill. When people "...do not have time to think," feel confused, and overwhelmed by demands of communication metrics for understanding complexity, human biology relieves the burden with the common practice of "expediting." Mental metrics easily jump to unsupported conclusions and assumptions that inherently feel good by avoiding diligence to deliberate, i.e., think about correlations, implications and nuance. When expediting becomes an excuse to avoid diligence for checking accuracy, then errors compound and grow to critical mass, causing loss of lives, time and money. Without due diligence for working intelligently, productivity is paralyzed. People are rewarded with the exact opposite from goals for expediting, under the second law of thermodynamics that does not forgive ignoring reality.
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Of course, everyone calls for due diligence to check the record; yet, the ability to use organizational memory is weak. (see Jeff Conklin's article reviewed on April 20, 2001) A year later on November 8, 2002, Bill Gates at Microsoft reported information is piling up in computers that nobody uses because nobody can find anything. Clearly, useless information piles up from documents, meetings and calls, when there is not enough diligence to find useful connections with objectives, requirements and commitments in time to be effective, using existing tools and skills. CBS News reported on their 60 Minutes television broadcast that useless information is a growing pandemic paralyzing productivity, because when finding relevant history, experience, and knowledge is not fast and easy, people are forced to rely on guess and gossip, hunch and hope, which quickly breaks down into continual bumbling, rather than continual learning. Error and loss make conflict and crisis a daily staple of constant meetings that reduce management to entropy. A study found that 70% of the day is wasted in unproductive meetings, where people point fingers in anger and accusation, because they cannot point to relevant contextual experience in the record of organizational memory.
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Popular, common sense solutions urge more diligence, i.e., work harder; others simply suggest ignoring and deleting information to fit the time available for due diligence using information technology. People soon discover, however, that finding information to delete is a lot of hard work that takes extra time. Deleting is also risky. Information that seems useless at the moment, may yield essential knowledge when connected with information from another context either forgotten from yesterday, last month, a year ago, or equally from new circumstances that arise tomorrow, next week, a month later, etc. Converting information into knowledge requires tools and roles that leverage diligence with precsion access to organizational memory based on situational awareness.
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POIMS describes a 3-layer architecture that integrates people, process, and time to leverage diligence by working smarter supported by an environment of Knowledge Space, rather than trying to work harder with conventional information tools. The design of Knowledge Space synthesizes chronology, context, and connections to triangulate accuracy and reduce diligence to mere volition. Constructing links is fast and easy with flexible organic work breakdown structures to find sources by remembering only the gist of story. Research instantly assembles case studies to consider multiple views that expand span of attention beyond impulsive first impressions. Granular organic structures for context management combined with chronology showing sequence of events complement granular addressability and explicit links that enable instant access to precise work history using common web browser tools. Using familiar tools in familiar ways makes good management a practical reality to reduce mistakes and discover opportunity in time to take effective action.
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Routinely verifying accuracy by adding connections for alignment enable clear, concise, complete communication. Adding energy to maintain a well ordered record based on chronology and context converts negative synergy from wasting time destroying mountains of "useless information" piling up on computers, into positive synergy from "connecting the dots" to understand cause and effect. Making sense of complexity with timely, accurate understanding of causation yields a sea change in performance by converting otherwise "useless information" into the power of knowledge that controls the future. Transforming information from a liability that degrades productivity, into knowledge makes organizational memory a highly leveraged strategic asset. Timely access to knowledge empowers diligence without taking more time to work harder. Productivity to save lives, time, and money comes from working smarter.
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The power of working intelligently to quickly navigate through Knowledge Space, exposes a larger share of links than people have previously encountered. This occurs because connections in organizational memory are an analog of human thought that significantly expands the power of alphabet technology (see POIMS) by replicating the mental faculty of dense association that extends forever. Jeremy Campbell, for example, explains that the mind automatically connects one thing it knows to another, thereby constructing an expanding reservoir of links for understanding how the world works. The power of the mind to understand connections of cause and effect based on linking experience is popularly expressed by the cliche: Been there done that!
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Most of these mental links are hidden from the minds eye by the power of conscious thought to filter out all but a small fraction of the connections needed to understand current context, i.e., what is going on right now. People primarily focus situational awareness on the field of vision, commonly called span of attention. (see POIMS) Expanding span of attention beyond biological limits increases visibility of connections that impact objectives, requirements and commitments in order to avoid overlooking critical details. As a result, transformation from current practice to benefit from better span of attention initially seems shocking when people begin encountering records with dense associations that greatly increase the speed of accessing original sources. The change from almost never opening sources to being empowered with instant access, at first, seems overhelming, particularly, when people try to open every link they encounter, since as noted, organizational memory is an analog of human thought that extends forever. Therefore, trying to open every link quickly boggles the mind, shown by research on February 8, 2000.
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Introducing a new professional role to construct and deliver connections of cause and effect strengthens diligence for command and control of critical details by using technology to link current and prior events with relevant sources in a way that makes sense of complexity. Intelligence "connects the dots" for comprehensive understanding of all events by increasing the speed and precision of traveling through Knowledge Space. However, at first, the gift of greater diligence boggles the mind by opening a Pandora's box that brings responsibility for exercising the power of knowledge to get things done. People at first fear connections to relevant history and sources, because the power of knowledge reduces denial that otherwise excuses accountability for negligence, failure, and refusal to perform. Fear of accountability from loss of denial by the charge You knew or reasonably should have known! is a powerful cultural artifact that boggles the mind.
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Cognitive Overhead describes investing time for study, investigation, research, searching, finding, analysis, and deliberation associated with thinking, learning, diligence, intelligence, and knowledge. In recent years, adding links to documents on the Internet increases speed and therefore reduces time for study, research, searching, and finding documents by orders of magnitude. Paradoxically less time finding documents has increased resistance to cognitive overhead, despite relative ease clicking links, because constructing links, and finding relevant context within documents after links are opened, both take a lot of hard work without precision access.
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Busy people pressed for time get frustrated, mad, and emotional from stress and anxiety when work is delayed by changing routine tasks. Change disrupts mental biology that relies on assumptions from experience for working efficiently. Reducing efficiency from adding complexity that changes familiar work creates anger and fear of disruption investing time for cognitive overhead to find contexutally relevant information, when precision access is not supported. Fear of emotional reprisals that channels energy toward "kill the messenger" makes people reluctant to present problems that require adjustments, because management focused on the "big picture" does not want to know complex details that paint a different story, i.e., the "truth." (see example on April 26, 1995)
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Cognitive overhead is resisted reading the record to prepare for doing work, for example, to write a report, an accurate letter, or conduct a productive meeting. Besides delay finding the record, people are frustrated by delay reading the record even when provided proactively as feedback. Emotioal trauma compounds for some seeing a record that conflicts with personal memory, because delay increases spending time to check personal memory, then investing more time and emotional capital arguing about changing the record. People mostly hate to encounter invective and opprobrium (compare report March 26, 1996 and earlier report on January 28, 1992). Aversion to being prepared was cited in the study reviewed on February 4, 1996 showing people waste 70% of the day in unproductive meetings.
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For most daily activity, people avoid cognitive overhead by relying on assumptions from personal memory. The practice of relying on assumption is often effective working on familiar things in familiar ways (see Andy Grove reviewed on March 7, 1998), so people naturally prefer work that enables immediate action, rather than deliberation, study, and analysis. Life experience gradually grows familiarity and confidence understanding frequent patterns of causation. Memory of seemingly relevant experience enables taking immediate action applying familiar skills to situational awareness of evolving context determined by sensory perception, i.e., common sense. People feel good working on familiar things like driving a car, flying a plane, writing a letter, reading a book, prescribing treatment... without investing time to think, study, deliberate, and verify accuracy by stopping to check sources discussed in meetings, listed in a bibliography, checking citations in a legal brief, or clicking links on the Internet.
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A frustrating knowledge management dilemma occurs because not every fact, t, and i needs to be checked, crossed, and dotted in every conversation, and in every document, but some do, or else time, money and lives are lost. This risk compounds when people feel very certain remembering events that never occurred. (see false knowledge in POIMS) Diligence improves accuracy, but takes time. Linking resolves the dilemma of limited time that drives continual mistakes by reducing the time for cognitive overhead to verify accuracy and maintain alignment with original sources. Why then do people empowered with precision access so rarely make it to the museum (applying the foundational theme of the New World Order...), especially today, when clicking a link brings the museum to the people, as the farmer did for the folks in Utah a century ago?
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Grasping the import of this sea-change in opportunity to improve accuracy, yet still shrouded with the dilemma of resistance, comes from the design of mental biology. Going to the library, opening a magazine, or a book, checking the files, even clicking a link on the Internet and searching for relevant details to verify accuracy and context, all take from several hours to several minutes that necessarily delays action, and further bear a risk of compounding delay, when a source does not actually yield verfication. People are wired to avoid, and so viscerally "hate," delay under the harsh rule that separates: The quick and the dead! Weighing the cost of delay and mental anxiety of investing time for due diligence against pausing for minutes, hours, and days of mental gymnastics required to check the record drive most toward the palliative allure of "assumption." The mind numbing simplicity of reasoning based on assumption of accuracy remembering chronology to understand causation makes clear why the three most popular words in every language are: Then what happened? People value knowledge of history for learning causation and context, but people depend on memory of personal history, because experience grows certainty in knowledge of cause and effect that enables confident action based on assumption that avoids delay for due diligence to verifiy accuracy.
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People understand investing time for farming and gardening that yield a harvest months later. People readily invest money in a bank that yields interest years later. But people resist investing intellectual capital by investing time for proactive management that saves lives, time, and money. Eric Freeman notes in his 1997 PhD thesis at Yale (see Lifestreams reviewed on December 15, 2003) that people resist diligence investing time to tend the garden of knowledge. Assigning subjects in the organic structure of context in order to be prepared to find critical details in time to be effective is strongly resisted, because, like farming and banking, rewards are delayed, i.e., there is no immediate payback. Failure to organize the work causes clutter and confusion to rise, overwhelming span of attention. However, this occurs gradually over months and years. People learn to cope by throwing away documents or simply become numb by ignoring clutter and confusion in a buble of isolation. In either case mangement is forced to rely on assumption rather than the record. Lack of accuracy produces negative feedback loops that spiral productivity toward entropy, noted as well in the USAFIT study reviewed on July 7, 1997.
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Civilization is an innovation (i.e., technology) that increases prospects for survival and happiness by integrating personal and organizational memory through the power of community. Civilization has flourished with the rise of management that applies communication to leverage the power of knowledge for taking immediate action with a complementary and forward looking power to pause and think, study, analyse, and deliberate in constructing plans for taking coordinated action in the future. Cognitive overhead explains agony, anguish, and anger, i.e., pain, from the conflict between personal and organizational memory and management. Tension between innate biological drives for people to take immediate action, and organizational requirements to delay action in order to invest time for working intelligently, i.e., verify, plan, and communicate, that makes coordinated action effective presents a Knowledge Management dilemma described as a "2-worlds" problem. POIMS technology reduces this tension by reducing the time for intelligence support that bridges the gap between personal and organizational memory and management.
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Expanding knowledge through continual learning from experiencing cause and effect occurs naturally in daily life. Human biology relies on prior knowledge to react on assumptions from first impression without investing time to be prepared by checking the record of organizational memory to verify accuracy of personal memory. Reacting on impulse by relying on experience works well in a primative world of spontaneous threats where survival depends on sensory perception from situational awareness using sight, sound, and smell. Taking immediate action to avoid immediate danger brings deep emotional satisfaction, and obvious reward for avoiding delay to study and analyse. Moreover, when all of the variables are self-evident, as occurs in primative settings, verifying accuracy is irrelevant. Mental biology that rewards immediate action with feelings of satisfaction presents a continuing bias against investing time to research, study, analyse, verify, and plan in the modern world. Even when the greater danger is ignorance, people prefer action to investing time for learning about variables that are not evident in the moment through sensory perception. In particular, when complexity exceeds span of attention, people tend to avoid the burden of cognitive overhead for performing due diligence, and instead rely on assumption to resolve the dilemma of desire for action. (see review of Professor George Miller on March 3, 1999).
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For example, investing time on due diligence to study work history and sources for learning accurate understandings of requirements and commitments seems enormously frustrating to prepare for meetings, calls, and documents, because study delays action, and because danger from error is deferred for days, weeks, months and years, beyond perception through sight and sound in the moment. The simple relief for frustration, when danger is "out of sight" and so "out of mind," is to avoid investing time to be prepared, shown by common practice of people wasting 70% of the day in unproductive meetings, reported in a study reviewed on February 5, 1996.
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In the same way, cognitive overhead to study, analyse, and deliberate for learning to program a television remote control can be enormously frustrating, because action to watch television is delayed. Equally, direct progress on desires and goals, like clicking a button to power up the television, select a channel, set the volume, all bring satisfaction, because there is an immediate result relative to a desire. Video games have a similar appeal, as does driving a car, attending a meeting, making a call, sending an email, which all entail spontaneous, stream-of-conscious conduct. Taking action with immediate results, like conversation, imparts powerful feelings of gratification and effectance that avoid cognitive overhead. (see Landauer reviewed on July 10, 1995)
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The focus of commercial work is production that applies knowledge, rather than study to grow knowledge. A carpenter earns a living by applying a lot of knowledge to perform complex, difficult tasks. Skills of literacy with letters and numbers are learned in school, and applied through apprenticeship learning to hammer, saw, and align, as well as the fundamental rule of accuracy to measure twice and cut once. Carpentry skills grow over time, but stopping production to study, analyse, and deliberate about how to perform the work is discouraged as "overhead" that delays the work. When we hire a carpenter to hang a door, add a room, or build the Empire State Building we expect the carpenter's hard work and craftsmanship to get things done. Time for "overhead" to study, analyse, and deliberate is minimized, because payment is based on production not thinking. The same is true for doctors, engineers, lawyers, accountants, teachers, and other professionals. When people have to stop and think, study, and learn about how to do work they are committed to produce, this delay for cognitive overhead is enormously frustrating, leading to the popular expression... I don't have time to think! What people really mean is... I don't have time to study, analyse, and deliberate for learning to think differently than I do at this moment! I want to act right now based on what I rememeber, rather than delay to verify accuracy and learn more knowledge! ..
People willingly sharpen skills through the accretion of experience; but, study, analysis, and deliberation in order to earn a living is resisted as burdensome, frustrating, and unacceptable overhead that delays getting the job done.
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Of course foundational learning in school must be distinguished from continual learning throughout a career. Seeking treatment, we are alarmed to see the doctor thumbing through a school book studying to acquire entry level skills. Patients want treatment by experienced practitioners, not people learning their craft, because experience teaches cause and effect, and we want assurance of getting a particular effect. Reliance on experience occurs when the surgeon says: "Only one patient died." We feel more comfortable selecting the surgeon who lost one patient in ten heart transplants, rather than the doctor who lost one patient in only two transplants, under the common rule: experience improves skill and refines knowledge. The same holds for mowing the lawn, constructing a bridge, designing a computer chip, etc.
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Conversation is a critical part of communication that complements experience to reduce cognitive overhead. People (CEOs, clerks, lawyers, engineers, doctors...) use communication skills to reduce paperwork, aiming to save time, expedite, and reduce costs with conversation that makes people feel good.
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For example, a doctor arrives 45 minutes late, plops down a thick file with years of patient tests and examinations, and says... Sorry! Sorry!
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I'm running a little behind today, and so don't have much time. But, we really need to talk!
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There wasn't enough time to study the record and "connect the dots" showing patterns of causation that diagnose your problem. However, I have some treatment ideas to discuss...
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Let's see, eh... Thumbing through your medical chart, and searching the hospital Knowledge Base on the computer I cannot find the reason for discontinuing a prior treatment. I may have been running behind at the time, and so did not have time to write it down a few years ago; or, I just missed seeing it today rushing to search through the records. Do you remember why we changed treatments? It's kind of important because I want to prescribe the prior discontinued treatment in order to qualify you for a new chemotherapy trial. This new treatment may cure your disease, and will save the hospital money, because the manufacturer pays for trial drugs. Of course, if the previous treatment was ineffective or, God forbid, made things worse, then I can't prescribe it again just to qualify you for a trial that may, or may not, be helpful. My best guess is we're probably okay, because, since I evidently didn't take time to write anything down, then the reason we changed treatments must not have been important. Does that assumption sound okay, so we can expedite getting you into treatment? What do you remember? ..
People solve the problem of cognitive overhead with conversation that ignores complementarity for accuracy required by training, published guidance, policies, professional standards, laws, and regulations for good management to write things down, organize the record for context, summarize meaning, link back to original sources for alignment, and get feedback to triangulate accuracy. (see for example the Healthwise Handbook, ISO, PMBOK, FAR, Covey, Grove, Drucker, et al). Later, when accuracy is critical, after a few seconds thumbing through the file, checking the computer, screaming at assisants, rifling through papers on the desk, under the desk, behind the file cabinet, in the trunk of the car, a simple shrug of the shoulders brings relief with a best guess. Reliance on conversation and assumption remembering the gist of the story (see another example on April 15, 2005; an earlier example on December 18, 1996) avoids frustration searching for details nobody remembers nor finds in the record, because the record was not created; or, because there is no organizing mechanism of common storage, and no technology for precision access that enables working intelligently.
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At least from the time of Aristotle, simple scenarios of denial and guessing are repeated millions of times a day all around the world. Bright, hard working people direct expensive capital investments with the sole aim to avoid frustrations of cognitive overhead by taking immediate action. Expediting, sounds productive, but often masks desire to avoid the pain of delay for continual learning through research to find critical details, alignment to verify accuracy, study, analysis, and deliberation to expand span of attention beyond momentary impressions that otherwise drive impulsive reaction; thus, the popularism...
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Do something, even if it's wrong!

This prescription sounds the alarm to get things done based on the best evidence currently available, rather than delay for further study, often summarized by the equally pithy homily that cautions...
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Don't sacrifice the good to the perfect.

Doubtless, situations of immenant danger require doing something without assurance of accuracy, because doing nothing brings certain loss. This core equation of biology drives reliance on momentary memory of causation from personal experience to make a best guess for survival. The same biology explains the study on May 4, 2002 showing regulations and professional standards for documenting alignment of communication with original sources are routinely ignored because good management is a lot of hard work that takes time, and so defers satisfaction of taking immediate action. When compliance within the mental frame of "immediate action" is beyond reach using popular methods and technologies, then requirements for good management to align and verify accuracy are ignored as suggestions. (see report on testimony by NASA's Chief Administrator, Sean O'Keefe, before Congress on August 26, 2004) A house-of-cards constructed with reasoning based on guess and assumption avoids time for cognitive overhead with the sensible excuse: "I don't have time to think." This drives a self-fulfilling prophecy of continual bumbling. Fear of accountability reduces reliance on writing. Error compounds in a frenzy of meetings, calls, and email leading to Aristotle's rule that degrades management to entropy.
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Continual learning, essential for quality practice, presents a knowledge management dilemma for everyone. Deciding whether to react on impulse to situational awareness in the moment, or invest time for study, analysis, and deliberation that saves lives, time, and money presents a slippery slope greased by limited time, sloth, and indifference. Mental biology does not distinguish one form of cognitive overhead from another, because, most often, the core bias to do something and move on, i.e., "expedite" by taking immediate action, overwhelms the need for study, analysis, and deliberation that makes action effective.
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The term "cognitive overhead" has been most prominently applied to using software tools for creating and opening links, and to manage context with "metadata" for precision access to organizational memory. People writing a letter, report, book, specification, etc., feel that the work to be performed is crafting language. Stopping production to study, analyse, and deliberate on meaning and implications for subjects to organize the work for future research, e.g., assign metadata, and further to study, analyse, and deliberate on what sources to cite that support future research, where to find sources, how to construct links, and where to store the sources so that links will remain accessible, all delay, often by several orders of magnitude, production getting the job done of crafting language in the letter, report, specification, legal brief, medical chart, etc. When the writer considers investing an unknown amount of time to construct a link, which may or may not be used by anyone, the burden of cognitive overhead weighs toward avoiding construction, and applying the time on something with a higher chance of being used.
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Similarly, when people are reading, and decide to open a citation linked to an original source in order to check accuracy and coherence of context, then without precision access, considerable deliberation time is consumed well beyond the few seconds to click a link and display the source. Enormous mental exercise is consumed trying to find something somewhere in the source that seems related to situational awareness of the initial text. This takes time to study and decide which of various possible associations has actual relevance to the context of the citation, and whether more time should be invested looking further in the source for a better match. Such daunting prospects of open ended time and uncertainty guessing about relevance of source material present an enormous burden of cognitive overhead that delays getting the job done understanding the initial material beyond any imaginable benefits from clicking a link. The same calculus weighs toward ignoring links, and applying the time required to find and discern relevant material, to something else with a higher chance of being useful, e.g., read the next sentence, paragraph, attend a meeting, make a call, watch a movie.
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These hard realities of delay and frustration creating and opening links with conventional technology sustain the negative perspective on cognitive overhead. Ignorance using technology that takes a few seconds to create links with precision access, and fear of learning new methods foster attitudes of denial that reducing front-end investment to mere seconds prevents mistakes, and so saves lives, time, and money with technology built to POIMS requirements. Negative attitudes from disappointing experience wasting time naturally resist transformation to a knowledge paradigm enabled by intelligence support for clear, concise, complete communication, discussed above. Drucker notes that "overhead" reeks of disapproval; yet, in fact, management is the core asset that drives productivity (see Drucker reviewed on November 30, 1993), by investing time for due diligence. Clearly, delimmas abound for transformation from information to a culture of knowledge.
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Proactive Management offers a positive prespective on front-end investment for being prepared. Look before you leap strives first to understand (called out by Covey, reviewed on December 5, 1992). Effective listening through accurate understanding and timely follow up makes action effective by investing time for study, analysis, and deliberation, commonly applied through research, planning, accounting, command and control, all performed with intelligence that adds organization, analysis, alignment, summary and feedback to daily working information in meetings, calls, and documents. POIMS implements Drucker's vision of lifting productivity by transforming negative attitudes of "overhead" as a liability into a positive asset that augments and leverages human cognition for working intelligently. The power of precision access accomplishes this vision by reducing the time for creating connections to mere seconds, and further by opening links to the precise point of relevance. Reducing proactive management to mere volition based based on situational awareness presents a new world order for practicing good management.
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The difference between instant performance as a matter of volition, and endless delay and frustration illustrate the bridge to cross between two (2) worlds. The old world order of information technology has the right attitude to resist wasting time for cogintive overhead. The new world order of knowledge tools, enabled by POIMS, changes this attitude to, also, resist wasting time, but by working intelligently. It is a thorny dilemma for transformation to a culture of knowledge that both perspectives are correct, yet worlds apart.
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For example, research on May 27, 1994 found that, without POIMS technology, practitioners and experts on cognitive overhead focus on the burden of extra time required for good management. This ethos generally discourages investing time for ordinary introspection to solve difficult, complex problems with written analysis, because such "overhead" reduces time for production. (see meditation)
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Meetings are the primary unit of management production where planning and problem solving occur under the rubric of collaboration. Organizing information using IBIS methodologies, often applied to facilitate meetings with information technologies (IT) like Microsoft Powerpoint, video conferencing, dialog and topic mapping, takes a lot time to set up. In this light, cognitive overhead reflects a justifiable concern that busy people do not have time to think, because the new world order of rising information density overwhelms limited span of attention. These conflicting imperatives to limit cognitive overhead in order hold more meetings present a powerful knowledge dilemma. Without front-end investment to be prepared meetings degrade to anger and finger pointing (reported on February 17, 2002), and management degrades to entropy in a frenzy of constant meetings with near zero productivity (see USAFIT reviewed on July 7, 1997). Any thinking and planning that might occur, will be found to conflict with objectives, requirements, and prior commitments due to the compounding effect of meaning drift, when future mistakes lead to more meetings and finger pointing. Murphy's Law then relieves the pressure to work quickly and accurately by avoiding accountability.
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The POIMS design for intelligence support redresses this dilemma by enabling more and better thinking within the time available. Linking improves accuracy by several orders of magnitude through the magic of instant, precision access to original sources, and further expands span of attention to strengthen creativity by "connecting the dots" with links to correlations, implications and nuance for understanding cause and effect. Conventional technology that does not support POIMS requirements for precision access accelerate "cognitive overhead" that crushes incentive to check orginal sources under the weight of excessive time wading through mountains of information to find a few lines that relate to a citation (link). Links that take a lot of time to find relevant details drive negative attitudes to minimize "overhead." However, precision access that instantly verifies accuracy changes attitudes about "overhead" into demand for maximizing intelligence. The difference between "overhead" and "intelligence" is literally the difference between night and day, between darkness and light, between ignorance and knowledge.
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Self-evident benefits using the power of knowledge for saving lives, time, and money by working quickly and accurately, and for discovering opportunity in time to be effective are sometimes overlooked by concerns about boggling the mind from creating and opening links, evident from popular literature -- see Jeff Conklin explaining cognitive overhead... ...is the additional mental overhead on authors to create name, and keep track of nodes and links. For readers, it is the overhead due to making decisions as to which links to follow and which to abandon, given a large number of choices. The process of pausing (either to jot down required information or to decide which way to go) can be very distracting. It can become a serious problem if there are a large number of nodes and links. (reviewed on April 20, 2001) ..
Organizing work with IBIS methods, and creating and opening links are important parts of good management embodied by cognitive overhead, but are only a small part of intelligence support. Negative attitudes performing these few steps therefore presents a bleak picture for transformation from information technology (IT) to a culture of knowledge.
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POIMS technology enables eight (8) steps of Communication Metrics for robust intelligence support that converts information into knowledge. The following six (6) measurements for cognitive overhead provide Communication Metics that make good management routine...

Report organizational memory capturing the record
Organize the record into organic structures to manage context
Alignment using links for instant, precision access to original sources
Summary headlines for precision access and organic structure
People and organizations
Actions and feedback for follow up

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The US Army Corps of Engineers reported on October 7, 1997 that Communication Metrics yield significant cost savings in the range of 10:1 by converting bumbling into discovery for continual learning that reduces rework.
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Why is augmenting cognition a powerful "intelligence" asset rather than a crushing "overhead" liability that causes people to give up on good management, noted by Drucker, and posed in the popular literature?
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POIMS technology reduces cognitive overhead to mostly a matter of volition by enabling command and control of the work. A high degree of synergy between organizing information, and using organizational memory, including previously constructed links, to find relevant sources enables constructing new links in seconds based on situational awareness. This makes work product (see examples listed on July 8, 2002) seem like a sureal utopia, because organizational memory with everything in the right place at the right time is beyond reach using popular tools and methods, reported on July 20, 2002. Difficulty organizing and linking necessarily leads to the label of "overhead" that everyone strives to minimize, because dreams of efficiencies using a highly conntected record for precision access in a paperless office model have not been realized by popular technology, cited at Intel on June 27, 1996.
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Describing the power of knowledge as an "overhead" liability, because people are empowered to open links that instantly verify accuracy and expand span of attention to discover crucial context, overlooks the fact, noted above, that the human mind automatically connects one thing it encounters with everything else it knows, i.e., personal experience. The 2-tier model of cognition makes connections involuntarily based on remembering the gist of the story, many of which are erroneous. If links are not available in written text, people face the far more daunting choice of performing a lot of hard work for due diligence finding sources that verify accuracy, or alternatively ignoring diligence and accept the consequences of error and missed opportunity endemic to ignorance, sloth, and indifference compounded by limited time.
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Research reported on March 7, 2000 found that good management, which is another expression for cognitive overhead and Knowledge Management (see below), is a lot of hard work using conventional technologies. Worry, fear, frustration, and anger that cognitive overhead boggles the mind with too many links and too much organizing structure drive negative attitudes that good management takes too much time and effort. Experience shows, however, that people quickly adapt to a new paradigm, when hard work is reduced to near volition under Moore's Law (reported on March 3, 2005). Technology that makes good management fast and easy changes attitudes of deep denial. Organizing the work to be prepared for taking effective action, and opening links to verify accuracy, which seem like overkill, gold platted, and unnecessary overhead (reported on March 24, 1989) are transformed into essential intelligence for saving lives, time, and money, reported on September 11, 2001.
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Researching her book, Lights, Camera, War, Ms. Neuman found that throughout history people have learned to accomodate collateral pressures in order to benefit when technology increases the speed of life. Alphabet technology, later the printing press, the telegraph, trains and planes were all initially resisted, as highly disruptive technologies that "boggled" the mind. As with past technologies, initial culture shock, when people first encounter records that "connect the dots" of cause and effect, soon gives way when demand grows for more intelligence to save lives, time and money.
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How then to make the transition for faster access to connections that strengthen diligence verifying accuracy, and discovering correlations, implications and nuance in time to be effective? Experience on April 19, 1999 leads to the self-evident rule...
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Don't open every link!
Use Judicious Review to open links that are important today, and open other links that are important for a different context on another day. For example, lawyers do not open every citation in a brief or case law. They make judgements about which part of an opinion relates to an issue in their case, and open the citations to understand the context of a ruling in relation to the context of their case. Similar practice is applied by scholars reviewing references in a biblography. The fact that far more citations and references are available than could ever be examined by a lawyer or researcher does not deter people from checking sources that seem relevant to current needs within the time available.
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Intelligence support is a new way of working. The following steps enable smooth transformation to a culture of knowledge with clear, concise, complete communication for comprehensive understanding, and without boggling the mind opening every link encountered, and only opening links when additional access is actually required...
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Judicious Review
Clear, Concise, Complete Communication

Read the entire communication for objectives that set priority for opening links based on need for background, context, and verification, similar to common practice following footnotes and references in a biblography.
1. If you concur and take requested action, don't open any links, because the transaction is complete.
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2. Feedback - notify of action taken.
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If you disagree with proposed action, open a link to obtain authority, background, context, and commitments. Links in formal correspondence use granular addressability to pinpoint precise locations for investigation in SDS records and documents.
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If you concur, follow the steps undar para 1a; if you disagree, submit feedback explaining what was examined and grounds that justify not taking action.

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Current practice provides communication support for large organizations through a Communications or Public Relations office. This group essentially provides the "spin" to avoid intrusive public scrutiny. There are no cost/benefit studies showing the value added of public relations, but the activity is seen as essential. This capability could be enhanced by adding Communication Metrics to provide the business intelligence needed for effective management, so that there is less need for a "spin." The automated chronology generated by the SDS program would reduce the cost of conventional fact gathering needed by decision makers, public relations people and the legal team.
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Of course, reasonable people properly ask...

Since an executive's primary task is communicating, why is another role needed? ..
To get results. Although leadership sets objectives, gains acceptance, and directs the work by getting people to perform, which remains unchanged in the New World Order, understanding and follow-up need a boost to accommodate the new environment of chronic information overload. Under these conditions, it wastes too much time, causes too many mistakes, hurt feelings, conflicts and disputes; it is too expensive to continue relying on personal recall, to ignore problems, and hope for the best.
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An airplane pilot is a good analogy. Pilots are skilled to use specialized technology for ensuring people reach their destination. The passengers set the destination, but the pilot is assigned to apply special tools and obtain feedback that avoids drifting off course. Without a pilot an airplane is not effective. Similarly, an analyst uses SDS technology for keeping the team on course.
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The exigencies of the Information Highway and human nature require someone to bring the museum to the people, and to apply a metric to ensure correct understanding and timely follow-up. The innate drive to talk and listen for momentary results cannot be overcome by most people. This is similar to hiring an accountant to ensure short-term perspective on expenditures does not bankrupt the company. Someone needs to be assigned to perform the long-term components of communication by adding intelligence to information.
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The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a new role that has emerged to divide up the growing work load of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) position, generally between strategic and operations functions. The lead article in Fortune magazine (June 1, 1999; p. 69) reports the primary cause of CEO failure is difficulty with "execution." The authors cite successful CEOs who recommend grabbing a pen and writing down understandings before meetings conclude, sending follow up on commitments, tracking action items, and obtaining feedback. Failure to perform these simple intelligence tasks bring down talented executives, and mighty corporations under Aristotle's rule.
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The COO role helps solve this problem, and so may be a good place to use Communication Metrics. Executive aides are common in politics, in the military, and in legal practice (para legal). Similar roles are emerging in other fields. Health care has a new role of Physician Assistant (PA). On large projects, there is an Assistant Project Manager. All of these roles aim to leverage the time and talent of skilled and experienced authority for getting things done correctly, on time, and within budget, i.e., they fill the gap cited in the Fortune article of poor execution caused by the continual fog of war in the expanding complexity of the 21st century. These evolving roles require new skills for narrowing the gap between speed and accuracy to meet new realities of a new world order. Intelligence support meets this requirement.
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Adding intelligence to management is psychologically demanding because it reveals a constant stream of errors that require adjustments in order to maintain alignment with objectives and commitments. Not everyone is emotionally equipped to perform this work. Most people can handle obvious problems that require immediate action. But, many people cannot muster the wisdom, courage and sustained energy required to put out continual small fires in order to avoid future crisis. Some prefer to ignore Aristotle's rule about small mistakes, and simply hope that misunderstandings and missed commitments will not impact the "bottom line" and the "big picture." Some fear accountability; some are overcome by the challenge of obtaining feedback, essential for useful Intelligence.
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Scribe, poet, Communication Manager, Chief Operating Officer (COO), analyst, assistant, aide, by whatever name -- day-by-day organizations need to construct correct connections of cause and effect (i.e., accomplish traceability to original sources) that enable proactive discovery and accurate understanding of problems and opportunities in time to take effective action; and, organizations, further, need to maintain shared meaning, which requires timely distribution of intelligence and initiative to brief and de-brief key people. Proactive management and common understanding enable effective follow up so that things get done on time and correctly. A future increasingly less forgiving of error will not wait. Each day it rushes toward us with greater speed and increased risk that cries out for leadership with a broader vision to build a stronger partnership with technology.

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Better Communication Saves Time and Money

People object to Intelligence support because it seems to threaten self-esteem. Managers and executives feel they are intelligent, competent, and are good communicators, otherwise they would not have been promoted into positions of authority. As a result, they want communication to be aligned without investing time and expense to check things out, simply by using superior intellect and diligence. In other words, people want listening to understand and follow up to occur through biological sensory perception from seeing, talking and hearing, rather than paying the price for proactive intelligence to verify communication is aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments.
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Successful people believe that investing time and money to convert information into useful knowledge is an unnecessary extra expense because it conflicts with prior experience that brought success without paying for help on accurate communications. (see Com Metrics in the scope of Intelligence support) The objection is voiced as a desire to save money by avoiding extra paperwork because doing the work shows everybody understood correctly. Peter Drucker and Andy Grove . point out that this reasoning overlooks new realities that are changing the business environment where natural intellect and sensory perception are overwhelmed by chronic information overload. (see POIMS)
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Executives worry about being "second-guessed," and recoil at writing everything down because it takes time and is a target for legal discovery. Most managers rise through the ranks based on demonstrated skill in a particular discipline like, sales, accounting, engineerng, law, medicine, manufacturing, etc. Management skills are viewed as the ability to talk people into saying "yes." This skill is acquired through experience in meetings, phone calls and formal presentations where people demonstrate speaking skills. At some point, managers acquire additional formal education by obtaining an MBA degree that focuses on how to arrange the organization chart, some accounting, some human behaviorial science and a good deal of marketing. Mostly, however, people move up in management based on results of their unit. For example, Lee Iaccoca was thought to be a good manager because where ever he was assigned at Ford and later at Chrysler his unit sold more cars than other units.
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Thus, proven results in a discipline, personality and to a lessor extent education, are the elements that place people in management roles, and the role itself redounds in the work place to allocating resources and organizing the work carried out primarily through talking people into saying "yes," with the aim of expediting that avoids paperwork.
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Since communication is the primary task of management, adding a role to aid communication seems redundant and threatening. There is no budget for adding busniess metrics to communication as there is for adding metrics to finance, because managers want others to manage details about numbers, so they can focus on the bottom line and talk about the big picture. Details of communication seem unimportant, so long as the bottom line and the big picture seem satisfactory.
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As a result, since organizations do not have a budget for an analyst to manage communication, adding a work role to create intelligence that strengthens management to save time and money necessarily exceeds the budget. This provides a convenient excuse to avoid Communication Metrics, so that people can continue to get by with bad management.
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The attitude (paradigm) of getting by without intelligence overlooks the devestating price people pay for using bad management, noted by Drucker and Grove, because limited time and complex information forces people to absorb the cost of....

problem handling to fix mistakes, (also called rework)
missed opportunities, and
litigation

...which cause productivity, earnings and stock prices to collapse, as reported by Reuters on December 7, 2000.
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Thus, budgets and cost savings have short and long-term components, similar to our model of communication.

The biggest threat to self-esteem is failure, and the biggest cause of failure is lack of execution due to failed intelligence, reported by Forbes magazine in an article published June 1999.
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For example, the President of the United States has intelligence support that gathers information each day and prepares summaries with analysis. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was created following World War II because the amount of information was too great for the President to understand and follow-up. The attack on Pearl Harbor was an intelligence failure that indicated a dedicated effort is needed to process information. The Vietnam war has dimensions of intelligence failure. Those in charge report there wasn't enough time to understand all the information available. These great political questions have staunch proponents on cause and effect, but there is no doubt that communication failed and it was costly in dollars and lives.
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The harsh new reality of the new world order at the beginning of the 21st century is that technological evolution now burdens executives with chronic information overload, which half a century ago required the President of the United States to adopt a dedicated agency for adding intelligence to information. This new reality reflects the design of human intelligence that is fast and flexible, but highly prone to error remembering the gist of information, and then using common sense rules from experience, called paradigms, to expand fragments of memory into false knowledge about the full story. People try to be diligent investing time for analysis and alignment with objectives, requirements and commitments, but sometimes there isn't enough time to check the record using popular tools that augment personal memory. e.g., filing cabinets, email, computer search tools, etc. Steven Pinker points out in his book, How the Mind Works, that making mistakes using common sense is a feature, not a bug of human cognition. Jeromy Campbell notes in his book, The Improbable Machine, that "people pay a price" for relying on assumption from remembering only the gist of the story, rather than using proactive management to augment intelligence, because the modern environment of chronic information overload compounds meaning drift. Therefore, under Aristotle's rule, we should expect to pay an increasingly heavy price as the gap of meaning drift widens over time, leading to worry about small deviations escalating into major problems (reported on November 27, 1992).
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What then is the price people pay for failing to pay the cost of good management using intelligence support that generates an accurate record of organizational memory to strengthen personal memory?
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The Challenger Space Shuttle crash in 1986 cost lives and billions of dollars due to bad management that enabled, overlooked and ultimately encouraged miscommunication. A review commission found that communication in meetings, calls and documents fell prey to simple misunderstandings due to relaxed work practices, e.g., failed listening. Social restraints from fear of accountability stifled feedback loops to verify accuracy. When indications began to surface of possible problems, reports that communication was not aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments were at first ignored, then covered up due to pressures of tight budgets, schedules and perceived impacts on career advancement for not being a "team player." Top executives, sufficiently experienced to recognize impending problems, were too busy with marketing and organizational issues to deal with "miscommunication" matters, so ignoring deviations, as "small, inconsequential details," seemed like a fast, easy way to avoid accountability at the time. However, error eventually reached critical mass and blew up.
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As a result, new procedures were adopted that empower executives to overcome fear of accountability for using good management. People were hired to implement procedures for maintaining alignment of communication with requirements and commitments. This greatly reduced the chances of small, inconsequential details exploding into calamity, as occurred with the Challenger. New communication controls added considerably to the cost of daily operations for NASA, but greatly reduced program costs, because there have been no major failures since 1986, until....
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In October 1999, $125M was lost when a NASA space probe crashed on Mars rather than orbit around the planet. The wrong units of measure were used for the flight path, which over a nine month period compounded a very small initial error that was not noticeable, during the 9 month flight, to cause a crash, rather than achieve the objective of going into orbit around Mars, exemplifying Aristotle's rule about the multiplying effect that compounds small mistakes into disaster. Analysis on October 1, 1999 indicates the initial error was likely due to reliance on email and oral communication that was not aligned with requirements. Following the crash, Lockheed checked the contract to discover what units the space agency had specified. Checking the record after a failure is helpful for lessons learned; however, often those who learn such lessons are not assigned to the next project when the lessons are needed, which is why NASA called for new procedures after the Challenger failure in 1986. However, by 1999 budget cuts and relaxation due to success, led to disregard of procedures that enable success.
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The NASA story illustrates difficulty sustaining payment for the cost of good management in order to avoid the price people pay for bad management. Over time, perceptions evolve from success avoiding problems that gradually makes good management seem like unnecessary overkill. Thereafter, the desire to cut costs and assign talented people to other duties errodes commitment to pay for proactive management. Checking the record begins to seem unnecessary because success causes memory of the price people for bad management to fade. Soon, experience, history, and hard won knowledge of scenarious that lead to tragedy are forgotten, and seem to present an inviting target for cost savings?
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Often the people who formulated and carried out good management practices have left the field, replaced by people who lack exerience to recognize evolving conditions that pose rising risks of losing lives, time and money. Eventually, reliance on assumption grows, and people begin destroying the record, because covering up mistakes seems faster and easier and cheaper than the cost of good management to check the record. People begin to fear the light of knowledge and embrace the bliss of ignorance, because doing nothing is always faster and easier than doing anything for proactive management to avoid mistakes, especially when nobody can remember the last time anyone made a mistake. As a result, organizations and the wider economy suffer continual cycles of boom and bust as people regularly relearn lessons of the past, only to be forgotten as good management is relaxed in the glow of current success. Over many millennia, national security has evolved an ethic to meet this challenge under the rule that the price of freedom is eternal vigilance. Clearly, however, outside the military, time breeds a culture of denial that intelligence is the cost of good managment for avoiding the price people pay for bad management.
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Communication Metrics therefore uses technology for a system of concurrent discovery to align performance with requirements that reduces failure, conflict, crisis and calamity. Using technology that reduces time and cost for good management, reduces the tendency to relax vigilence that leads to loss of life and treasure, as occurred with the Challenger and the Mars project. This advance in the use of alphabet technology augments human memory, which is a core dimension of human intelligence. Better intelligence has widespread application (see POIMS). For example...
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In September 1999 the high cost of medical mistakes in hospitals was reported to be 300% greater than the rate of death and injury caused by automobile and airplane accidents combined. In other words, going to the hospital to get fixed up after an accident has become more risky than racing around on the highway. While billions are spent each year to police the nation's highways to ensure good driving practices, nothing is invested to help professionals use good management so that the work is aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments.
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Why?

Testimony during a 1997 congressional hearing estimated that hospital mistakes cost the nation $51 billion a year. Mistakes are primarily caused by communication (see above) in combination with a culture of denial that fears accountability more than people want to prevent mistakes, because the cost of prevention must be paid today, by taking time to do things correctly, while the cost of mistakes is paid later by patients, customers, investors and insurance companies, especially if there is no record that enables discovery of what went wrong. Without records, accountability seems easier to avoid, and so the dominate drive of practitioners becomes to avoid and destroy records, rather than to work intelligently using lessons learned that avoid mistakes, especially repeating past mistakes. Without effective intelligence support, we are doomed to make the same mistakes over and over under the common rule: past is prologue.
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While the nation endures by paying the price of peace for a strong military that maintains readiness through sustained investment in intelligence, cultural reticence to sustain payment for good management explains continual cycles of boom-and-bust in the larger economy. Just as NASA learned hard won lessons in 1986 that led to paying the cost of good management, then, over ensuing years, success using good practices lost support through budget cuts leading to failure of the Mars mission in 1999, so, too, the economy crashes when too many people are having too many problems. When a critical mass of bumbling is reached, companies downsize to a point they can manage without intelligence; many bear down for a time by improving the quality of management that enables recovery. But, as surely as the sun comes up in the morning, soon good practices look like overkill, because good management leads to an expanding economy, and the inertia of expansion makes it seem in-the-moment that anything anybody does yields a higher stock price. People gradually begin to feel insulated from the laws of economics that require good management to get good results. Metamorphosis occurs across the cultural scale from individuals to organizations and in the overall economy, with regularity, like the hands of a clock spinning round and round. However, the duration of these cycles that cover about 10 years or more, shown by the NASA example, mask the underlying cause of failure, and so fosters a culture of denial cited during the Congressional hearings in 1999 on the high cost of medical mistakes.
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Examples abound showing the huge cost of failed communication, although the cost is rarely tallied up because it is too embarrassing. It is easier to blame Murphy's Law, unscrupulous lawyers and nebulous, benign forces like a "lack of teamwork." R.J. Reynolds invested $350M to produce a new cigarette. Management was told research was on track over years of development, but not until the $350 million dollars was spent did it discover that the taste and odor of the product rendered it unsalable. ITT discovered that land purchased to harvest trees for a paper manufacturing project did not have any trees.
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Tudor Engineers failed to approve design drawings for expansion of Broadwater Dam in 1988, leaving the work without engineering support that resulted in major and minor failures over the next 10 years, similar to management failures that caused the explosion of the Columbia Space Shuttle in 1986, though fortunately without loss of life in the case of Broadwater. When Tudor attempted to recover by providing repair alternatives, the owner rejected the effort on the grounds that Tudor's solutions were not supported by engineering analysis. After Tudor was fired under an official view of reality that it had failed to perform, it was discovered that Tudor had provided sound analysis, but it was never reviewed because of a simple miscommunication, and, by the time this discovery occurred, the opportunity to implement a solution had expired. The same official view of reality prevented plant inspection to discover the scope of failed engineering, the value at risk and the level of effort required to recover.
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PG&E engineers failed to establish a power line was active despite five (5) field trips. IBM executives lost the same letter on three (3) occassions. The dentist lost track of examinations. Ford cannot read its own records. Intel cannot schedule a meeting. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cannot find critical correspondence, and invested endlessly to cover up mistakes for avoiding accountability, rather than invest in intelligence to avoid mistakes.
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These errors seem silly and obvious, but reflect the insight of Aristotle about the multiplying effect of time on small mistakes in the beginning, and further help us calculate the price people pay for failing to pay the cost of good management that augments human intelligence in the same way that we pay to augment other human capacities, e.g., we use a car to run to the store, a backhoe to dig a ditch, and airplane to jump from one place to another. But, we pay a huge price for failing to augment intelligence in the same way?
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For example, a popular management training film illustrates typical problem handling scenarios that occur in daily management.
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In the film, the boss requests a report. A few days later the boss wants the report to take on a trip for a marketing presentation.

However, the report was not ready; so, there is heated exchange about what was originally said and intended in making the assignment, as occurs in typical problem handling.
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The person in charge of preparing the report said that overtime would be used to finish it, and committed to personally deliver the report by taking a later flight so that the boss would have it in time for the presentation.
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The boss doubted this would succeed, and asked...

"Why is this always happening to me?"

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The film shows a flashback of the boss requesting the report days earlier. The meeting was focused on content. A voice over indicated the boss was thinking the report could be used for the pending event, but did not convey this in making the assignment. The person given the assignment did not ask when the report was needed.
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This microcosm of misunderstanding -- AKA problem handling -- seems silly and obvious, yet holds the seeds that cascade into larger consequences.

The film has a post-scenario review by a Management Consultant who explains to a mock-training class how to shape communication that avoids causing hurt feelings. There is no discussion in the review of why miscommunication occurs, and no calculation is offered of cost/benefits for taking proactive action to improve understanding and follow-up. The Management Consultant claimed to have a lot of news clippings at home on the cost of miscommunication, but this information was not presented. The consultant conducted a test using the "Telephone Game." A statement was whispered to one member of the mock-training class, and each person whispered it to their neighbor. The last person said out loud to the class their understanding of what was whispered which, of course, was much different from the initial statement.
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The consultant explained that the "Telephone Game" phenomena illustrates the danger of office "gossip" when official announcements are incorrectly repeated by word-of-mouth. The Consultant said that rampant rumor can greatly harm morale, and so recommended obtaining the actual notice rather than succumbing to impulse by taking precipitous action, including passing along unfounded rumor.
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Unfortunately, "office gossip" is the least harmful effect of spreading erroneous information by conversation. Far more costly and damaging is "feel good" management using "guess and gossip" that produces a constant stream of errors spread by executives and managers everyday, all day long, under color of "expediting," "getting things done," being a "big picture," and "bottom line" strategic thinker, and so on. People go from meeting to meeting, call to call and from email to email, spreading misunderstanding throughout an organization. Like a contagion infecting an organism, miscommunication multiplies the impact of error over time, as Aristotle warned long ago. Reliance on verbal communication is the foundation of feel good management that is inherently prone to error due to the vagaries of meaning which attach to language, that is compounded by limited time, limited span of attention and organizational culture that impedes feedback metrics to verify understandings.
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The training film teaches traditional management methods based on the belief that effective communication is cheap. It feeds hope that communication can be improved by using common sense, by being more careful from being aware that miscommunication causes hurt feelings. This is a false promise, since communication practice flows from human biology. Limited span of attention cannot comprehend all of the subjects impacted by information, and the desire to avoid controversy inhibits feedback to verify accuracy and clarify nuance. As the amount of communication increases, natural human limits result in more mistakes, extra cost and missed opportunities.
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While there is common awareness that an accountant is needed to align actual expenditures with original objectives (budgets), there is no similar awareness of the vastly greater potential to improve earnings by aligning communication with original sources. Accountants measure finances down to the penny under Aristotle's rule to avoid even the slightest deviations, but no one is measuring communications to identify and adjust course until a small deviation grows into a lawsuit.
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What is missing is a theory for calculating the cost of miscommunication in order to decide when to invest resources to proactively ensure alignment of information with original sources and controlling forces.
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A theory or method to calculate the cost of miscommunication can be seen from the training film scenario.

The film indicated overtime was needed to complete the report on time. We can assume a team worked on the report and so several people incurred overtime. Additionally, the film showed several people incurred at least two lost days of work and the cost of flying the report to the event:

 
                3 people 8H overtime, say...     $2,000
                2 people 2 days at $1K/Day        4,000
                Air fare and per diem             4,000
                                               ---------
                                                $10,000

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Notes:

The cost of extra time may seem to be an absorbed cost since often people who prepare reports, as involved here, are on a salary and do not receive extra compensation.
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Even in that case, however, the firm incurs a cost of the lost income from expending the same amount of time on a revenue generating activity, rather than performing rework to recover from mistakes.
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The extra cost is estimated here as a cross-country flight which typically would take two days and entail over-night accommodations, ground transportation and meals.

When the boss asks in the film...

"Why is this always happening to me?"

...it reflects common frustrations of miscommunication that are integral to office life. It, also, provides a basis to calculate that similar miscommunication occurs in this person's work practice often, as in fact occurs regularly in the daily lives of everyone.
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If it occurs just once a month, then the extra cost might be:

12 x $10K = $120,000
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If other managers are 10 times more conscientious in using common courtesy and common sense, then they cause extra cost of only...

$12,000 per year per manager
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If there are 10 other managers in this firm, then their total annual cost for miscommunication is...

10 x $12K = $120,000
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So the total annual cost of miscommunication on this narrow matter of not clarifying assignment requirements is...

$120,000
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Of course every communication does not entail hand delivering a report across country. To some, this prospect supports denial that miscommunication is costly and so there is no need to spend money to fix it. Several factors show denial is not justified.
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Neither the training film scenario nor the post-film review covered other types of miscommunication which occur more often, are more costly, and cannot be avoided by trying to be more conscientious.
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There was only a single meeting that launched this report project. There was no evidence that the report was reviewed by the boss prior to it being delivered. The training film did not show content requirements for the report, but there is no reason to believe that content was aligned any more successfully than was the completion date. The boss was told the film "is good," but relative to what? It depends on the requirements. The training film correctly indicates how easy it is for misunderstanding to occur on one type of requirement.
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There are a lot of other project requirements that could have been incorrectly explained and/or incorrectly understood.

Suppose that when the report is presented at the event it conveys the wrong message. That could cost $Millions of dollars, it could lose a major account, etc.
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Suppose the report is reviewed the night before it is shown to the customer, and found to be inadequate. In that case, costly rework would be required, and possibly a sale would be lost, or the cost of securing the sale would greatly increase due to follow-up efforts.
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Rework
Proactive Management Saves Time and Money

The price people pay for bad management is hidden by feeling good from reliance on assumption that seems fast, easy, and cheap. The deferred cost of rework to fix mistakes from continual bumbling when communication is not aligned with objectives, requirements and commitments (see again examples) can double or triple the direct cost of getting things done, because communication is the common denominator that impacts everything. It is a universal predicate unique in the universe to human affairs - the force that optimizes human potential with complementary action, when accurate; but, miscommunication quickly escalates cost and delay when people act on assumption without checking the record. Another name for rework is problem handling that is now the primary activity of management. The age of information that accelerates meaning drift changes and subverts humanities strongest asset into a liability, because information overload makes communiation the biggest risk in enterprise, where meetings, calls, and email cause error, conflict, crisis and calamity. As a result, the potential is huge for improving productivity and earnings by a system of Communication Metrics for discovering and correcting meaning drift by adding alignment before action is taken that would otherwise create problems that require extra time and expense of rework to fix, as noted by Aristotle over two centuries ago.
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Clearly, risk management theory has long established that the cost of adding alignment to ensure accurate understanding that makes communication effective is dwarfed by the cost of recovering from incorrect action under the common rules...

Be prepared
Look before you leap
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure ..
Losses from rework are not identified by the accounting system because they are caused by salaried personnel who do not account for their time nor their work product. The impact is invidious because communication mistakes are spread like a virus in an organization, deferred in time and transferred unwittingly to other locations and people. Costs of error that are disconnected in time, location and people from original events where alignment began to drift off course, make it impractical for a CEO, executive or manager to track their work product in order to measure cost effectiveness of their time. Executives do not enter on their time card the amount of information they omit or communicate incorrectly, nor do they write down how many times information is provided to correct prior misunderstandings. Trying to create such a record would itself greatly increase the cost of the work because the volume of communication is large and the process is constant.
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That is why studies are rare in the literature showing the cost of communication mistakes.
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Work at Stanford University by Dr. Ray Levitt shows that "flattening" organizational structure to save money by reducing management levels, often has the unintended consequence of reducing management effectiveness by causing increased mistakes and cost. Increased communication that overburdens people with more information than they can manage, due to limited span of attention, is commonly called information overload. Dr. Levitt and his colleagues at Stanford have developed software, the Virtual Design Team (VDT) program, to calculate staffing changes needed to keep up with increased communication as a result of compressed work schedules. Graphical analysis of communication flows have been presented at Cal Tech management seminars using data from the Columbia Space Shuttle explosion that occurred in 1986. A case study that traced thousands of communications over 10 years revealed root causes of the explosion shortly after take-off where the entire crew of astronauts died and billions of dollars in machinery and preparation were lost. Simple, innocuous communication that was not aligned with requirements were found to have been compounded over time, as Aristotle forecast over 2 millennia ago, and then became too large to be addressed politically by those who knew the truth, and so were ignored, then covered up until the explosion in mid-air for the whole world to see.
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Anecdotal evidence abounds that at the dawn of the 21st century people are drowning in a sea of details due to information overload. A study reported on February 2, 1996 by the Associated Press found that managers waste 70% of the day in endless meetings. Waste is attributed to...

Failure to prepare
Failure of key people to attend
People arrive late, miss important information/context
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Discussion veers off course
People argue about what was said previously
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People argue about requirements and commitments

These difficulties are like a dog chasing its tail. People try to expedite by relying on conversation, but there is not enough time to prepare, to attend, to consider relevant subjects, to write down what is said, to look up what was said and what is required. Since there is not enough time to follow up, mistakes occur which require more meetings to fix. Misunderstandings calcify into an official view of reality that feeds a frenzy of frustration, anger, disappointment and loss, as management becomes a daily game of guess and gossip.
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A study by the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) explains how management communication practices cause information entropy that leads to cost and schedule growth. The AFIT study is merely observational, i.e., empirical. It shows that costs of major weapons systems exceeded their budgets and that management systems failed due to information overload that devolves into the entropy of guess and gossip. AFIT, however, does not offer a solution nor a coherent theory for calculating cost of failed communication.
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A recent report by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) develops a theory of rework caused by miscommunication due to limited span of attention under conventional management practice using guess and gossip. The report calculates that miscommunication increases annual management costs in the range of 10% while the indirect cost of collateral damage is far greater. For a large firm this is $Billions of dollars annually.
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The report found that adding a system of metrics to daily communications produces useful intelligence that expands span of attention in handling the constant flow of information. Attendance at meetings was reduced by 30%. This increased team effectiveness because a Communication Manager performs the preparation and follow-up to develop and maintain shared meaning over time that is otherwise missing from meetings due to lack of time by participants. USACE reported that savings accrue because mistakes and rework are reduced by Communication Metrics.
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"Rework" arises from inability to attain closure on issues due to conflicts between decisions and reality that leak out through trial and error over weeks and months. Decisions are made that seem correct at the moment; but require continual corrections over time due to lack of alignment with controlling factors, e.g., history of performance, commitments, contract provisions, policies, procedures, guidelines, regulations and laws. Meetings, calls and email increase, but understanding and progress decline. Communication worsens as new players come on the scene and original objectives are forgotten leading to information entropy reported by the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology study because people are forced by limited time to try to expedite by relying on conversation under management practices of guess and gossip (trial and error).
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The USACE report calculated that typical business meetings entail approximately (10) agenda items. Communication Metrics tracked 40 subjects and 50 linkages to provide alignment with original sources. This nine (9) fold increase in span of attention made possible by technology reflects a reduction in redundant work or "rework" due to trial and error that otherwise occurs using conventional management practice.
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USACE concluded that better communication from adding intelligence to daily working information can save 10% of project costs and that return on investment (ROI) for a system of Communication Metrics is in the range of 10:1.
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What then is the path for transformation to intelligence that converts information into the power of knowledge to control the future?
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Transformation to Culture of Knowledge Takes Time and Commitment
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

New world Order... proposes advance to a culture of knowledge, because the information paradigm using technology to compresse time and distance increasingly overwhelms people's lives. Mental biology cannot cope with constant information, leading to errors, conflict, loss, and tragedy. New tools, practices, and roles are therefore essential to leverage innate intelligence that converts information into the power of knowledge. Fortunately, the 21st century shows signs of enabling forces coming into alignment that will lift civilization from traditional literacy to a much stronger foundation for managing chronology, context, and connection. Communication Metrics transforms negative energy that degrades productivity from the growing glut of information with expanding complexity, confusion, and calamity, into positive synergy from command and control of a well ordered record. Advancing from information to a culture of knowledge reflects prior foundational advances from growling to talking (i.e., conveying gutteral displeasure or delight to conveying specific ideas, instruction, and nuance), from foraging to farming (investing for deferred rewards), from plunder to production (though shalt not steal), from walking to riding (wheel and domesticated animals), from swimming to sailing, from orality to literacy, from handwriting to publishing, from monarchy to democracy, from education for elites to education for all, from covered wagons, and ploughs powered by the brawn of people, oxen, and horses, to trains, cars, trucks, tractors, planes, telephones, computers, and on and on and on, empowered by the brain of man.
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Today, we flip a switch for light, turn a faucet for water, click the Internet for news and worldwide communication. The slightest pressure of our foot directs hundreds of horsepower to instantly obey our every command. Sir Isaac Newton summed up these common place miracles by attributing his own miraculous achievements with the observation in a letter on February 5, 1676... If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. ..
Drucker has noted (reviewed on November 30, 1994) that the miracle of civilization comes not from working harder, but from building on the achievements of grandfather, and countless other grandfathers extending into antiquity in order to work smarter. How can we advance prior experience with connections that advance the context of present and future generations?
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Giants like Galileo, Kepler, Brahe, and Copernicus come to mind from grade school history recounting Newton's work and discoveries in physics, astronomy, and mathematics. Newton himself, however, might well have had in mind countless thousands, who are lost in history, yet contributed understanding essential to the eventual unfolding of nature's secrets. On whose shoulders then, do these giants stand, along with Newton, that today extend our reach beyond the information age to foster a culture of knowledge?
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An achievement perhaps not firmly in mind during Newton's time, and seemingly less so today, is development of alphabet technology that enables the human mind to construct objective, external renderings of internal thoughts that can be manipulated and preserved for continual improvement. (see POIMS) Like the nameless thousands who contributed over the millenia to Newton's work, history does not record a single person, nor even luminaries, who developed a coherent theory of literacy for augmenting human intelligence that drives civilization with a stable foundation, sometimes described as the alphabetic mind, traced roughly from 700 BC (see for example, review of Havelock on November 8, 1999).
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For the next 300 years, people struggled to develop implementation modalities using rudimentary instruments and evolving practices of literacy for recording only what people said, to adding analysis for understanding everything that was done. Eventually the discipline of written history emerged, shown by Thucydides and the Writing of History (see again Havelock on November 8, 1999) Obviously, for three (3) centuries only very few learned literacy because the effort seemed far greater than the benefits. Resistance to literacy continued for nearly 2,000 years, because advantages of leveraging intelligence are difficult to grasp day-to-day. Reading and writing, on whose shoulders we all stand today, exists only because fitfully few defied disdain and clamor to conform. Faith to persevere against hardship and all the pressures of culture could only have been sustained by intangible rewards of personal satisfaction derived from the power of knowledge.
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The alphabet was an explosive technology that dramatically leverages human mental biology. People readily grasp that a screwdriver, automobile, lawnmower, airplane - all leverage human physical strength. The foundation for lifting civilization with tools that leverage physical strength is the alphabet that lifts mental strength by many orders of magnitude. Previously human life was mostly squalor at constant risk of extinction by competitors, starvation, injury, and disease. Humans, like other creatures, were only equipped with intuition, hunch, hope, and constant fear of mysterious holistic forces beyond reach of understanding and control. In the pre-literate world, people used land marks (e.g., a tree, rock, or stream), finger painting, dance, and emotion to aid communication. Douglas Lenat notes that the mechanics of alphabet technology make people superhuman, especially after enabling forces came into alignment with Gutenberg's invention of the printing press in 1455.
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Writing represents linear connections of human thought in a reductionist model of information using letters, words, sentences, paragragraphs, and documents. This scheme turns ephemeral, incomplete, and often erroneous hunches and intuition in the subconscious mind into conscious analysis for comprehensive solutions. Constructing external physical renderings with the alphabet and rules of grammar captures and improves fleeting internal thoughts, hunches and intuitions by empowering people to perform creative manipulations that refine connections for accurate understanding of cause and effect. The mechanical process of writing, review and integration of experience yields a permenant record of emperical evidence on testing, experiment, trial and error, sometimes called the scientific method. The mechanics of literacy improve memory, analysis, and comparison of alternatives in grappling with complex problems. Construction of decisions can apply all relevant history, rather than mere memory bound by span of attention. Alphabet technology lifts human mental capacity beyond limitations of innate biology in the same way that cranes, trains, and cars leverage physical strength. Accuracy improved by 1000% reflects Lenat's observation of marked contrast between human life before and after emergence of the alphabetic mind that makes connectionist practices routine.
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While Newton acknowledges standing on the shoulders of others, in the modern era, the mechanics of linear connections are often attributed to Newtonian reductionist thinking. Doubtless Newton significantly advanced mathematical models of fundamental forces for analysing matter, time, and distance. His understanding of cause and effect in the universe has stood the test of time for accurately predicting movement of the planetary system that impacts life each day when the sun, the moon, and the tides rise and fall according to his calculations. The fragility of human biology makes urgent the necessity for linear thinking about chronology in the many contexts that maximize opportunity for each life, which of course ultimately ends.
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Rather we are left to ponder the Legend of Prometheus from Greek mythology for an altogether different perspective on advancing civilization. As reward for stealing light (fire) from the gods to empower humanity with the gift of knowledge, Prometheus was sentenced to eternal banishment and agonizing punishment. This is not entirely myth. History clearly records that Galileo faced great peril for daring to publicly report on experience using his telescope, and thereon proclaimed support for the Copernician view that the universe centers around the sun, rather than the earth. (see research on May 5, 2004) As reward for stunning discovery, an Inquisition in Rome ordered Galileo into house arrest. He could pursue his work, so long as he did not speak heresy by spreading the word that improved understandings on the planetary system, as presented in the Bible.
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At this remove, we chuckle and preen with pride of superior knowledge, because clerics of the day questioned Galileo's analysis on dogmatic, religious grounds during the renaissance period of the 1600s. What then sustained Galileo through his trials, and why, by the way, was Newton hailed as a hero and genius, while Galileo was put on trial for advancing knowledge essential to Newton's work? These questions are deeply rooted in cultural dynamics that flow naturally from human biology, which grows knowledge from accumlating experience, as noted by Newton.
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Embarking on transformation to a culture of knowledge extends a long history of hard won battles, which took decades and in some cases centuries to deploy powerful technology that saves lives, time, and money. Knowledge tools to strengthen the role of human experience are distinguished from information technology for the alphabetic mind to construct documentation in books, reports, and correspondence. "Knowledge" integrates traditional literacy with time to manage sequence of cause and effect by maintaining chronology, and further integrates accounting that uses spreadsheets to organize contextual boundaries of mathematical analysis and manage connections that maintain accuracy of alignment with original sources.
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Adding chronology, context, and connection to literacy can be summarized as... Knowledge Management
Spreadsheet for Knowledge
Communication Metrics
Augmenting Intelligence These new tools and practices for intelligence support help people en masse stand on the shoulders of giants to see farther in the new world order than those who came before. Since it took several millenia for literacy to become a settled cultural artifact of the old world order, transformation to a new way of thinking that extends the Alphabetic Mind paradigm takes time and commitment. Faith transcends the knowledge management dilemma of biological drives for immediate satisfaction so that people can reap deferred rewards from investing personal and organizational memory. Faith in the magnifying effect of investing intellectual capital takes time to take root in order for a culture of knowledge to grow. History demonstrates the role of faith that sustains commitment keeping the flame alive through darkness and doubt.
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Stealing and hoarding are complementary strategies to satisfy immediate needs with immediate action. Civilization is an innovation that avoids competing for scraps to merely subsist, by deferring rewards to invest in corporate production that yields vastly larger rewards. Cultural artifacts (e.g., law, policy, tradition, stories, movies) that channel competition toward improvement increase production with economies of scale that justifies the strategy of investing, i.e., the multiplying effect of deferred rewards. Changing cultural dynamics to limit personal behavior, however, requires faith that better results from deference to organizational perogatives will occur in time to justify supressing impulse. Deferred satisfaction of every whim by taking what we want, i.e., stealing, is traded for assurance of consistant rewards for priority needs in much greater measure. Balancing personal and organizational behavior is the core Knowledge Management dilemma of civilization.
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Farming illustrates the model of investing. Agriculture presents a counterintuitive innovation to invest rather than consume (eat) everything in order to satisfy immediate needs. Investing time to plant seeds in the ground requires faith that a bountiful harvest will occur months later. At first, people busy foraging, grazing, hunting and gathering feared there wasn't enough time to invest in planting, and further believed strongly that planting was unnecessary overkill whenever food was already in hand. Eventually, faith to invest transformed desparate nomads stealing to survive, into civilization, where people miraculously have plenty of time to collaborate in meetings, calls, and correspondence. Today, our faith in the farmer is transcendent, yet transformation to agriculture took many millenia to form, because obtaining food is such an elemental foundation of life. Changing foundational strategies of life therefore takes a long time for evidence to accumulate that builds proof to the level of faith. Since faith in existing methods makes people reluctant to try, the failure to try, i.e., to go first, necessarily prevents gaining experience that builds faith in a new path.
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Transformation from orality, that served humanity well for many millenia of foraging, hunting, and gathering, to the abstract symbolism of alphabet technology further illustrates the power of faith to improve quality of life by deferring immediate rewards. Front-end investment for learning literacy skills, and taking time to write defers rewards of accuracy understanding history, correlations, implications, and nuance, also, called "analysis," "learning," "knowledge," "intelligence," and "enlightenment." Delay for cognitive overhead is, therefore, resisted, because talking and listening enable immediate action that brings immediate sensory satisfaction. This quality of immediacy makes writing seem irrelevant, and so is resisted as unnecessary overkill.
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Biological drives to rely on immediacy of innate intellect that resists delay for writing was most famously set out by Plato in the Phaedrus... Socrates. At the Egyptian city of Naucratis, there was a famous old god, whose name was Theuth; the bird which is called the Ibis is sacred to him, and he was the inventor of many arts, such as arithmetic and calculation and geometry and astronomy and draughts and dice, but his great discovery was the use of letters.
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...This, said Theuth, will make the Egyptians wiser and give them better memories; it is a specific both for the memory and for the wit.
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Thamus replied: O most ingenious Theuth, the parent or inventor of an art is not always the best judge of the utility or inutility of his own inventions to the users of them.
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And in this instance, you who are the father of letters, from a paternal love of your own children have been led to attribute to them a quality which they cannot have... ..
Now, 2,400 years later, Plato appears to have Socrates cautioning against the credibility of inventor for spreading the news of invention. Without credibile explanation, improvement is slowed by fear of change, because someone else must release the power of truth. Finding the courage to go first experiencing invention can prolong releasing the Genie in the Bottle, sometimes for centuries, often with adverse effect on the Genie's disposition. (see Edward Deming, reported April 26, 1995, and Mauchly)
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In this particular, Socrates presents the role of alphabet technology, i.e., "letters," for accurate memory, and analysis to augment natural intelligence, i.e., wit. With subsequent ascendancy of literacy, sometimes called "documentation," the judgement of history bears out early views at a time when writing was grossly limited by time, skills, and tools to a mere handful of elites. Such judgement, while fully established today with universal education, and a constant flow of documentation at the cultural and organizational level, remains, as in the beginning, in constant conflict with the burden of cognitive overhead at the personal level.
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Plato continues the Socrates dialog... The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence, and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth; they will be hearers of many things and will have learned nothing; they will appear to be omniscient and will generally know nothing; they will be tiresome company, having the show of wisdom without the reality. Few today would complain with such flourish; yet, at the personal level many recognize that mere documentation does not establish the larger truth, since human intelligence must still marshal chronology, context, and connection for enlightenment.
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Hazarding to expand Socrates' point, traditional documentation is frozen in time, and may attach wide varriance in meaning according to context, which requires connection to history, i.e., experience, for relevance. While the mind remembers chronology, constructs context, and follows millions of connections instantly, converting information into knowledge by drawing on the vastness of life experience has eluded the practice of documentation. In other words, documents lack intelligence, and most of the knowledge needed for interpretation is outside the document. Instead, institutional solutions evolved with the rise of bureaucracy to apply literacy for working intelligently. Today, departments for scheduling manage time, institutions like libraries, and instruments like file folders and cabinets, and computers preserve records for context, and reporters, analysts, and accountants "connect the dots" that make sense of piling up mere words into endless information.
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Throughout the long path to literacy that lifted civilization beyond imagination of Plato's time, there has remained deep and abiding Socratic skepticism about alphabet technology that externalizes human thought to augment intelligence in search of truth, which worried Aristotle, as well, in 400 BC. The fact that documents do not manage chronology, context, and connection with the facile agility of human thought, did not prevent the ascendency of literacy, as the benefits of accuracy became self-evident. Growing population, prosperity, invention, and productivity bring wider opportunity to exploit resources across greater distance, which necessarily increases complexity with more meetings and discussion. The compounding complexity of communication exposes limitations of mental biology that is fast and facile, but prone to error. "Documentation" practices for books, articles, reports, correspondence, legal briefs, specifications, etc., therefore, simply brush aside concerns about the role of intelligence, in order to reap the rewards of accuracy. Civilization has evolved specialists for this work performed by legions of professional writers, reporters, accountants, lawyers, and engineers to manage chronology, context, and connection in the real world.
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Today, two mellinia after Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle began the debate over personal and organizational memory and management (POIMS), the role of alphabet technology for intelligence support remains largely mired in ignorance, fear and denial through isolation of professional disciplines that resist integration. Trascending resistance to enable a culture of knowledge can be instructed by the history of prior transformations.
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For most of this time, the tracks of history were marked by practical concerns that restrained rapid embrace of literacy. As with transformation from hunting and gathering to farming, investing time going to school for education was long resisted. With crops to harvest, wood to chop, and water to fetch on the farm, there wasn't enough time for "book learning." Not until the 1850s did universal education become widespread, and thus begin to transform civilization from mere industrialization into modernity that replaces brawn with brain power applied through information technology (see Drucker reviewed on November 30, 1993) Today, we chuckle and preen with pride, because faith investing time for education yields plenty of time for fetching water, chopping wood, and harvesting crops with technology, and there is even time to spare for movies, parties, travel, seminars, athletics, and almost daily celebrations of something.
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Religion Keeper of the Flame for a 1000 Years
Literacy Preserved Accuracy and Authority Spreading the Word

An early benefit of literacy was faith in religion, symbolized by writing down rules to live by in Ten Commandments, including "Thou shalt not steal." Success using commandments over centuries grows faith in the power of religion to guide personal and community life. Transformation in Rome to faith in a single transcendant diety took many centuries. Advance of ideas in the face of widespread persecution, torture, and crucifixion demonstrates commitment to religious practice sustained only by deep, unwaivering faith. The fall of Rome ushered in centuries of Dark Ages. Through this long period, monastic scribes maintained literacy skills, because spreading the word required consistent teaching, linked back to original sources, discussed above. Doctor Dianne Tilloston presents this history with great clarity citing the alluring power of accuracy in written text, which builds faith among practitioners. (see research on April 5, 2005)
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This background helps explain why the Church was "keeper of the flame" for a thousand years ensuring accuracy in presenting orthodoxy, and therefore objected to Galileo publicly proclaiming, after a few experiments, an alternate theory of the universe. People imbued with faith using technology for linking back to original sources collided with a disruptive technology, which today we call the scientific method of plan, perform, report (see POIMS). Both religion and science aim to discover truth; one using old world methods of enlightenment based on alignment with original sources, and the other using additional and "new world" capabilities for empirical testing that refines accuracy of original sources. It turns out that the scientific method, which disrupted the status quo in Galileo's time, benefits greatly from the religious process that "connects the dots" to maintain accuracy, while, also, discovering conflicts to refine understanding. The Church equally benefits from an intelligence process to continually refine the science of life, essential for faith in reliance on truth, which Aristotle noted long ago. Literacy then forms the foundation of civilization that bridges the two worlds of religion and science.
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Democracy Rests on Foundation of Literacy
for Responsible Self-rule
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Transformation from imperial rule to democracy for self-government tracked the rise of literacy in Greece, then Rome. These early experiments failed in part because very few could read and write, thus preventing broad participation in the affairs of state. As noted, literacy and democracy remained a "Genie in the bottle" for a thousand years, because the power of knowledge and the power of government were held by very few. (see also Tesla)
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In 1455, Gutenberg invented the printing press. Enabling forces at last slipped into alignment for literacy to accelerate. Over the next 500 years, the age of information technology evolved to lift the viel of ignorance that shrouded the Dark Ages. For the rest of the second millenium AD, the power of knowledge lifted civilization to a new plateau. Cheaper ink, and better paper were invented about the same time as the printing press. Availability of an established Biblical text, maintained by monastic scribes, and spread religiously by the Church to the population at large fostered a profitable publishing market. Customers were eager to read scripture directly from the Bible, which had previously been the exclusive role of the clergy reciting and interpreting passages during services. Converging technolgies greatly reduced the cost of producing books, and the ready market for religious texts unleased latent demand for freedom to learn, to think, and to decide, which necessarily pressaged the freedom of self-government.
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Information technology let the "Genie out of the bottle." Releasing the awsome power of literacy that leverages intelligence for constructing ideas and increases accuracy remembering history by 1000% thereby fueled an intellectual explosion in Europe. Better ideas and better accuracy (or as Socrates would say, better wit and memory) during the Renaissance brought advances in mathematics, science, and literature that broadened the base for self-government, most notably a vibrant free press emerged reporting news and opinion on political issues.
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American colonists, mostly from Europe, were ready to declare independence in 1776, as a result of powerful enabling forces gathering strength through the Renaissance period. Armed with writings of Locke, Hobbs, and Hume faith in independence from a century of experience with limited self-governance sustained the colonists in defeating England through a long, difficult war that won the right to once again experiment in self-rule. Avoiding failed efforts of ancient Greece and Rome, Americans followed their religious tradition of faith in the power of written rules for objective and consistent standards of governance (see Ten Commandments). A Constitution was written to balance freedom and order with a system of structure, checks and balances that prevent passing popularity from retaining the reins of power won through regular and open competition for electoral mandate. The Constitution fosters economic prosperity by encouraging commerce and enterprise based on written contracts governing freedom of association for individuals and businesses to earn mutual rewards. Initially, only limited direct election of officials was provided, and not everyone could vote. Today, we chuckle and preen with pride of superior knowledge from ensuing experience that shows freedom for all is the best assurance for preserving the blessings of liberty. Experience from the American experiment has yielded faith for democracy world-wide.
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We have seen that literacy, religion, and democracy evolved together to advance civilization. Each presented disruptive technology that persisted through centuries of resistance to become staples of modern culture. Neither ignorance, fear, and denial, nor persecution, torture, and death could stifle the flame of faith that eventually drives transformation. Today, we tend to feel that modern education, and experience in a modern world filled with new inventions innoculates against ignorance, fear, and denial of fundamental advance. Several examples from the modern era illustrate opportunities and challenges for advancing basic literacy to a culture of knowledge.
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Air Force Resisted Because No Requirements
Until Experience of WWII Grew Faith to Critical Mass
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From the beginning of time man has sought faster, better, cheaper transport using animals, boats, trains, cars. The ability to fly, however, remained only a dream until the Wright Brothers succeeded in 1903. The history of warfare chronicles advance in weaponry and tactics, often spawning great leaps of innovation to sway the balance between life and death. During World War I, airplanes were used minimally by the army, because the technology was new and the industry immature. Today, a century later, air travel is ubiquitous, answering the ancient call for flight, and effectiveness of air power in the military was overwhelming during World War II, just 20 years after inauspicious trial in the first World War.
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This history brings to mind World War I -- the War to End All Wars. When conflict ended with mutual exhaustion in 1918, military planners recognized obvious strategic advantage of airplanes delivering ordinance without hinderence of terrain, nor revetments. Surely the military-industrial complex jumped to lubricate the veins of innovation with proactive investment, leading to the powerful air force of today. For example, the movie Command Decision made in 1948 with the late Clark Gable heading a brilliant cast (reviewed on August 13, 2004) clearly displays advantages of air power that enabled allied success during World War II. However, the movie presents a development path for the air force that was resisted by ignorance, fear, and denial endemic to bureaucracy down through the ages.
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Military planners properly pointed out after World War I that there were no requirements for an air force, and that airplanes were hard to learn to use. It cost a lot of money to hire and train specialists to fly and maintain airplanes, to build airports and facilities. There wasn't enough time to investigate costs and benefits, because everybody was busy working on requirements already approved. Only the faith and courage of General Billy Mitchell eventually demonstrated in 1921 that even poorly designed, first generation war planes could sink battleships. Surely, this widely publicized test justified investing for a robust air force to protect the nation?
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Not so!
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Testing air power was strongly resisted, as unnecessary expenditure to evaluate unattainable expectations. Senior command objected that testing every hair-brained idea, like airplanes, would not leave enough time and money to run the military. Testing was finally approved only with conditions set to ensure failure. When Mitchell succeeded despite onerous conditions, news of dramatic demonstration of air power was flashed around the world. However, the brass dismissed successful testing, as not reflecting real world battlefield dynamics, despite having set stringent conditions to ensure failure. Since test results conflicted with the prevailing paradigm of military doctrine, Mitchell's reward for demonstrating a powerful new defense asset was court martial and discharge from the military. General Mitchell was dismissed from service for not being a "team player" by proposing that the team improve, rather than succumb to cultural inertia. Move over Galielo and Prometheus! The fuddy duddy old clerics in 1633, who were blinded by religious dogma in jailing Galielo, were mere precursors to zelots of 1925, who religiously followed modern dogma opposing transformation by banishing the messenger, just as befell Tesla 50 years earlier for inventing the operating system of the 20th century)
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Lesson learned: religion without enlightenment devolves to dogma.
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How then, did we get such a wonderous air force to win World War II? General Mitchell's courage making a public stand encouraged others to carry on the fight for an air force despite official rejection. A few planes were used off-the-books, from the small fleet for delivering the mail. A courageous few experimented with tactics. Training manuals were begun. Pilot training developed skills, and assessed performance to refine the quality of aircraft. In addition, Germany and Japan began large scale demonstrations of air power in Europe and Asia. Defeat of Czechoslovakia, Poland, France, England, and in Korea, China, Hong Kong, the Philipines, Hawaii, etc., etc., changed attitudes among the brass. Everyone watching newsreals at local theaters throughout America could plainly see strategic advantage of an air force, as World War II exploded on the scene in 1939. Even two years earlier, with war clouds forming, defense planners found time to add requirements for an air force. Grudgingly, following Mitchell's lead, strategy to let others "go first" began to change. Officials decided that letting others "go first" and achieve air superiority posed risks for survival. Those few, who had followed Mitchell's lead and persisted with planning and procurement "below the radar," of official sanction, and who had not been killed testing prototype aircraft, were quickly promoted to command the Army Air Corps. With funding and faith in commitment, America rushed to catch up, and did catch up and surpass friend and foe alike. Today, the United States fields the most advanced air force on the planet. Who though is listening to requirements for the next change in strategic balance? Is there another General Mitchell; will we get another sneak preview in time to overcome, ignorance, fear and denial?
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Personal Computers Augment Intelligence with
Economies of Scale in the Vastness of the Microcosm

America benefits still from lessons learned in the old world order, and today stands for business, enterprise, ingenuity and persistance overcoming resistance to change. In the past half-century rocket science and computer technology have achieved breakthroughs conquering the vastness of space to land on the moon, and discovering vastness of the microcosm to empower personal computers. Surely, recent history hails the triumph of reason over religious adherence to dogma that plagued earlier transformations. Modern engineers and enlightened, visionary executives have shed the shackles of antiquated orthodoxy, which previously required courage and faith to overcome centuries of delay, persecution, torture, and death, as the price to advance civilization.
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The history of personal computers credits Intel coporation in Santa Clara, California for developing the microprocessor, also called a "central processing unit" (CPU), or more simply, a computer "chip." Equally, if not more, importantly, Intel developed manufacturing methods that provided a path for accelerated performance improvement, while paradoxically reducing the cost of production. Unlike, for example, automobiles, the price of personal computers falls every year, while the cost of everything else rises with inflation. Citing this counterintuitive phenomenon, Forbes ASAP observed that The microprocessor may well be the single most important invention of the late 20th century. (see research on June 4, 1996) Others go further and rank the microprocessor with farming, the alphabet, religion, and democracy as turning points in civilization. Gordon Moore, who, along with Robert Noyce, founded Intel in 1968 wrote an article in 1965, while still at Fairchild Semiconductor. Moore projected that performance of microprocessors would continue to double every 18 months. Over the past 50 years, Moore's projection has proven accurate, lending mythical proportions to Moore, but as well spawining a cottage industry of hyperbolic forecasters in the popular media, books, television appearances and professional events. Much of this, too, has proven prophetic. Microprocessors today improve performance of automobiles, toasters, refrigerators, airplanes; satallites. Anything that requires controlled processes from sensing evolving conditions works better and cheaper with this wonderous technology.
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Historians note that earlier technologies brought accelerated improvements, but eventually matured and settled into slower growth, described as an "S" curve. The classic example is farming, where, for most of history, most people worked the land, yet today, only a tiny fraction of the population in the Western world does this work. Peter Drucker writing in Atlantic Monthly cites a long list of cost/performance advantages similar to Moore's Law for computer chips today, that have been previously achieved during the industrial revolution, beginning in the 1700s. (see review on October 25, 1999) Some theorists speculate, however, that Moore's Law can continue forever uninterupted. If true, this presents a powerful turn in civilization. What then supports such speculation?
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As Newton notes, invention is a continuum built on prior work, even more so for personal computers, which comprise a great many carefully assembled components; including software. Two (2) discoveries standout inventing the personal computer. Most accounts list transistors and integrated circuits (ICs). Some experts also list lithography, as essential to minaturization, which compounds processing speed while using less actual power. Since smaller components can be positioned more densley, shorter distances between components reduce the time for electrical current to travel, thereby increasing the speed of the work. This simple correlation explains the counterintuitive solution presented by the microprocessor that bridges the gap between the old and the new world order. Pioneering a path for discovering deployment of wonderous technology in the 21st century requires illuminating transformations in the 20th century.
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Edison Launched the Utility Industry

The vacuum tube is progeny of Edison's light bulb, first demonstrated on October 21, 1879. Edison parlayed a long-sought technology breakthrough into a foundation for today's public utilities that turn darkness into light all over the world. Starting with his Pearl Street Power Station in New York City, Edison invented, designed, manufactured, and constructed the rudiments of electrical generation and distribution. In 1896 Edison held a national meeting of employees, and was introduced to Henry Ford, who at that time was Chief Engineer for the Edison power plant in Detroit, Michagan. Ford explained ideas for an automobile, which he planned to pursue after leaving the company. Edison was supportive, and encouraged the young entreprenuer to develop low cost technology for the mass market.
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Ford listened to his boss and idol, and became an icon of enterprise by developing assembly line methods with economies of scale that continually reduced the cost of production, making transportation affordable for everyone. Edison, however, failed to follow his own advice and eventually lost out in the electrical utility business by insisting on delivering direct current, which required constructing power plants within a mile or two of customers. Municipalities opted for a more efficient system using economies of scale by constructing large plants located away from population centers and delivering alternating current with generators, transformers, and transmission wiring to run electric motors and lights, all developed by another Edison employee, who, unlike Ford, Edison discouraged and discredited, but fortunately to no avail.
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Nikola Tesla Heard the Music and Rewrote the Score
Operating System for the 20th Century - Alternating Current

Nikola Tesla was born in Croatia in 1856 (dates are approximated in this summary, based on conflicting accounts). He studied mathematics and physics at the technical institute in Gratz, Austria, and continued at the university of Prague in 1880. Tesla excelled in academics, and was fascinated by the new field of electrical engineering. Coincidentally, in 1856, William Thompson (later knighted as Lord Kelvin) published a paper on the rotary effects of magneticism and electricity, along with a theory of condenser discharge. Kelvin's writings encouraged young Tesla to study electrical engineering, and would eventually influence Tesla's breakthrough work on vacuum tubes. Kelvin was to further play a pivitol role in acceptance of Tesla's controversial work. Fate pioneered a path for future events when Tesla learned that alternating current (AC) was theoretically very efficient, but the technology was universally dismissed as impossible. All of the experts said that direct current (DC) was the only solution.
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With invention of the light bulb in 1879, Thomas Edison became the preeminant expert on electricity. He created a wave of cultural inertia for investment to build direct current (DC) utility systems in America and Europe. Tesla, however, became obsessed with designing technology for advantages of alternating current (AC), despite his professor's admonition against futile pursuit of a "perpetual motion machine." After leaving school, in 1881 he worked in Budapest, Hungary as a draftsman for the Central Telegraph Office, and was quickly promoted to design and manage new installations. Starting his career with great promise, Tesla had a nervous breakdown, which he attributed to a practice of deep concentration, introspection, and meditation. Developing a viable system of alternating current, which everyone said was a "fool's errand" and an impossible dream, beyond reach of science and industry likely short-circuited young Tesla's mental fuse, as he struggeled without resources nor collaborators at that time. He sank into deep depression, suffered hallucination and did not expect to recover. Earlier, a professor had written to Tesla's parents with a most unique warning of a student studying too hard to excell. Rather than the usual complaint about ignoring school lessons, the teacher worried for Tesla's health from studying over 18 hour days, pressaging mental depression that was to come. Tesla eventually recovered, and he never again experienced another complete breakdown. Still, his life was marked with eccentricities that sometimes accompany genius, including compulsive habits of hard work to satisfy excessive curiosity. Genius, hard work, and curiosoty were to yield a lifetime of critical inventions - alternating current, vacuum tube, radio, radar.
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In a brief autobiography (unpublished, undated and typed manuscript provided courtesy of John RH Penner), Tesla described his powers of concentration and immagination that yielded a new world order, and possibly the spark that shook him from depression, while still in Prague. Walking with a friend and reciting poetry in the park, he suddenly envisioned a solution for the impossible dream of universal energy. Tesla recalled the moment... ...the idea came like a flash of lightening and in an instant the truth was revealed. I drew with a stick on the sand, the diagram shown six years later in my address before the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, and my companion understood them perfectly. The images I saw were wonderfully sharp and clear and had the solidity of metal and stone, so much so that I told him, "See my motor here; watch me reverse it." I cannot begin to describe my emotions. Pygmalion seeing his statue come to life could not have been more deeply moved. A thousand secrets of nature which I might have stumbled upon accidentally, I would have given for that one which I had wrested from her against all odds and at the peril of my existence...
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For a while I gave myself up entirely to the intense enjoyment of picturing machines and devising new forms. It was a mental state of happiness about as complete as I have ever known in life. Ideas came in an uninterrupted stream and the only difficulty I had was to hold them fast." ..
Cannot Give Away Solution Without Faith
Genie Powerless to Release Power in the Bottle
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Armed with knowledge of the "operating system" for the 20th century, Tesla soon encountered real world dymanics. A powerful paradigm paradox plagued his career. There were no requirements for his solution to provide cheap, reliable, abundant electricity, so there was no one to whom Tesla could spread the "good news." Like the fabled Genie in the Bottle, Tesla was powerless to release the awesome power of his own truth. Anything he said was dismissed as churlish self-promotion, bragging, and "chest thumping," devoid of credibility, as people rushed to hear experts present the prevailing paradigm. After all, everybody knows that a Genie will say anything to get out of a bottle. Socrates taught over 2,000 years ago that, as long as the power of knowledge remains sealed in a bottle, people feel secure refusing to spend time understanding a truth that seems irrelevant to the world of daily meetings, calls, documents, and events passing by. Since the Genie cannot penetrate the bliss of ignorance, fear, and denial, for this one task, someone else must have faith, without benefit of experience, to open the bottle; but very few have the courage to go first -- thus, a paradox. What if the Genie is not powerful? Embarrassment, loss of face, and cost of effort will be devestating to anyone so foolish as to volunteer to open the bottle. What if the Genie is evil and harmful, rather than good and helpful, like a beneficent God? These risks of unknown perils make faith and courage very rare in the absence of experience. Forty years later, Billy Mitchell knew Tesla's dilemma from resistance to adding an air force for national defense; 20 years or so later Howard Aiken, followed by John Mauchly, and especially John Atanasoff epitomized this challenge at the dawn of the computer age, and still, today, beginning the 21st century we wrestle with Tesla's dilemma of knowledge management.
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Professors objected that investing time to study Tesla's solution was unnecessary overkill, because alternating current was already disproven and pronounced "unworkable" in engineering text books; there wasn't enough time to consider Tesla's solution for making alternating current "workable," because they were busy teaching text book requirements for jobs in the burgeoning utilities industry for direct current technology. Department deans were tied up in meetings bringing curriculum in line with the latest fashion set by experts in seminars and publications. Since there was no money in the budget to teach alternating current, they asked not to be bothered about modifying the budget to prepare students for new realities in the 20th century. Experts who wrote text books didn't have faith in alternating current. They were busy learning communication skills and presenting entertaining seminars on direct current, so there wasn't enough time to learn a better method. Besides, consultants risk losing credibility, income, and livelihood by opposing fashionable ideas. Investors were busy at seminars where the gospel was preached on pouring money into big projects for direct current. This circularity of conflicting interests constructed a fiction that reinforced faith in direct current systems, based on Edison's great triumph. Against the crushing weight of public pressure favoring direct current, Tesla's boss did not have time to learn a new way of working. He was too busy working hard fixing problems, and answering complaints about direct current systems already approved, to notice the fiction that Tesla's truth resolved.
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Since there were no requirements for alternating current technology, Tesla could not even give away his secret. There was not the slightest interest in saving time and money by advancing from direct to an alternating current scheme. (see again Howard Aiken) Over and over he presented the solution without risk that even experts, who claimed to care about improving productivity to save lives, time, and money, would steal his intellectual property. Like the Emporer who wore no clothes, faith in direct current technology rendered the entire culture willfully blind. Incestuous reinforcement inoculated academy, industry, commercial, government, and finance "experts" with faith in a fiction that was impenetrable by truth.
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A few, who from time to time showed a spark of understanding, said there was nothing they could do, because they had to go along in order to make a living. So, too, a few offered salvation for a Diamond in the Rough, urging Tesla to become a "team player" by giving up "misplaced priorities" pursuing unpopular ideas. But Tesla's "diamond" wasn't in the rough. His truth was hidden in plain sight. People fear making time to think about paradigms that paralize action with false faith and confidence in widely accepted fiction. Lifting the viel of falsity risks, in addition to loss of income and standing, discovery of floundering in ignorance and denial. Faith, whether justified or not, is the solid footing essential for confident action. Since people must act to live, there is always strong biological aversion to technology that disrupts deeply held faith.
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After the assignments in Budapest, Tesla was invited to join the Continental Edison company in Paris. His ideas for transformation to alternating current were rejected, but with demonstration of proficiency improving designs and fixing power plants in France and Germany, in 1883 Tesla was offered a bonus for traveling to Strasbourg, Alsace and undertaking a high-profile, project fixing the electrical system for a new railroad station. While performing the project, in his spare time Tesla used a nearby machine shop to construct an alternating current motor and was delighted to find that his design from a year earlier worked exactly as expected.
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Tesla was successful with the Strasbourg assignment, and learned an early lesson of bureacracy. For final approval, the inspector required that Tesla move a hallway light several inches, despite the fact that light was positioned according to approved plans. The inspector had warned earlier in the project that it was unusual for someone so young to be in charge of such an important project, and this caused hurt feelings grounded in envy. Now it seemed these feelings had found expression. So, rather than object to higher authority citing dimensions in the plans, Tesla moved the light as requested. Subsequent reviews changed the location of this one light three (3) more times, each ordered by a higher ranking inspector, and ultimately resulting in the position Tesla had originally chosen. Eighty (80) years later, a boy helping his father build a home in Woodside, California would see the wife of the ownership family ask to change the "opening" side for a dual-swing door from the dining room into the kitchen.
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Hinges and other hardward had to be removed and installed on the opposite side from approved plans. The wife remembered requesting the original design; but, seeing the work after construction, she changed her mind. To maintain good will, the contractor gladly did the extra work, spending 2 - 3 hours removing the door, changing the hinges to the other side, routing, filling, sanding, alignment, and painting to accomplish a request that took ten (10) seconds. The wife accepted the finished change with great delight, and then left for lunch at the club.
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Later, the husband stopped at the project site. He asked why the door did not conform with the plans? The contractor proudly explained the accomodation at no charge. Instead of appreciation, the husband insisted that the door be changed back to conform with the original plans. He chastised the contractor not to make changes except upon written change order, citing vague references to management standards, industry practice, and legal remedies. The husband recalled visiting several homes referred by the contractor, and that he and his wife used that experience to approve the design of their new home. The husband's frenzied complaint that spontaneous changes eviscerate planning and quality control, dashed all hopes for good will. The contractor had to buy a new door, and remove and construct new casing and trim. This took the rest of the day plus overtime, working well into the night, with additional painting pending the next day. After the contractor finally got home, the husband called. He told of anguished arguement with his wife, and pleaded that, to save his marriage, the door had to be changed back to his wife's request. The boy never knew, if his father was paid for the extra work, but it seemed plain enough why people suffer depression and succumb to many and varied diversions for safe harbor from insoluable knowledge management dilemmas. Wicked problems of communication endemic to community life drive people to simply give up on good management, a lesson which Tesla learned in Strasbourg.
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In the spring of 1884, Tesla returned to Paris with great appreciation for his work in Strasbourg. The firm had avoided a major loss, and created good will for future work. Good feelings, however, turned quickly into disappointment. Edison's Paris office refused again to consider transformation from DC to alternating current, despite good news that Tesla had built a breakthrough prototype for a polyphase induction motor without sliding contacts or commutator. Unnerved by willfully blind refusal to see achievement of what was considered beyond reach, Tesla learned another lesson when the promised bonus was not paid for solving the problems in Strasbourg. Instead, they asked Tesla to fix other DC power plants. Tesla must have felt like a man driving up in a new Ford car, and saying to the crew... Hey guys, jump in! I've solved the transportation problem. Forget the stagecoach. With this car, we can get to the shop in 10 minutes, so you can pay my bonus." ..
Without looking up, the crew chief says... Can't you see we're busy! We don't have time to check out your car. We spent your bonus money fixing the stagecoach. Right now, we need to expedite. So, get out of the car and help fix this axel. We're running out of time. We only have 10 hours to get to the office. There's going to be a seminar on stagecoach repair, and the boss has hired an expert to present some futuristic theory of transportation, called a "car." There'll be hell to pay if we're late, so roll up your sleeves and let's get busy! Say, can you use your car to round up the horses, so we can get hitched up and get going! ..
Tesla quit Edison, but disappointment grew with failure to raise capital for developing alternating current. Financial managers were so busy making deals for DC development, there was no time to grow faith in AC methods which everybody, who was "somebody" said was impossible. Without faith Tesla's solution remained hidden in plain sight.
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Despite rejection, everyone in Edison's Paris office recognized Tesla's talent. Charles Batchelor, Edison's top man in Paris, pressed the young engineer to go to America and improve Edison's designs for direct current power plants, as he had done for the European subsidiary. Batchelor's letter of introduction to Edison said... "I know two great men and you are one of them; the other is this young man." ..
In New York, Tesla was awestruck meeting the great man, and applied himself with purpose and distinction. Tesla recalls in his autobiography that after working for a year, Edison said to him... "I have had many hard working assistants, but you take the cake." Tesla further recalled... During this period I designed twenty-four different types of standard machines with short cores and uniform pattern, which replaced the old ones. The manager had promised me fifty thousand dollars on the completion of this task, but it turned out to be a practical joke. This gave me a painful shock and I resigned my position. ..
Accounts vary on Tesla's life after quiting Edison for the second time. He evidently could not find engineering work, and so spent a year or two digging ditches for a living. Eventually a friend found him and arranged financing for a new company to manufacture arc-lighting, which Tesla had invented (US patents 335786 and 335787 February 9, 1886), and which fifty (50) years later led to florescent lighting introduced by Westinghouse Electric at the 1939 World's Fair. Tesla expected this venture, which bore his name, to underwrite development of his dreams for alternating current. But, investors balked. They wanted the company narrowly focused on arc lamps that sold well to factories and municipalities. The investors did not have faith competing against Edison, who was backed by financial wizard JP Morgan. Tesla seems to have been released from his own company, or perhaps he quit, over the AC flap, and so again was without funding for his "project."
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Like Prometheus, and the Billy Mitchell story, Tesla was banashied again for bringing knowledge to people, who feared the truth. He may have been forced back into digging ditches for survival; however, his luck suddenly changed, when enabling forces came into aligment.
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Earlier, in 1884, Edison helped organize a new profession of electrical engineering. Tesla was respected within this new association, where engineers heard through word-of-mouth about his record improving Edison's plants in Europe and America. Some accounts say that Tesla was hired in 1886 by the newly formed Westinghouse Electric Company, in Pittsburg. Others say that Tesla, while working as a laborer, managed to finance another laboratory in New York, where he finalized designs for his system. Somehow, he filed applications for seven (7) patents during November and December of 1887. The filing provided a complete system of generators, transfomers, transmission lines, motors and lighting based on alternating current. On May 1, 1888, patents were awarded on all seven (7) requests, US 381968-381970 and US 382279-382282. Tesla was thereby granted protection for a solution, which had previously been beyond reach, and which, until that moment, nobody cared about. With this background, Tesla was asked to speak before the newly formed professional association of electrical engineers, meeting regularly in New York. On May 15, 1888 Tesla presented his original vision for alternating current, formed six (6) years earlier, to the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (today IEEE).
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Westinghouse Releases the Genie in the Bottle

A few months later, in July, 1888, Tesla came to the attention of George Westinghouse, who had prospered from inventing the railroad air brake. Westinghouse wanted to compete for the growing electric utilities market dominated by Edison and JP Morgan. Westinghouse, like Edison, possessed an inventive mind. Since both men were ignorant about the secret of alternating current, they faced a mutual burden of cognitive overhead, which could only be relieved by investing time to study. For Edison, alternating current seemed threatening. He erroneously believed that his incandescent light bulb would not work with alternating current. Without study to engage Tesla's ideas, i.e., listening, Edison's ignorance cascaded into fear of losing business, reputation, and his legacy as the father of electricity. From historical hindsight, if Edison had invested a little time to think about Tesla's design, he could have sold savy investors on doubling or tripling their capital at risk in order to underwrite Edison's transformation to alternating current, and thereby multiply returns a thousand fold. Of course, nobody has the benefit of hindsight, and faith in foresight competes with a thousand details starting a business, and, in Edison's case, launching a new industry and new profession.
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In the vernacular, Edison was "tapped out." His famous creed to fail a thousand times in order to succeed, exhausted all physicial and intellectual energy in a concept that yielded initial progress, investment, and world acclaim, but had limited prospects for economies of scale. Since Edison had no time to think, his success blinded him from learning Tesla's solution. The burden of cognitive overhead presented a complete barrier to faith in transformation to a new way of working.
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Without faith, ignorance and fear drive denial. Edison heartily and warmly welcomed Tesla to America for his talent fixing flaws in direct current apparatus, but blindly denied, i.e., without investigation, Tesla's knowledge of alternating current... "Hold up! Spare me that nonsense. It's dangerous. We're set up for direct current in America. People like it, and it's all I'll ever fool with." ..
Five or six years into the fledgling electrical utility business, Edison was at the pinnacle of success, where no alternative seems viable. Denial expiedently avoided the pain of changing his attitude, the expense of retooling his factories, the ignominy of sharing his reputation. Edison, therefore, had no requirements for Tesla's ideas to save time and money in the utility business. For Edison, Tesla's truth remained hidden in plain sight.
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Westinghouse had dabbled in the field of electricity enough to hold several patents for railroad safety, for example, "Exit" lights. He did not consider himself an expert electrical engineer. He therefore invested time to study that turned ignorance and fear into faith that Tesla presented opportunity to leapfrog Edison with a better "mouse trap." One can imagine an altogether different conversation between Westinghouse and Tesla... Oh, your design uses polyphase rotating magnetic fields that avoid contact commutators. Without those lousy brushes, the motor can be completely enclosed, increasing reliability and reducing maintenance that kills profits. You say the same design generates electricity at the plant that is, also, the motor customers use? I don't get it; but, if you're right, that will save a lot of money constructing power plants. You're kidding! Your system will transmit high voltage power hundreds of miles with low-cost, light-guage transmission lines, and then transformers you invented reduce voltage to suit customers along the route? Are you sure? I don't think you can do that? I had experts in here last week from Harvard and Yale asking me to support something called a "roadmap." They showed me an article in "Engineering Monthly" reporting on a big conference in London. Edison presented his vision of a "roadmap" to wire the world for energy, but the article said the industry isn't there yet! People are repackaging failed initiatives with new names. Calling direct current a "roadmap" is "grist for the mill" of experts, seminars, publications, and educators backing a "horse" that can't finish!
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Okay, okay! I get it! Alternating current is the "Genie in the bottle" that everyone ignores because a small voice cannot be heard above the noise of the stampede falling off the cliff. If the genie gets out of the bottle, how will your scheme make money? You say that generating power away from population centers opens an endless path to economies of scale for bigger plants, which reduce cost and expand customers? Long distance transmission of low cost power for factories, farms, homes, schools, and hospitals will empower a rising tide of faith in electrical energy to lift productivity and quality of life. And you figured this all out reciting poetry in the park?
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Have you explained any of this to Tom? Oh, I see, he was too busy selling the "roadmap." Well, I'm the same way. I hate people telling me about air brakes, because I'm an expert. The prospect of changing what took a lot of money, worry, blood, sweat and tears to figure out drives denial to even think about transformation. Maybe that's how Tom feels.
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However, I'm ignorant about electrical utilities. I haven't built a thing, and have no financial, intellectual, nor emotional capital at risk. So, in my case, fear of losing my money forces me to study where to invest. Can you prove your ideas? How much would it cost to develop prototypes - $1,000,000, $500,000? You're kidding, you can do it for $50,000? Say, what's in that paper sack? Tell you what. Let's split the sandwich and use the sack to jot down an agreement right now while everything is fresh in our mind. ..
By investing time to think, Westinghouse grew faith in alternating current, and so partnered with Tesla to market a better "mouse trap." Some accounts say Westinghouse bought Tesla's patents for $1,000,000; others say it was $216,000, while still others report Tesla's patents were purchased for $60,000, and paid with $5,000 in cash and the rest in stock. All accounts agree that Tesla was to receive additional royalty payment. Most stories say Tesla was to be paid $2.50 for each horsepower of electrical equipment sold, or for each horsepower of generation sold. While specifics are murky, by any measure, at age 32, Tesla was wealthy. Rather than bask in glory, Tesla worked even harder to satisfy requirements at Westinghouse for alternating current technology. He formed Tesla Electric Company in New York city, and split time in Pittsburg guiding and training the Westinghouse people to design and manufacture electrical systems, though not without opposition from his former boss.
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Edison did not have time (20 minutes, an hour, a day or two) to study Tesla's ideas in 1884, but, in 1888, suddenly, like a sinking ship clutching at every straw, a lot of his time was applied to discredit Tesla during the titanic Current Wars of the 1890s. Edison sponsored public demonstrations electrocuting cats, dogs and horses, hoping to scare customers away from alternating current, as dangerous to people. However, Edison's control of the electrical utility business could not be saved. Once the genie of alternating current was released, opposition was overwhelmed by a more powerful paradigm.
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Chicago World's Fair Open World's Eyes to City of Light

Westinghouse countered scare tactics by winning a contract for the first world's fair powered by electricity, appropriately honoring Thomas Edison for discovering the secret of electric lighting, and then launching the rapidly rising utilities industry. The Chicago World's Fair of 1893 took the name Columbian Exposition to, also, honor the 400th anniversary of Columbus discovering America. By this time, JP Morgan had formed the Edison companies into General Electric, with Edison no longer in charge. Westinghouse beat General Electric's bid of $1,000,000 by 50%, mostly due to less copper wiring needed for AC, as Tesla had anticiapted five (5) years earlier. Despite public acclaim for Edison, savings of this magnitude could not be ignored. Westinghouse had kept his promise. He opened the bottle to release the Genie of Tesla's discovery.
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On May 1, 1893, President Grover Cleveland pressed a button in Chicago and instantly turned darkness into a "City of Light." Millions of people from around the world attended the Columbian Exposition and witnessed the spectacle of huge generating machinery running flawslessly and quietly with Tesla's designs and bearing the name "Westinghouse." At that moment, transformation to alternating current was firmly launched, marking an epoch in human history. Tesla's vision of an operating system for the 20th century was about to be unleashed. Cheap, reliable, and abundant power would soon increase human potential several orders of magnitude by substituting brains for brawn far beyond anything the world had previously experienced, ushering in 24-hour work, communication, and entertainment.
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The great "Current Wars" of the 1890s ended at Niagra Falls. People had long dreamed of harnessing the awesome, elemental force of the falls. In 1889 and 1890, through a series of complicated transactions a financial consortium, headed by JP Morgan, and including John Astor, William Vanderbilt, and Edward Dean Adams formed the Niagara Falls Power Company (NFPC), and the Cataract Construction Company, which held all of the NFPC stock and so had effective control of the project. Both Adams and Morgan had financial interests in the Edison companies. Adams was named president of the Cataract Construction Company. He first investigated the viability of investment to build generating facilities at Niagara Falls, and concluded this would only be feasible, if most of the power could be distributed long distances to customers who needed large amounts of electricity for industrial operations. The city of Buffalo, about 30 miles from Niagara Falls, was identified as the initial target for meeting this requirement. Finding a way to deliver useable power to Bufallo, would justify putting up the money to construct power generation at Niagara Falls. However, this objective far exceeded the 1 - 2 mile distance that had been previously achieved. Many experts consulted by the consortium advised that the project could not succeed.
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Construction of the discharge tunnel was begun in 1891, and completed in December 1892. This was a major part of the work that was extremely difficult and dangerous.
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During this construction phase, Adams travelled to inspect hydroelectric projects in Europe, where he consulted on ideas and risks of the work at Niagara Falls. Two ideas were advanced. Since the project would only be feasible by developing technology for long distance transmission of electricity, this greatly reduced the scope of facilities initially planned. For example, the discharge tunnel could be shorted by about two thirds from 2.5 miles to less than one mile. This significant savings on construction cost made the project appear more viable to investors. The second idea was to form a prestigeous commission of engineering and scientific experts to conduct an international competition for ways to transmit power in useable amounts to Buffalo. Everything hinged on a system of generating, transmitting, and using electricity far away in Buffalo.
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In 1893 the consortium formed the International Niagara Commission (INC). The prestigeous Lord Kelvin agreed to serve as chairman. For ten years, Kelvin, a world renowned Scottish physicist, inventor, and businessman, had publicly called for producing electricity at Niagara Falls. Suddenly, he held the reins of authority. Like Edison, Lord Kelvin had strongly and publicly opposed alternating current. Before being appointed chairman, he had written to the consortium strongly recommending against the illusion of alternating current. The commissiion received proposals from around the world. With the "deck" seemingly stacked against alternating current, Westinghouse did not bother to bid. Still, the public was skeptical, and investors were nervous, including JP Morgan. Was a project that so significantly extended proven technology really viable? Were they reaching too far? Had Edison oversold the "Roadmap"? Had the "great" JP Morgan shot himself in the foot by "stacking the deck" in favor of technology that could not succeed? Once again, very smart people were about to outsmart themselves.
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With tensions running high on a high stakes gamble, Lord Kelvin took a break. He visited the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, and bore witness, like millions of others, to a "City of Light" powered by Tesla's system. Following this visit, the Niagara Falls commission rejected all of the bids, and awarded Westinghouse a contract to implement Tesla's alternating current design. Success or failure of the world's largest endeavor to produce electric power rested on the truth of Tesla's vision.
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This change in attitude was a cultural tsunami. An abrupt paradigm shift signaled that faith had shifted, and, like a tectonic plate, formed a new foundation that lifted the world beyond the bounds of terrestrial light.
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However, doubts remained. During years of construction at Niagara Falls, continual crises fueled debate in the press, and among engineers, and scientists. Could a power plant be constructed to harness Niagara Falls? Workmen were killed, cave-ins, and trecherous conditions extended time and cost far beyond schedule and budget. Even if it could be built, would it work? Can power travel 30 miles over transmission lines, and still run factories? Wouldn't it be better to quit, to cut and run? Resisting calls to give up, courage prevailed, when the finacial consortium dug beyond prudence for the money to continue work. Finally, fortune smiled. As the world held its breath, on November 16,1896, with the effort of child, a simple switch was closed at the plant in Niagara Falls, and Tesla's truth was suddenly known by all. Power surged over the mountains to light up the night in Buffalo, and the big motors purred with power.
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The system was flawless. News accounts said that Tesla had made the mighty Niagara Falls flow up hill. Such exaggeration was testament to the tension of the times from fear of failure when taking the first step. Westinghouse, investors, Lord Kelvin, and city fathers were at last relieved. Soon, General Electric transformed to alternating current, and the entire world followed, because Tesla's secret was no longer hidden in plain sight.
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In the next decades, New York became the city that never sleeps. Vast numbers of generating plants and thousands of miles of transmission lines were brought online. With Tesla receiving $2.50 for each horsepower of electricity flowing to customers hungry for power, why did Tesla die penniless, and unknown in a rundown New York hotel on January 7, 1943, and attended only by a few pigeons? What happened to his endless riches and to his fame for empowering the 20th century?
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Ten (10) years of "Current Wars" exhausted all sides in treasure and time. Westinghouse may have become overextended hastily buying businesses to expand electrical utilities. As a result, acquisition costs grew faster than revenues from sales. Westinghouse was forced to reduce costs and consolidate in order to raise capital. Bankers refused to approve new loans, however, unless the open ended contractual commitment to Tesla was terminated. Like Edison, George Westinghouse ultimately lost control of his empire, but not before asking Tesla for relief from royalty payments. The timing is hazy, but evidently in the 1890s, and perhaps as early as 1891, Westinghouse met with Tesla and pleaded that payments in the amount originally agreed threatened collapse of his business.
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John O'Neil's powerful biography published in 1944 reports that Tesla responded by saying ... "Mr. Westinghouse, you have been my friend, you believed in me when others had no faith; you were brave enough to go ahead... when others lacked courage; you supported me when even your own engineers lacked vision... you have stood by me as a friend...
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"Here is your contract, and here is my contract. I will tear both of them to pieces, and you will no longer have any troubles from my royalties. Is that sufficient?" ..
The rationale for giving up the "keys to the kingdom" is hard to grasp. Tesla could have offered reduced and deferred payment to help his friend and benefactor, rather than forfiet everything. He could have simply refused, and worked with whomever took over the Westinghouse assets. He could have negotiated with others for a fair price in return for his patent rights, e.g., General Electric. By this time, Tesla had been awarded 75 patents (over 700 at the time of his death in 1943). He was not naieve, nor without access to counsel for advice. Additionally, he was constantly short of money; projects were halted because he could not meet the payroll; he was evicted numerous times from offices, and from his personal living quarters (mostly hotels in New York), and was forced into bankruptcy with loss of income on his European patents, after World War I broke out in 1914. Of course, most of the bad times were in the future. In the 1890s Tesla had money, fame, and new ideas to pursue. He believed his ideas for wireless transmission of power and communication using the Tesla coil would surpass the value of his discoveries and patents in alternating current. He was largely correct, but was always ahead of his time. Unlike polyphase rotating magnetic fields, which he could calibrate to time alignment for maxiumum performance, Tesla could not calibrate alighment of enabling cultural forces, essential for invention to drive a business model.
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Besides being out of phase with a culture not ready for his next 600 patents, Tesla had bad luck. His laboratory burned down. He filed for a radio patent in 1899, and the patent office issued US 545576 on March 20, 1900. But, in 1904 Marconi was awarded a radio patent, and later won a Nobel prize in 1909 for inventing the radio. Tesla contested Marconi's patent, and was disappointed by not getting a Nobel prize. Twenty years later, in the 1930s, Scientific American and Time magazine credited Tesla's accomplishments, but not until five (5) months after his death, did the US Supreme Court rule in June 1943 that Marconi's patent for radio infringed on Tesla's prior art. Tesla ran out of time before the world could catch up.
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To paraphrase Newton, we stand on the shoulders of Nikola Tesla, unknown though he may be, for providing the "operating system" of the 20th century. Press a button, flip a switch, turn a key all instantly increase productivity far beyond the limits of human physical capacity, in the same way that alphabet technology leverages intellectual capacity for the operating system of civilization. Tesla's 10 year struggle to release the secret of cheap, plentiful, reliable energy indicates the far greater trials of those nameless giants, who saw the light 2,000 years ago, and fought through ignorance, fear, and denial for transformation to literacy, as observed by Plato. Comparing 10 years to 2 millenia offers clues about the effort for advancing to a culture of knowledge. More than mere technology, Tesla reminds that the critical ingredient of transformation is faith.
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Tesla Configured Light Bulbs to Turn Switches On and Off

Faith in electricity grew rapidly as people gained experience with lights, equipment, and appliances powered by vast networks of transmission lines and substations. A method was needed to convert alternating current back to direct current for controlling power to communicate with telephones, radios, and eventually television and computers. Edison taught the world to flip a switch to turn the lights on and off. In the 1890s Tesla invested earnings from his Westinghouse contract into research that discovered how Edison's light bulb could flip the switch on and off. This stunning counterintuitive discovery of the single node vacua tube planted the seeds harvested decades later for logic gates to control electrical circuits. Precise control of power at low levels of detail was to become Archimedes' classic "lever" to move the world from analog to digital electronics.
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The path began with award of patents for the Tesla coil, US 577670, and, for electrical condensers, US patent 577671, both issued Feb 23, 1897. Tesla was next awarded US patent 613809 for wireless transmission of power via electromagnetic waves, and rendering logic gate circuits on or off to control the flow of current. Tesla's radio patent was granted on March 20, 1900, for a system of wireless telegraphy transmitting electric power through natural media, US 645576. Tesla's apparatus for generating and receiving electrical signals; and tuned resonant circuits layed the foundation for radio technology described in US Patent 787412 issued May 16, 1900, complimented quickly with a system of signalling impulses, and transmission of intelligent messages using elevated transmitters described in US Patent 725605, issued July 16, 1900. Four (4) years later in 1904, Fleming advanced vacuum tube technology to dual node devices (diode), applied in Marconi's famous radio patent, and in 1906 Lee De Forest added a third node to produce triodes that increase control of electrical current. Amplifying weak current can then be interpreted for turning a switch on and off to represent the numbers 0 and 1.
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Eccles Jordon Digital Circuits

In 1919 British physicist William H. Eccles in collaboration with FW Jordon published a design for an electrical circuit using vacuum tubes to control a series of switches (logic gates), as earlier demonstrated by Tesla. The Eccles-Jordon circuit retained the status of each switch in the series until changed (i.e., flipped to the other position corresponding to on or off, 0 or 1) by an electrical pulse. e.g., today, in 2005, pressing a key on a keyboard sends a brief current - a pulse. Switches configured into patterns of binary pairs, e.g., 2, 4, 8, 16..., could be incremented with pulsed current. This ability to remember patterns by controlling logic gates based on prior status enables electrical circuits to count. The implications of the Eccles-Jodan logic gate design, traditionally called a "flip-flop," opened a path for electronic memory and binary mathematics. However, the stunning discovery of precision memory and high speed calculation would continue to lie dormant and ignored for the next 25 years, and then, when enabling forces came into alignment, would begin a path that surpasses the wildest dreams for computing performance.
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Counting and Calculation Core Requirements of Civilization

Necessities of survival drive demand for counting. Rudimentary food storage, transport, managing time, farming, and trading (commerce) all give rise, along with proscriptions against stealing, to requirements for accountability, which, in turn, leads to the notion of "quantity." Experiencing conquest and protection with superior force teaches that bigger is better. People invented numbers in order to know what "big" means. Counting technology progressed from fingers, tabulating with a "base 10" system, to mechanical methods (e.g., abacus, Leonardo da Vinci's design for a calculating machine in 1492). Necessity for speed and accuracy drove invention to compute quantities faster and more precisely. Arithmetic, Arabic numerals, bookkeeping, geometry, algebra, logarithms, the slide rule, and calculus emerged for faster more precise memory of increasingly complex calculations in the vanguard of advancing civilization.
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Leibniz Plants Seeds of Binary Mathematics Tilled by Boolean Logic

Gotfried Leibniz is less well known than his English contemporary, Sir Issac Newton, for inventing calculus, however, in about 1666, Leibniz, also developed a system of binary mathematics that complemented the traditional base 10 system of counting fingers. Leibniz proposed a simplified 0/1, yes/no, on/off, life/death formula of logic that fits the low level analog of human reasoning. Like Tesla's theory of alternating current, binary mathematics was largely ignored until enabling forces came into alighment, some 300 years later. One such force along the way was George Boole, who published "Mathematical Analysis of Logic" in 1847. Boole formalized operations for symbolic reasoning, which he extended to operating on defined classifications. Binary mathematics could then calculate true or false using algebraic equations to solve logical propositions. Boole refined his ideas in 1854 with publication of "An Investigation of the Laws of Thought, on which are founded the Mathematical Theories of Logic and Probabilities." This work was noticed and extended by a small band of philosophers, including Charles Peirce, but, like binary mathematics, remained dormant, without practical application, for 80 years.
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Von Neumann Brought to America by Veblen to Advance Mathematics

John von Neumann was born in 1903 in Budapest, Hungary. Undergraduate work in chemestry, pressaged a PhD. in mathematics. Breakthroughs applying mathematics in chemestry and physics gained von Neumann world acclaim. Following publication of a long-sought mathematical theory for quantum mechanics, in 1929 Oswald Veblen invited von-Neumann to be a visiting professor at Princeton University in the United States. After getting married in 1930, for the next three years, von Neumann split time lecturing semesters in Berlin, and at Princeton. But, in 1933, the rise of the Nazis in Germany led von Neumann to remain in the United States, along with other notable emigres of Jewish-European background.
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Veblen arranged for Von Neumann to become the youngest member of a small, founding faculty for the Institute of Advanced Study (IAS) at Princeton. Albert Einstien, Kurt Godel, James Alexander, and Herman Weyl, along with Oswald Veblen (J Robert Oppenheimer, would lead AIS beginning in 1947) established AIS from the start as a world academic leader for postdoctoral research in mathematics and physics. Von Neumann's position as professor of mathematics along side the world's top minds provided a footing that wound propell him into critical roles over the next 20 years in powerful new fields of economics, computer technology, and atomic energy, until his untimely death at age 54, in 1957.
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Apart from a brilliant intellect, von Neumann could present complicated ideas, which only a few in the entire world could understand mathematically, and yet explain obtuse theory in common terms using scenarios and examples that the uninitiated could grasp, and especially people with authority and leadership positions, for deciding a course of action. This gift of explanation that complimented powerful insight was pivitol in advancing technology through the synergy of military necessity and academic research.
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Turing Planted the Seeds of Software Programming

In England, Alan Turing, whose 1936 paper, On Computable Numbers with an application to the Entscheidungs problem, postulated mathematical models he dubbed "Turning machines" that helped lay the foundations for Computer Science and software engineering, including Artificial Intelligence. Turning demonstrated that common manual procedures and processes, i.e., the recipies of life, can be simulated with mathematical precision using the logic of algorithms. Universal Turing machines present a theory of manipulating symbols that represent algorithmic instructions, leading to the concept of storing programs on computers to operate consistently on data flow input by people, i.e., users, thus complimenting Shannon's theories developed a few years later for designing computer hardware that executes software programs at the speed of electricity.
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In 1936, Turing came to the United States and studied under John von Neumann at Princeton for his doctorate in mathematics. Turing's PhD work was directly supervised by Alonso Charge, who had published similar, though less sweeping, theories just prior to Turing's famous 1936 paper, and, as a result, was cited by Turing. There is no record of collaboration between Turing and von Neumann, though doubtless they met, and von Neumann must have been familiar with Turing's 1936 paper that led to Turing being at Princeton. There remains speculation about how much von Neumann would draw on Turing's ideas 10 years later for computer design, commonly called the Von Neumann architecture promulgated about 1946, and which remains dominate to the present day.
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Shannon Connects Electrical Circuits to Boolean Logic Design
Binary Mathematics Empowered by Speed and Precision of Electricity

Claude E. Shannon earned degrees in Electrical Engineering, and in Mathematics at the University of Michigan. One of his courses exposed the arcane and seemingly obtuse binary structure of Boolean Logic. In 1936 Shannon entered the graduate Engineering program at MIT, where he worked with a machine for solving differential equations, called a Differential Analyzer, built by Shannon's professor, and the Dean of Engineering at MIT, Vannevar Bush. This was a big mechanical calculator with elaborate gears and wheels mounted on heavy duty axels, and turned by electric motors. Set up took several days changing a great many connections between electrical cables to define a single problem and direct operation of the computer. Once launched, getting an answer could, also, take days. Shannon earned money by working part time as a mechanic to run and maintain the big computer, which was constantly breaking down. The tool kit included a crane, wrenches, plyers, and ball peen hammers. This experience over a period of an entire year yielded intricate knowledge of complex details about calculating technology, and exposed inefficient electrical circuits, leading to theories and ideas for his masters thesis.
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In 1937, Shannon's thesis, "A Symbolic Analysis of Relay and Switching Circuits," proposed that, long ignored and hitherto impractical, Boolean logic could replace random methods for designing electrical circuits that implement binary mathematics. Shannon further presented mathematical proofs that relatively small vacuum tubes with logic gate circuits could replace big, slow, and cumbersome mechanical gears and wheels to perform binary mathematics at the speed of electricity. The following year, in 1938, a paper based on Shannon's thesis was published in a professional journal. Shannon earned awards and accolades, as engineers realized that Boolean logic could be implemented with the Eccles-Jordan logic gate circuit for binary mathematics. Simplified and standardized electrical circuit design, together with proof that logical operations could be carried out with electrical power set computing on a path to increase the speed and precision of calculation by many orders of magnitude simply by reducing the time to switch electrical circuits on and off.
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By 1938, knowledge and technology emerged to improve the age old requirement for faster, accurate counting, and by many orders of magnitude. However, like Tesla's proposal for alternating current in 1880, and Mitchel's proposal 40 years later in the 1920s for an air force, there were no "requirements" for integrating Libniz's discovery of binary mathematics, refined by Boole's methods of logic, and powered by Tesla's cheap, abundant, reliable electricity, and directed by Edison's light bulb modified by Tesla to create vacuum tubes that turn switches on and off, and arranged by the Eccles-Jordon flip-flop design for digital technology.
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World War II Accelerates Evolution of Calculating to Computers

In 1939, rapid build up arming for World War II escalated demand for calculating power to design weapons, compute ballistics, and to manage large scale logistics. These stark necessities of war moved the final cog of enabling forces into alignment for the first generation of electronic computers to emerge. The first step in computing was for special purpose applications (e.g., science, engineering, military), like the Differential Analyzer, credited to Vannevar Bush at MIT. Though unknown to the rest of the world until war ended after 1945, Konrad Zuse in Germany constructed a mechanical binary and programmable computer, paralleling and pressaging work in England and America. For example...
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Atanasoff Builds First Electronic Digital Computer

That same year, 1939, John V. Atanasoff, a professor at Iowa State College, and assisted by a graduate student, Clifford Berry, tried to implement Shannon's call for electronic calculation with binary mathematics. In September, they received a small grant of $650. By November they had assembled a prototype analog device to solve simultaneous linear equations. The Atanasoff Berry Computer, dubbed the "ABC," used vacuum tubes and electronic circuits for calculation without mechanical means common for the period, and is thus credited as the first electronic digital computer, though evidently without ever becoming operational to solve actual problems.
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A year later, in December, 1940, Atanasoff attended a professional event in Philadelphia, where John Mauchly demonstrated a special purpose calculator he had invented for weather analysis. After Mauchly's presentation, Atanasoff introduced himself, and described his work on the ABC analog calculator using vacuum tubes for binary mathematics. Mauchly learned that substituting electricity for mechanical calculation would increase performance by orders of magnitude. If successful, the ABC calculator would significantly advance his scientific research in weather analysis. The following year in June 1941, Mauchly visited Atanasof at Iowa State College in Ames. He examined the ABC computer and documentation. Mauchly stayed at Atanasoff's home during the four (4) day visit to thoroughly discuss the ABC design. After this visit, in September, 1941, Mauchly wrote to Atanasof thanking him for being a gracious host, and proposing collaboration on developing an electronic digital calculator. There is no record of Atanasof's response. Both men were soon caught up in mobilizing for World War II. Like everyone, personal plans were overtaken by sweeping events of national survival.
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Doctor Atanasoff did, however, submit his ideas to IBM for improving calculation with electronic digital computer technology. He offered to help IBM bring this breakthrough to market at a time when military necessity cried out for faster calculating. IBM's leadership in business technology, notably punch card collating machines, offered an ideal path for turning the ABC prototype into capability urgently needed to fight the war, and would be in great demand for scientific and business applications after the war. IBM told Atanasof that his design was impossible, a fool's errand that would never work, similar to Tesla, and that IBM would lose credibility with customers, and jepardize military contracts by proposing to improve calculating speed by 1000% building an electronic digital calculator using vacuum tubes for binary mathematics. They assurred Atanasof that IBM's scientists and engineers were already at work developing the most advanced calculators for the war, and so IBM did not need his assistance.
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Atanasoff was called for war duty in September 1942. He was forced to abandon work on the ABC computer. The management at Iowa State College planned to file a patent application on behalf of Atanasoff, while he was off fighting the war, but they forgot about it after getting IBM's report. So, a patent was never requested.
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Atanasoff was assigned to the Naval Ordnance Office in Washington, DC and put in charge of testing mines, depth charges, and similar projects to relieve heavy losses occurring from German U-boats sinking American ship convoys trying to re-supply England, which by then had become Fortress Europe. Atanasoff played a significant role solving this problem, and had an extremely productive and distiguished career in the military, ending in 1945. He was awarded over 30 patents for a diverse range of military technologies, including a unit computing and recording projectile trajectory errors in artillery shelling. He developed and patented postal sorting systems; automated systems for parcel post handling; quick search systems for classified information items; and an electronic quartz clock. He further contributed to naval armament systems, including guided missiles. After the war, Atanasoff started two successful companies and served as CEO for both at the same time.
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In the fog of war, perhaps on the floor above or below, or even a few doors down the hall from Atanasoff in the Ordnance Office, the Navy let a contract to IBM for constructing an advanced computer for its time, but only one tenth as fast as Atanasoff's design, which IBM had turned down. Through an Inspector Clouseau-like series of bumbling accidents, IBM eventually obtained the Atanasoff design. Like General Electric ultimately adopting Tesla's alternating current design in 1896, IBM got the Atanasoff design about 5 years after the war ended in 1945, and parlayed this into a god-like dominance of computer technology for 30 years.
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It seems likely, that Atanasoff made inquiries in the Navy to build his ABC computer. His work included calculating artillary trajectories, and this was the precise requirement that led the Army to implement the Atanasoff design under the leadership of John Mauchly. The Navy did not follow the Army path to electronic digital computers, because enabling forces did not line up. The brass told Atanasoff "not to worry" about calculating technology, because the Navy had contracted with the world's greatest technology firm and the greatest university to take care of all this. Atanasoff was ordered to stick to his job of clearing mines and improving depth charges that make the sea safe for Navy ships, and leave the design of calculating technology to the "experts." The Army's secret for passing up the Navy's computer program by 1000% was starting the journey with people, who needed to solve a problem, rather than with "experts," who were inoculated against the truth by faith in a widely accepted paradigm that proved to be a self-perpetuating fiction. (see Tesla) Like Galielo, the Navy placed Atanasoff's ideas in house arrest. He could walk around; he could do his work, so long as he did not spread the word on new ideas to improve Navy doctrine that analog computers were the best solution.
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Military Builds Big Computers for Intelligence and Ballistics

By 1943 military funding on several big computer projects accelerated transformation from mechanical wheels and gears to apply the speed and precision of electricity for complex calculations. After obtaining a PhD at Princeton, Alan Turing returned to England and was a critical part of the team, leading work at Bletchley Park where computers were successful in breaking German encryption codes. Notably, the Colossus special purpose computer greatly aided the allied cause to hasten the end of the war, some estimate by up to two (2) years, and thereby saved tens of thousands of lives, including jewish holocost victims wasting in concentration camps.
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Aikin and IBM Build Harvard Mark 1 for US Navy

In the United States, Navy requirements for ballistic calculations enabled Howard Aiken to at last breakthrough previously impervious resistance and setbacks, encountered before the war, to develop the Mark 1 computer at Harvard university. Aiken summarized his Tesla-like struggle to spread the news of great leaps forward that take cognitive overhead for study in order to save time and money by changing tools and practices, with his famous quip... Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats. ..
With assurance (or at least strong expectation) of a Navy contract, IBM ventured into computers by providing finance, engineering, parts, and assembly for Aiken's project, which they called the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator (ASCC). Grace Hopper collaborated with Aiken to design the Mark 1, and launch the beginnings of computer programming. Aiken's computer weighed about five (5) tons and used electromechanical relays for calculations. It was, therefore, slow; for example, multiplication took over three seconds. On the plus side, the Mark 1 was fully automatic, and very reliable. It has been described as the first "program controlled" calculator.
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Electrical Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC)
Enabling Forces of Collaboration and Centrifugal Forces of Collapse
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The biggest World War II project was, also, the first user of the world's biggest computer. Paralleling the Navy, in 1943 the US Army commissioned construction of ENIAC to perform ballistic calculations. It was the size of several large rooms, weighed over 30 tons and used over 18,000 vacuum tubes connected with miles of wiring, and around 5,000,000 hand-soldered joints. The first operational assignment was to solve a complex problem for the Manhattan project in developing the atomic bomb. The story of how enabling forces aligned diverse, competing, and normally conflicting interests into a harmonious, cooperative team to collaborate on ENIAC, and then was overcome by centrifugal forces of success and self-interest that eviscerated collegiality, harmony, and productivity offers lessons for transformation that mirrors Tesla's struggle, rise and fall from grace.
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War is a blunt instrument that concentrates narrowly on survival, and suppresses personal agendas for the duration of danger. World War II allocated resources on an unprecedented scale into technologies for combat and logistics. Conscription immediately transferred talent into the military. Prewar strength in 1939, of approximately 120,000 troops, was ramped up rapidly after December 7, 1941, to a wartime level of some 9,000,000 troops. Of necessity, wartime planning and operations take little account of individual concern and preference in order to meet massive production requirements in time to survive. The core strategy was to prevail with brute force of overwhelming numbers that absorbed devestating losses from huge blunders, as the price of freedom. General Eisenhower famously noted that "plans are nothing, planning is everything." Planning develops alternatives for nimbly adjusting to dynamic conditions, which no single "plan" can anticipate, especially where the adversary is making plans, as well. Therefore, action is not a slave to a particular "plan," but the "planning process" to "be prepared" guides every action with intelligence, i.e., capture the facts, organize to understand correlations, implications, and nuance, align to verify accuracy, analyse alternatives, summarize into action, and feedback to refine and adjust planning.
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Concentration of military might in so short a period to make up for lack of preparedness forces exigent communications. Fear makes collaboration effective by suppressing momentary expression of hurt feelings in the interest of survival. An unlimited budget, and rapid promotions further help reduce negative spirals of anger and envy that devolve communication, management, and productivity toward entropy in the absence of common danger.
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During times of fear from mutual peril, war suppresses personal competition, and forces cooperation in order to maximize survival prospects by maximizing organizational competitiveness on the battlefield. People pull together rather than compete for rewards and recognition. Ben Franklin succintly framed the hobson's choice 150 years earlier during the Revolutionary war. Americans could "hang together or hang separately." Years after conflict subsides, victors remember with fondness and nostalgia great sacrafice, honor, and exciting times, with comity, courtesy, energy, and cooperation dominating human relations. War mostly ignores specialized talent in the rush to marshal forces in time to be effective with mass assignments to fighting roles for solders, seamen and airmen. Some specialty talent, however, is focused to accelerate production, improvement, innovation, and invention of anything and everything that supports combat and logistical operations. An example, was Lieutenant Herman H. Goldstine assigned to the Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), near Baltimore, Maryland, and posted to command the BRL Annex at the Moore College of Engineering, 75 miles away in Philadelphia.
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Experience during World War I led the Army to form a Ballistics Branch within the Office of the Chief of Ordnance. Artillary, mortars, tanks, machine guns, each with varying sizes and capacities presented significant calculation problems for aiming weapons accurately on target. Despite limited funds after the war ended in 1918, the Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) was expanded and permanently staffed to provide scientific research for the US Army. The first commander of the Research Division was Major Oswald Veblen, on leave from teaching mathematics at Princeton university. At that time, "computers" was the term for civilian employees hired to calculate firing range tables, and comprised a small group of women performing a repetitive, tedius, and therefore considered to be a "clerical" task. Calculations took days, weeks,and months with manual methods aided by mechanical hand-crank calculating machines.
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While there was no money to strengthen national defense, especially with the onset of Depression in 1929, funding was approved in 1935 for a top-of-the-line Differential Analyzer. By this time, Veblin had returned to Princeton, as a mathematics professor and leading voice for the Institute of Advanced Studies (AIS). Major James Guion, in charge of ballistics computations, found a way to bootstrap the work through a Depression-relief project. As with the Army Aircorps, three years later, ominous signs in 1938 spurred preparations for war. The Research Division at APG was renamed the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL), and the lab began research on electrical technology to increase speed and accuracy of mechanical calculators. (see Turing, and Shannon)
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America's entry into the war after December, 1941, led to a flood of new weapons in a race for advantage on the battlefield. This increased requirements to calculate ballistics tables, including aircorps bombing and anti-aircraft guns, as air power for the first time became a critical dimension of combat.
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At this time, Lieutenant Paul N. Gillon took command of ballistic computations at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. By June 1942, there was already a backlog creating Firing Tables for new weapons. To solve the problem, the Army contracted to use a larger Differential Analyser, along with space for support staff at the Moore School of Engineering within the University of Pennsylvania, located about 75 miles away in Philadelphia. Common travel for this trip in those days was by train. At the start of the war, various difficulties made the trip an uncertain adventure by automobile. Lieutenant Gillon regularly took the train to Philadelphia in order to work with Dean Harold Pender, and Professor John G. Brainerd, in setting up a BRL Annex command at the Moore School.
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A constant objective was improving the speed and accuracy of ballistics calculations. The magnitude of World War II drove ingenuity guided by universal education within an expanding industrial capacity enabled by cheap, reliable, abundant electricity. These dynamics produced a continual stream of new weapons for gaining battlefield advantage. Effectiveness obviously depended on accurate aiming. A precise angle of trajectory was determined by setting numerous dials on a gun to values pre-determined by testing and calculation. This data was compiled and published in Firing Tables for shell, target, and environment parameters, including weight, dimensions, wind speed and direction, humidity, temperature, distance, elevation, and even the temeprature of gunpower. Each weapon needed hundreds of calculations for different sets of conditions to quickly and accurately direct fire against the target. It took more than a month for a team of women computers to perform these calculations using methods developed during World War I, and with the aid of the Differential Analyzer. In other words, the Army quickly learned that sophisticated calculating technology developed in 1933, was insufficient to meet demand driven by newer and more sophisticated weapons technology coming on line every day in 1942. This spotlight on calculating as a critical strategic asset for survival, i.e., winning the war, changed attitudes. Willingness, therefore, spiked to critical mass for building better calculating technology, shown by the Harvard Mark 1 project undertaken by the Navy.
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In the Army, powerful new artillary was being delivered to troops on the battlefield that could not be accurately aimed, because Firing Tables could not be produced in time to ship with the weapons. Of course, this did not prevent their use. Soldiers simply "guessed" to set a series of dials directing fire on the enemy. Reduced effectiveness of "guessing" was offset in part by the massive American buildup. Even missing most of the time, firing a lot of weapons eventually hits a target by mistake. However, months and years over which massive logistics arrived, with consequent and seemingly unnecessary loss of life, from failure of the Army to do what seemed like "simple arithmetic" to set all those dials under duress of combat, contributed to the common refrain -- "goddam Army!"
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Frustrations compounded when Firing Tables had to be modified by experience in the field. Large artillary pieces sent to support America's first major combat against Germany in North Africa were firing off-target, despite setting dials to requirements in Firing Tables. Investigation found that the ground in Africa was more resiliant than at Aberdeen Proving Ground where testing was performed. A study to account for this new factor required calculating all of the parameters again to publish amended Firing Tables. These scenarios were repeated often with massive buildup of US forces over a short time period.
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Another problem was continual failure of the Differential Analyzer, which could take days to repair, and required starting calculations over from the beginning. Lieutenant Gillon readily approved the proposal from Moore College to make modifications that increased reliabilty and boosted performance. Assistant Professor Weygand developed an electronic torque amplifier that reduced failures. Weygand was aided by a graduate student in the Electrical Engineering program, J. Presper Eckert, who had helped assemble the Differential Analyzer, and was then hired part-time for maintenance. Like Shannon at MIT in 1936, Eckert's experience fixing constant problems, yielded numerous ideas for enhancements. Lieutenant Gillon approved payment immediately, so that Weygand and Eckert implemented all possible improvements to increase calculation speed and accuracy. These improvements, together with adding civilian and military staff increased production by an order of magnitude. However, as conflict spread around the world, requirements for ballistic tables and research related computations for war time production greatly exceeded the speed of calculating with women "computers" and the Differential Analyzer. Without knowing when the war would end, requirements became urgent for faster and accurate calculation capabilities.
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Herman H. Goldstine, borne September 13, 1913, graduated in 1936 with a PhD in mathematics from the University of Chicago. Goldstine's thesis on the Calculus of Variations in Abstract Spaces caught the attention of Doctor Gilbert Bliss, Chairman of the Mathematics Department. Bliss asked Goldstine to stay on at the University, as assistant professor, helping Bliss with research on the mathematics of ballistics. Bliss, had lectured on navigation during World War I, and in 1919 published several papers in the Journal of US Artillery, based on experience at the Aberdeen Proving Ground near Baltimore, Maryland, where Bliss worked from 1917 to 1918 designing artillary Firing Tables.
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With this background, when Bliss suffered a heart attack, and could not teach for a time, he asked Goldstine to teach a course in Exterior Ballistics, which Bliss had designed to present theories on the calculus of variations, developed with the group at Aberdeen during the World War I, and described "...as a problem in particle dynamics, [where] rotational effects are ignored and resistance is assumed to act along the tangent to the trajectory." In 1941 Professor Bliss retired from the University of Chicago to write a book, Mathematics for Exterior Ballistics, published in 1944 that aided the war effort, and a second book, Lectures on the Calculus of Variations, was published in 1946. This strong interest in the "calculus of variations" applied in ballistics calculations helps explain why Professor Bliss asked Goldstine to stay on at the University of Chicago in 1936 to assist with research that eventually found its way into the Bliss book projects. The expert from World War I, was grooming a protege for the "second act."
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Before retring in 1941, Bliss recommended Doctor Goldstine, who by then had moved to the University of Michigan (1939), for appointment to the Mathematics Department of the prestigeous Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) at Princeton, led by his old friend Oswald Veblen. Around the turn of the century (1898 - 1903) Bliss and Veblen had studied mathematics at the University of Chicago. Later, they taught mathematics and were colleagues for four years at Princeton from 1905 to 1908. Bliss was therefore proud to recommend his understudy and bright star for a top position in the field of mathematics, starting as an Assistant Professor at IAS.
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With his career moving into high gear, Goldstine married Adele Katz in 1941. She had transferred that year to the University of Michigan for graduate work in mathematics, where Goldstine was teaching. Adele completed her masters degree in the Spring of 1942. However, before the Goldstine's could move to Princeton for the new assignment starting the Fall Semester at IAS, Doctor Goldstine was called to service in August, 1942, and commissioned a first lieutenant in the Army. Saying "good bys" to family and friends, Goldstine told Professor Bliss there would be a delay joining the IAS faculty at Princeton, as he was off to fight the war. While in transit, new orders reached Goldstine in California on the day he was preparing to board ship bound for action in the Pacific. Professor Bliss had made another call to Professor Veblen at Princeton.
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In 1942, Doctor Oswald Veblen was appointed Chief of the Science Advisory Board for the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL) at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. This was not a casual, symbolic position; but, rather was, as were many elements of World War II, a "second act" for World War I. In 1917, then Major Veblen had helped launch and, also, commanded, the Range Firing Section, where he recruited his friend, and colleague, Doctor Gilbert Bliss, and other talented scientists to develop new theories and practices of ballistics. Twenty years later, World War II presented a path for Veblen's vision, seasoned by experience, to build a strong base of scientific research for the war and beyond. As a result, the new orders that reached Goldstine in California assigned him to the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL) at Aberdeen. Veblin had arranged through the Adjutant General of the Army for history to repeat. Having been trained with knowledge of ballistics that Veblin and Bliss pioneered 20 years earlier, Goldstine was given a rare opportunity to implement and expand a unique body of knowledge that would immediately impact world events, but more importantly help launch a new world order of electronic digital computers for decades, and perhaps centuries to come. Of course this was all in the future that would unfold through a series of unlikely events in the next few years, and so was completely unexpected and unplanned at the time. Goldstien only knew that instead of sailing West across the Pacific to fight the Japanease, he was going East by train to do something else. As a result, powerful enabling forces were slowly coming into alignment for advancing civilization without anybody intending to do so.
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At Aberdeen, Captain Gillon, recently promoted, and in charge of ballistics calculations, tapped Lieutenant Goldstine for on-site liason and supervison of the contract with the Moore School of Engineering. which included hiring and training a staff to perform ballistic calculations. In those days this class of work was performed by women, who were called "computers." Supervising BRL operations at Moore College placed Goldstine in regular contact with scientists and engineers, who shared skills and interests in mathematical theory, and further required Goldstine to take the train to the Aberdeen Proving Ground for regular meetings with Captain Gillon and others. His hectic schedule was a constant stream of research, meetings, calls, and documents to increase production of Firing Tables that was none-the-less falling further behind every day requirements to produce Firing Tables urgently needed on battlefields around the world.
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Goldstine's communications and quality of work developed rapport, trust, and confidence at the BRL. Goldstine relates in his memoir... ...I was very fortunate in that Colonel Gillon and I somehow just clicked together. There was an empathy that developed which persisted through the remainder of his lifetime. ..
Lieutenant Goldstine was also fortunate to develop effective communications and strong rapport with Professor John G. Brainerd, assigned as the daily contact between the Moore College of Engineering and BRL. Goldstine's memoirs say... Brainerd... combined a considerable interest in computation with substantial ability as a leader of men and a manager of affairs. He did an excellent job of handling this assignment, which was soon to occupy him full time. At all times it was a distinct pleasure for me to deal with this honest, kindly, and well-meaning gentleman. He undoubtedly deserves the credit for being the university's key man in the manifold relationships [with] Aberdeen. ..
The Lieutenant brought military order and discipline to the BRL Annex at Moore College. Following the practice at Aberdeen, Goldstine hired a staff of women "computers" to use the differential analyzer for calculating Firing Tables. Goldstine's wife, Adele, with a masters degree in mathematics, was hired in September 1942 to organize, train, and supervise the work. Initially, Adele traveled the country visiting universities to hire women with degrees in mathematics. She formed a cadre of six women to train the staff and manage the work, including John Mauchly's wife, Mary. When not enough women could be found with mathematics degrees, requirements were changed to a high school degree and aptitude for mathematics. As demand continued to rise, arrangements were made with the Women's Army Auxillary Corps (WAACS) to recruit candidates with mathematical aptitude, dropping requirements for a high school degree. Eventually, the BRL Annex staff at Moore College numbered over 100 women "computers."
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Years later, Adele Goldstine, who died young at age 44, in 1964, was remembered generously for wartime service in a rhetrospective on pioneers in computer technology, sponsored by the Smithsonian National Museum of American History... ...I came in the class and Adele Goldstine walked in... with her hair in an upsweep, she walked over, and threw her leg over the table edge and began to lecture. Adele Goldstine, from the first, struck me as a very sharp, exotic, exciting kind of a woman.
Jean J. Bartik, interview April 27, 1973 ..
Still, despite people pulling double, and sometimes triple-shifts, production of Firing Tables fell further behind and simply could not keep up with the rapid buildup of the American arsenal. Prodigious efforts to perform an impossible though essential mission caused fatigue, conflict, and anger that stressed communications.
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One day in the October 1942 time frame, a graduate student asked the Lieutenant if he had seen a memo prepared the previous year in which Professor Mauchly outlined an electronic digital computer? The student felt that faster, more reliable calculation could reduce the backlog discussed so heatedly among BRL staff. Extensive literature on ENIAC during this period, including memoirs of the principals, does not identify this "graduate student," nor otherwise explain how Goldstine learned of the Mauchly memo with ideas for high speed calculation technology. When interviewed half-a-century later, in 1988, Eckert did not recall telling Goldstine about the memo. He vaguely recalled hearing that Doctor Carl Chambers, another professor on staff at Moore College, might have told Goldstine about it; however, Doctor Goldstine does not attribute discovery of Mauchly's memo to Chambers, nor to anyone else. None of many histories on ENIAC list Chambers, and he does not fit the profile of a "graduate student." Since the record is unclear, for purposes of working through a plausible understanding of hazy enabling forces, specifically finding someone with opportunity and motive or purpose for disclosure, despite lack of memory, this account concludes that Eckert seems the most likely source of notice to Goldstine.
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Eckert was called on to fix the Differential Analyzer, when it frequently broke down. This regularly placed him in position to observe stressed communications caused by failure to meet demands for calculating Firing Tables. Eckert was one of very few people, who knew about a memo on increasing the speed of calculation, since he had discussed it with Mauchly the year before, and the College had decided not to circulate the memo, but rather to studiously silence it. Eckert was therefore one of very few people with motive and opportunity to tell Goldstine about the memo, and he was a "graduate student," which fits historical reporting.
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Mauchly's wife, Mary, was held in high regard at the BRL Annex, as one of six (6) trainers, and leaders for the staff of women "computers" in 1942. She was, later selected in 1945, to learn and program the ENIAC, making her a pioneer in the modern discipline of Computer Science. Since she worked closely with Adele Goldstine setting up the initial training program, she certainly knew the magnitude of the problem the Army faced to increase the speed calculating Firing Tables. Mary undoubtedly knew her husband had built a calculator, demonstrated it at a professional event, that he had gone to Iowa in June 1941 to research building better calculators. She likely knew that John had prepared a memo in August 1941, though possibly not. There surely would have been discussion at home about the crying need at the BRL Annex to calculate Firing Tables faster and more accurately.
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Since Mary Mauchly was working for BRL in October - November 1942, she could have mentioned that her husband had prepared a memo some 18 months earlier in August 1941, on increasing the speed of calculation. There is no report of this in the extensive record on ENIAC history, including many interviews with Goldstine, who also wrote a book, and magazine articles on ENIAC project launch. None cite Mary Mauchly as the source of Goldstine learning about the memo. The date of Mary starting work with BRL is not clear in the record. If she came on board after these events, obviously, she could not have said anything to Goldstine. However, even if she was already employed, then despite being intimately aware of the urgency for improving calculation of Firing Tables, and while most likely discussing this problem with her husband at home, organizational protocol could well have prevented Mary from mentioning her husband's memo either to the Lieutenant, or to his wife, Adel, who was Mary's direct supervisor.
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At that time, nobody knew, including Mauchly, that his ideas would really work. For anyone, including a spouse, to proactively volunteer that a superior several levels higher should investigate a mere memo describing non-existent technology that might someday improve work on the job, would have taken extraordinary audacity, no matter how many American GIs were dying because of the need for the capability ultimately derived from the memo. Accordingly, the prospect that Mary Mauchly was the source of Goldstein's awareness and inquiry about the Mauchly memo that launched the first digital computer, and which came to revolutionize civilization, seems very remote based on the date of employment and the dates of relevant events in October and November 1942, and further based on common practice that limits communication in the chain of command for big organizations.
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Even slight personal risk of losing credibility, standing, promotion, or income overwhelms speaking up in a constructive manner, or lifting a finger in any manner perceived controversial to help people solve even very large problems. Proportionality of personal costs weighed against organizational benefits seems irrelevant under the rule of bureaucracy that silence is golden. Courage for standing up to be counted is the surest way to be counted amoung the missing, because without enlightenment leadership reverts to dogma. Resolving the tension between personal and organizational interests is a Knowledge Management dilemma of insoluble proportion for leadership without a broader vision.
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Professor Brainerd offers instructive case study. Mauchly submitted his memo to Brainerd; but, he took no action, and subsequently lost the document. Most histories of these events maintain that when Goldstine learned of a memo proposing high speed electronic calculations, he took immediate action, making a thorough review, that he had extensive meetings with Mauchly, and discussed everything with Doctor Brainerd. At best, taking "immediate action" on comment by a low-level subordinate stretches credulity, given the common practice and necessity to ignore unsolicited advice from outside the chain of command (see likely scenario below), because people are already overwhelmed by daily information, advice, and direction coming through the chain of command.
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Computer research was not Goldstine's primary job. He was new to the field, and so reliant on experts. Goldstine was busy "putting out fires" of daily operations. He had many meetings with the College and at Aberdeen, and the Differential Analyser took a lot of time setting up calculations and making repairs. Since he was meeting regularly with Professor Brainerd, and had strong confidence in Brainerd's stewardship of Moore College support for BRL operations, and since Brainerd had not mentioned a memo with a fabulous solution to Captain Gillon on a matter that was the central task of the BRL mission upon entering the contract with the Army months earlier in June, and further since Brainerd did not feel the memo was sufficiently important and credible to mention during the many meetings with the Lieutenant on ways and means to improve calculating speed, then most likely, Goldstine would have ignored the mere mention of a memo, just as Brainerd had ignored the actual memo. The overwhelming inertia of bureaucracy to ignore initiatives outside the chain of command and for which there are no requirements, illustrated by the court martial of General Billy Mitchell for recommending an air force, suggests the Lieutenant most likely told Eckert, or who ever mentioned the memo, that improving ballistics calculations was being researched at Aberdeen, or somewhere up the chain of command, and that his job was to fix the Differential Analyzer so they could get back to work, in line with the Tesla scenario.
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Though not officially assigned to research technology, there would have come moments between crises, when Lieutenant Goldstine could have bucked the system and requested the memo, even though it was outside the official communication channel. Goldstine and Captain Gillon were meeting with "experts" about procurement and developing better calculating capabilities. Something in those discussions could have aligned with Eckert's brief explanation of Mauchly's memo on a design for digital computers, causing further inquiry rather than follow standard practice to ignore unsolicited communications, in this case from a source that was not credible, as occurred the year before in 1941. How then to follow up and get the memo?
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Since Professor Brainerd was Lieutenant Goldstine's primary point of contact with the College, and since the Lieutenant had good communications with Brainerd, and further since Brainerd was the only recipient of memo, he seems the only possible path to follow up. Nobody else, except possibly Dean Penard, knew about it.
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Goldstine in fact says he talkd to Brainerd, but not for about 6 months in March 1943, when he asked to see the memo, and relates that Brainerd "...made available Mauchly's ideas and his own judgement that they were not unreasonable." This was obviously an important endorsement, given the high confidence Goldstine had in Brainerd. At this point, accounts move on to explain that the army contracted with the College to build ENIAC. The project building the first digital computer was a great success. After the war ended in 1945, the Army built an improved model. IBM, who rejected this design as unworkable in the 1940s, got the contract in the 1950s that led to mainframe technology with keyboards, monitors, and software programming. Eventually, miniaturization that began with invention of transistors in 1945 - 1948, and microprocessors developed at Intel in the early 1970s made possible personal computers, which leverage human intelligence that lifts civilization.
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Advancing civilization requires reasoned speculation about management, communications, leadership, and transformation based on the available record, and knowledge of enabling forces that drive human affairs. Such analysis supports designing technology that improves management, leadership, and communications by augmenting intelligence with a system of Communication Metrics. More importantly, learning how people overcame ignorance, fear, and denial for transformation in 1942, from slow, ponderous analog electro-mechanical calculators to build high speed electronic digital computers sheds light on how to overcome the same resistance against another critical transformation from using computers solely for information, to instead drive a culture of knowledge. How then was ignorance, fear and denial overcome in the middle of the 20th century, 1942, that can help travel the same path to advance civilization in the 21st century?
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What, for example, changed "unreasonable" ideas in August of 1941 into "not unreasonable" ideas in March 1943, or, more likely the Fall of 1942? If the ideas were not unreasonable, why wasn't the Mauchly memo distributed? Why didn't Brainerd ask Mauchly in for a chat to discuss how a 1000% improvement in calculating speed could be accomplished? Why wasn't Mauchly penciled into the schedule to lecture the Engineering Department on moving civilization forward with new ideas that were "not unreasonable," but instead the Department increased lectures by experts on ideas that were proven not to work? Why was the memo lost and ignored, rather than hailed and distributed? If the onset of war after December 7th, 1941, increased urgency for investigating speculative methods of improvement, then why wasn't Captain Gillon told about the memo, when the BRL contracted to use the Differential Analyzer in June, 1942, or when the Lieutenant was sent to work on-site in August in order improve production of calculating Firing Tables? If the College had ideas for accomplishing this mission that were "not unreasonable," why was the memo witheld from the Army?
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What went wrong with communication channels designed at great cost and implemented with thick volumes of operations procedures to filter out the "noise" of glitter, in order that busy people can identify the "signal" of merit that people care about for accomplishing important missions? In other words, how can people be saved from the knowledge management dilema of chasing good appearance, and ignoring merit? How then to avoid the folly of fool's gold for the next memo with a good idea. Does ENIAC present a case study for helping the next Goldstine to read the memo, and follow up?
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Goldstine states in his memoir... Mauchly and I had fairly frequent and mutually interesting conversations about computational matters during the Fall of 1942. These talks served to emphasize to me Mauchly's point about the "great gain in the speed of the calculation...if the devices which are used employ electronic means for the performance of the calculation, because the speed of such devices can be made very much higher than that of any mechanical device." ..
How, though, did Mauchly and Goldstine meet? BRL was meeting with IBM, Bell Labs, Remington, and other experts from MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, etc., on ways to increase the speed of calculating? There were seminars, pilot programs, white papers, articles and advertising in journals and magazines feverishly promoting the latest technology for high speed calculation. Goldstine was probably delivering papers at professional events, and submitting exciting articles on "The Army's vision for the future of technology." "Calculating the Army Way," and "Betting Your Life on Artillary Tables." Where would there be time to fit Mauchly into the schedule?
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Was it serendipity?
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Did Goldstine bump into Mauchly's car in the fog on the way to work? Exchanging insurance information they discovered that they worked at the same place, and so said something like... "Well, isn't it wonderful how Moore College is helping the war effort. Incidently, I have a solution in a memo that increases calculating speed by 1000%, better than IBM, Harvard, MIT, and everybody. Really? That's just what we need. Do you have the memo with you? I'd like to read it right now because this is very important. No! You sent it to your boss, Doctor Brainerd, a year ago? Good. I work closely with Professor Brainerd. Funny he hasn't mentioned it. You're sure about improving calculation by 1000%? It says that clearly in the memo? I'll talk to the professor on his assessment; but, why don't you call my secretary to schedule a meeting, so we can follow up. ..
Did Mauchly study marketing along with electrical engineering at Moore College? Did he take a sales course from Dale Carnegie, who was popular at the time with his book, How to Win Friends and Influence People, published in 1936? Carnegie recommends... Become genuinely interested in other people.
Smile.
Remember that a person's name is the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.
Talk in terms of the other person's interest.
Make the other person feel important - and do it sincerely.
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Did these methods "sell" the secretary on scheduling a meeting? Did Goldstine forget to tell his secretary that he wanted to meet with Mauchly, or did he tell the secretary he did not want a meeting? Would the secretary have then politely told Mauchly that "The Lieutenant is at Aberdeen meeting with Captain Gillon; then the two of them are going to New York to meet with IBM, then the Lieutenant continues on to Boston for meetings at MIT. So, I'm afraid he is far too busy to meet you!" Or, might she have said... "Oh, are you the gentleman that Dean Pender sent over from Bell Labs?" Did Mauchly smile and say "Well, no, but I am genuinely interested in the Army's calculating problem, and once wrote a memo on improving the work by 1000%." Did the secretary say, "Fine, why don't you give me the memo, and I'll see that the Lieutenant gets it, though I am not sure when he will be able to read it, because, with all of his meetings, correspondence has gotten pretty backed up." Did Mauchly smile again and say, "Well, the memo is lost, but I can explain everything, and I am a really good listener." Did the secretary reply "Gosh, Doctor Mauchly you have a great smile. The Lieutenant has people lined up a mile long to see him, who are really good at smiling and listening and who offer to improve the work by 1000%."
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Since Mauchly's boss, Professor Brainerd, refused to meet and discuss a memo submitted within the ordinary stream of professional work, how could a meeting be arranged between Mauchly and the Lieutenant, who had no relationship of any kind? The answer seems lost to history. The participants merely say that through some miracle the Lieutenant had extensive discussions with a professor, who had no work related basis for routine meetings.
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Goldstine, however, did meet regularly with Professor Brainerd . It would have been easy to satisfy curiosity by asking about the memo, following disclosure by Eckert. Expecting to confirm his first impression that there was no memo, or, if there was, that it was unreasonable, and not worth investigation, Goldstine may have said something like... Say, Uh, you know Pres Eckert, the grad student, who fixes the Differential Analyzer? Yeah, well, Pres was in our shop the other day working his magic on the "beast" for the umpteenth time. God, that thing is a headache!
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Anyway, I guess the pressure is getting to me, because suddenly I lost control yelling at two of our computer gals about falling behind. I said they couldn't go home an hour, early to see their husbands off to the war. We needed calculations for a Firing Table that was due weeks ago, and nobody could leave until the work was done, period! Later, when things calmed down I appoligized, and approved the time off. Adele and I pitched in, along with the trainers to take up the slack. We got the Firing Table done and the girls did the right thing by their husbands, so on, so forth. It all worked out okay.
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Anyway, young Eckert overheard this unfortuante tirade, which sort of overwhelmed everybody. The girls started crying, and then Eckert just blurted out that you, Professor Brainerd, have a memo on how to solve all these problems, and that I should be yelling at you, instead of at the girls, who were really doing the best that anyone could with the tools they had. So, you can imagine this was a bit of a mess.
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I told Eckert straight out that this was none of his business, and that this "memo" of his sounded wildly unreasonable. I said that if there was anything to it, the College would have told us, or IBM or somebody would have done something, and that I was in no mood to listen to fairy tales about 1000% improvement with electronic calculation; and, that, just like Tesla, way back when, his job was to fix the Differential Analyzer, not to involve himself in the management of the US Army. I made sure he understood in no uncertain terms and that, if he had any credible ideas, the proper channel of communication was through you, Professor Brainerd. I must have been pretty impressive, because Pres buckled down and got the Differential Analyzer going again, so we're back in business. Thank God, because we keep falling further behind!
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So, naturally I didn't place any credence in it, and don't for a minute believe that the College would be sitting on a solution, but does any of this ring a bell? Do you have a memo on solving our calculating problem? It was supposedly prepared by a Doctor Munchly, Professor Muchsomething-or-other?
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Oh, Doctor Mauchly? Yes, that sounds right. So, you really have a memo? You got it over a year ago in August, 1941. I see. You say the memo outlines technology to improve calculating speed by 1000%, and you feel that Mauchly's ideas are not unreasonable.
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I see. You performed due diligence checking the record of professional magazines and journals. You were able to find some of your notes from seminars and conferences. Oh! Really? Nobody is discussing Mauchly's ideas? The prevailing paradigm is electro-mechanical analog calculation to improve the Differential Analyzer design. You called the Navy and their experts said to go with IBM and Harvard. You called friends at IBM, Remington Rand, Bell Labs, MIT, Harvard, and they all said that Mauchly's approach is beyond reach, that it will never work, that it would be unnecessary overkill for the Army to spend time and money on it, because these "experts" already have technology that is better than what Mauchly lays out. So, as a result, you didn't distribute the memo, nor call Mauchly in to present your findings? Sure, I understand. Everybody was busy. There wasn't enough time, so why investigate a breakthrough to advance civilization with disruptive technology? Understand 1000%.
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Gosh, a year ago, before the war, I would have done the same thing. No, I don't think Captain Gillon will worry too much about the College not bringing up last June such a speculative matter as improving calculating speed by 1000%, simply because we contracted with Moore to improve our speed making calculations . You exercised your professional judgement, and that's all the Army asks.
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Did you send the memo to these experts? No? They said they didn't have time? Did you read the memo to them, so they had a rational basis to comment? Oh, they said it wasn't necessary to read the memo, because, as soon as you mentioned electronic calculation, that's when the experts said they didn't know how to make it work, and they sold you on the idea that since they couldn't do it, then a rejected physics professor teaching beginning engineering couldn't either. Boy! That's good salesmanship.
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Really! IBM invited you and the whole Department to a professional conference at their resort in Cuba? Golphing, women, liquor, sunshine, and the top experts on calculating. Well, IBM has a great marketing team. They really know how to put on a professional conference. Oh, Moore College wouldn't approve. That's too bad. Sounds like you would have really learned something.
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So, as a result of checking with experts, who said they didn't know how to use electricity to calculate 1000% faster, you were satisfied that you were originally mistaken finding that Mauchly's memo was "not unreasonable." Oh, you didn't change your mind, but couldn't do anything because you were just one small voice. Sure, I understand. Going first, sticking your neck out is tough. Understand 1000%!
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Oh. You talked it over with Dean Pender? Good. Aberdeen has the highest regard for Dean Pender. You say that the Dean was afraid that the executive committee would rebell, if the College got behind unpopular ideas that were rejected by everybody, and so he told you to just drop it, because there was no money in the budget for Computer Science, and the College wasn't ready to support such a big improvement in performance, no matter how reasonable the technology, and urgent the need? Yes, of course I understand 1000%. Mauchly's memo disrupted what the College was already doing. So, the Dean had to protect the College from disruptive technology at all costs.
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Very reasonable! The Dean pointed out to you that Mauchly was unpublished in the field of electrical engineering, and that good scholarship required extending accepted professional literature with extensive biblography and footnotes to demonstrate alignment with top minds in the field, who publish to strictist standards in the professional literature. Since Mauchly's memo had no footnotes, and the ideas for achieving 1000% improvement conflicted with popular views, and so could not rely on existing scholarship that was headed in the wrong direction, Mauchly's reasonable ideas for advancing critical work by 1000% had to be ignored and isolated in order to protect the purity of academic practice, and preserve the reputation of the Moore College of Engineering for the highest standards of scholarship.
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You did? After calling Dean Pender, you made another review of Mauchly's memo?
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Did you then change your mind?
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You called the Dean back and said that further review found that Mauchly's ideas are not unreasonable, and recommended that the Dean see for himself.
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The Dean told you that he needs more proof than the voice of one professor, and that he did not have time to review memos, because he was busy meeting with the president of the university planning curriculum to aid the war effort that needs faster ways to calculate artillary firing tables. He pointed out that the College was hoping to get a contract from the Army to use the Differential Analyzer for high speed calculations, so he did not want to confuse the Army, because nobody cares about outrageous fairy tales of non-existent and impossible technology doing calculations 1000% faster, and besides he was just one small Dean in one small college. The Dean told you not call him about this again, not to distribute the memo, nor to bring it up with others, and offered helpful career advice on being a team player.
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Well, that makes a lot of sense. Very understandable. The college had to avoid scandal and confusion of new ideas at all costs. Perfectly reasonable.
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You say that the Dean was worried that Mauchly's pioneering technology would disrupt orthordoxy. Academic text books, class lecture, seminars, magazines and periodicals, manufacturing, marketing, and sales would all have to be done over at great expense, inconvenience, and embarrassment to powerful people. He felt the best strategy was to isolate Mauchly with complete silence. The Dean cited historical examples. Galileo was isolated by the Inquisition for proposing ideas disruptive to religious doctrine. Tesla was isolated for ideas disruptive to academic and industry doctrine. Ignorance, fear and denial thwarted General Billy Mitchell's ideas on adding an air force that disrupted military doctrine. The Dean felt these precedents strongly suggest that isolation can prevent Mauchly from spreading new ideas here at Moore College. Is that about it?
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Oh. You say it was further decided to ignore the Moore College of Engineering mission statement to produce "cutting edge" science and engineering that aids the nation and advances civilization, because nobody cares about the merits of improving the work by 1000%, if there is risk of disrupting the status quo in which people had strong faith.
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So, obviously your hands were tied. There was no faith in the Mauchly memo, because it broke faith with popular methods? It simply wasn't ready for prime time, as the saying goes, because a condominium of acedemic and commercial infrastructure cannot make time to investigate ideas, tools, and methods that disrupt established practice and interests. Urgency to sustain the status quo necessarily makes "prime time" willfully blind to improvement.
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Obviously, there was nothing you could do with Mauchly's memo presenting disruptive technology. You couldn't mention it to us, when we came here in June, for fear of disrupting your career. You were told not to follow up because nobody cared about improving calculating by 1000% with an eminantly reasonable idea, as much as they cared about the safety of the status quo, and so you followed orders. Perfectly reasonable. Sure. I ran into the same thing at the University of Chicago, and at Michigan State before I was called into military service this past August.
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The Army understands 1000%.
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Dedicated professionals cannot separate signal from noise, when they are ordered to follow the clamour and glitter of the heard, and to ignore the signal that lights the path of truth. Things just fall through the cracks, when all the experts, who are trying to make a sale themselves, say an idea is unreasonable, without ever seeing the memo. Clearly, the inertia of denial takes very strong courage to lift the weight of culture bound by ignorance and fear.
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You don't say? The same attitude occurs in government agencies assigned to discover "cutting edge" ideas and promote new technology? I see. You visit these agencies with proposals for grants to do "cutting edge" research called out in the College's mission statement. Review professionals at the agencies didn't care about improving calculating by 1000%, because Mauchly's ideas are not on the list of "cutting edge" technologies approved by their experts. They suggested that proposing to make popular ideas work 10% or even 20% better is good salesmanship by showing empathy for the agencies point of view. Offering 1000% improvement is dismissed, as "too ambitious," by officials embarassed about having already approved projects touted as "ambitious" that cost a lot more money to achieve 10% or 20% improvement in methods everybody is already sure will work. Showing that care about agency "requirements" gets approval for all the money you can spend, especially by putting forward a principal investigator who has previously done research on acceptable ideas under a government grant. To extend funding, a project need merely submit a scholarly report for Phase I with lots of footnotes, and concludes that breakthroughs will be achieved with another grant for Phase II of "cutting edge" research on the list of approved ideas.
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Ummmm! You feel that my assignment here at the College, being away from the bureaucracy at Aberdeen, provides independence to evaluate the merits of ideas, regardless of whether they fit the template of popular and approved solutions. Maybe you're right. Maybe that's why I was sent here, I don't know, but our discussion today has certainly been eye opening.
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So, Mauchly, like Tesla, really had no one with whom he could collaborate to refine and advance the acedemic underpinnings of his memo here at the College. Yes. Of course, I agree. The power of Mauchly's faith from having invested a lifetime to discover a powerful solution has been turned against him. Since, the inventor cannot speak for the invention, noted by Socrates, denial completely isolates the inventor. Soon, isolation of the "Genie in a Bottle." turns colleagues, friends, even family against what seems a hopeless journey. Give up, quit, fall in line is the common prayer of a "team player" which only the perseverence of Prometheus can overcome driven by faith in the power of truth. Such a formula for madness, where irresistable truth collides with immovable bureaucracy, yields only silence in a "bottle" of ignorance, fear, and denial. Eventually, even the most friendly, warm hearted, and kindly "Genie" is transformed into an angry, cold hearted, and disrespectful disposition? (see Deming reported April 26, 1995)
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If reasonable ideas are not considered in good faith, what sustains the long, weary march of transformation? How is faith in methods and tools that are outdated and don't work very well, put aside long enough for people to gain experience that grows faith in a new way of working? When experts, educators, regulators, and manufacturers are getting by expending endless effort writing books, articles, attending seminars, collaborating and investing money on dead ends, what force of nature yields good faith review of seminal ideas that are not unreasonable? Since people like to work on familiar things in familiar ways (see again Andy Grove), is it only a mistake that opens the "bottle" to release the power of truth? Fortunately, Mauchly was being paid for teaching, but the strategy of isolation prevented discussing his ideas, so they were effectively hidden in plain sight simply by ignoring the memo.
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Incidentally, did you get the memo from Captain Gillon on our recent field trip? We visited IBM, Harvard, and a bunch of places to see their technology and hear their ideas on what they have on the drawing boards? You did? Good! So, you know that we struck out. They have interesting technology, but are talking about 10%, 20%, 50%, in one case 100% improvement in various analog technologies. But, there are no guarentees any of it will work. When we met with Mr. Watson, the Chairman of IBM, he told us about a teacher from out in Iowa, a Professor Atanasoff, I think. Atanasoff offered to teach IBM his technology using electronics somehow or another to improve the speed of calculating by 1000%. But nobody cared. IBM said they didn't need help from anybody in Iowa, and they didn't have any requirements for calculating with electronics, because it would never work, they didn't have enough time, didn't want to learn, so on, so forth, just as the university told you about Mauchly's memo.
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Captain Gillon is following up to contact Atanasoff, but the bottom line is that Watson told us the Army would have to pay for a big project like the Navy has at Harvard, just to find out if we can get marginal improvement. Well, the Army always feels it can beat the Navy. If the Navy can spend a lot of money to build a computer, we can build a better one. However, the demonstrations we saw from the leading experts were unremarkable. Nobody can come close to 1000% improvement.
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Anyway, that's why I'm here today. The 1000% improvement that Watson mentioned in the technology proposal they turned down at IBM, that got me to thinking about what Eckert said was in the memo to you. It could just be conicidence, but I wonder if its the same technology? You know -- simple switches and circuitry to calculate at the speed of electricity, instead of the slow poke gears, axels, and wheels we have on the Differential Analyzer, and what we saw the Navy and IBM are doing with the Harvard Mark 1.
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So, I just wanted to see if there is a memo, and if there is a reasonable basis to ignore it, or to look into it. As you know, I rely heavily on your judgement. So, since you feel that Mauchly's memo is not unreasonable, if it's not too much trouble, can I see it? The memo I mean. Can I please see Mauchly's memo?
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Oh, you lost the memo? Can't find it anywhere? I see; you say that "filing" is a sore subject around here! Well, that certainly solves the problem that Dean Pender wanted to avoid at all costs. Guess you can't distribute a memo, if you can't find it. ..
Some form of discussion occurred for Lieutenant Goldstine to request Mauchly's memo. Another scenario that fits the record is that Brainerd called Eckert into this office, and asked him to mention the memo to Goldstine, in order to launch an inquiry into a set of ideas that the College could not officially support, but that were not unreasonable, and so should be considered. Equally, Dean Pender might have chatted with Doctor Brainerd along the same lines. Even Doctor Veblen, who had gone to the trouble of pulling Goldstine off of a troop ship, and placing him in the line of fire calculating Firing Tables, might well have placed calls to either, or both, Pender and Brainerd, so that the prospects of inventing the most profound technology in human history did not rest entirely on the shoulders of a student's chance remarks about hurt feelings.
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When Goldstine learned the memo was lost, ordinarily the matter would have ended. The Lieutenant and Professor Mauchly worked in separate worlds. There was not enough time to meet expanding requirements of war, much less think about far fetched ideas in a lost memo. Goldstine, and his chain of command, certainly knew that technology merely at the memo stage would not be available to solve immediate and urgent problems, nor any problems, at least for a year or more. This fact lends further credence to the chances that larger forces were at work. Army Ordnance wanted to build a computer, i.e., meaning Veblen, and it was just a question of how to move the machinery of military bureaucracy. As with Tesla and Westinghouse half-a-century earlier, fortune smiled again with the confluence of Mauchly, Eckert, and Goldstine.
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Since Goldstine's memoirs relate extensive discussions with Doctor Mauchly, he obviously took the next step and had a meeting. Perhaps Mauchly's PhD in physics helped forge an academic bond by discussing mathematics at Goldstine's doctorate level. Mauchly may have made a good impression with stronger command of the subject than Goldstine encountered at IBM, Harvard, MIT, etc., in searching for technology to calculate Firing Tables. He may, also, have been impressed by Mauchly's commitment to a novel solution by interrupting his career in mid-stream to take a course in electronics, and most importantly by the fact that Mauchly's memo was based on a prototype that had been built at Iowa State College.
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As a result, he asked Mauchly to take another look for his copy of the memo. Mauchly's secretary found her shorthand notes from the original dictation, and was able to reconstruct most of the memo originally prepared on August 15, 1941.
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Lieutenant Goldstine then read the memo. He expended cognitive overhead to invest intellectual capital learning about a new field of computer technology that he, and Mauchly, and Eckert were about to invent.
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Mauchly proposed an electronic digital computer with thousands of vacuum tubes that could perform calculations at the speed of electricity using logic gate circuits configured with Eccles-Jordon design that, unlike the Differential Analyzer, could be programmed to perform a variety of tasks. Goldstine recognized that this was a general solution not only for ballistics calculations, but for scientific research.
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But, was it wildly beyond reach, a mere theoretical pondering? Since there was no technology to implement the ideas, Mauchly's objectives would have to be designed de novo, and constructed entirely on speculation without any assurance of success. He and Captain Gillon had found the same state of affairs at IBM, Harvard, and so on, as he had related to Doctor Brainerd, but Goldstine appreciated the difference between paying a lot of money for 10% or even 100% improvement, and reaching for 1000% improvement. Was this a gamble worth taking? Should he invest more time, or drop it, as Moore College had done the year before, in 1941? Such a decision likely required support from BRL in Aberdeen for Goldstine to clear his schedule and allocate time for "extensive" meetings with Mauchly in order to learn enough about the design of an electronic digital computer that justified spending a lot of money. At least Captain Gillon, and likely, Doctor Veblen, therefore, knew fairly early and supported this investment of time for cognitive overhead in the late Fall of 1942. Goldstine further hints at this arrangement from interviews relating that, when a formal proposal was finally submitted the following May, 1943, the deal was already wired.
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Goldstine knew that televisions coming into production at that time used about 30 tubes, and failed regularly. His mathematical skills calculated that the risks (18,000 tubes meant 1.8 billion chances to fail) seemed hopeless, so he had no faith in such a project, without investing time for cognitive overhead to study. Would ignorance, fear and denial foreclose investigation, or would the Westinghouse solution prevail by adding knowledge that turns ignorance and fear into faith?
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It all depended on Mauchly! Who was he? Why did he think this would work? Was Professor Brainerd correct that the Mauchly design had a reasonable chance to succeed; or, were the experts correct that it would never work? Was this a repeat of alphabet technology, and democracy? Would it take 1,000 years to discover the truth. Or was the Tesla model at hand? Was it in their power to discover Mauchly's truth within a year or so, as Tesla's truth was discovered at Niagara Falls? With the brashness of youth, Goldstine pressed the inquiry, perhaps with the silent urging of his mentor, Oswald Veblen, wispering in his ear... "Don't give up! Bliss found you, and trained you up, and I brought you here to engage ideas that advance civilization! Such, a rare, precious thing giving life to new knowedge. This is your chance. Sieze this moment! Ask a question. Ask Mauchly how to accomplish results that everybody says are impossible. Just ask!" ..
As a result, Mauchly became an increasing part of the Lieutenant's schedule for the next six months. In long, deep discussions, the Lieutenant learned...
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John W. Mauchly was born on August 30, 1907. He earned a PhD in physics at Johns Hopkins University, and then taught physics at Ursinus College near Philadelphia from 1933 to 1941. Ambition to work hard and excell was inspired at home by Mauchly's father, who had taught high school science to pay for an education, receiving a PhD in physics. The senior Mauchly made several inventions that brought professional recognition, career advancement, and an upper middle class life for his family. Sudden death of his father in 1928, encouraged Mauchly to change course, switching from undergraduate studies in electrical engineering, to pursue instead a career in basic science.
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Making good on a pledge to his dying father, Mauchly obtained a doctorate in physics. However, he was stung by rejection of employment at the Carnegie Institute, where his father had come to prominence with many years of service. The man who had been the senior Mauchly's boss at the time of his death, wrote to young Mauchly and his wife, Mary, at Johns Hopkins University on April 16, 1932 saying there were no vacancies, and "With kind regards to you and Mrs. Mauchly, in which your friends here cordially join, I am... Very truly yours... John A. Fleming, Acting Director." If you cannot get hired during a depression at a place where you have "friends," and where your father had been a "star," then prospects were indeed grim. One can only speculate on whether Fleming had issues with Mauchly's father, perhaps eminating from an overshadowing prominence. Why not invite Mauchly for an interview, forward his resume with recommendation to another department at the Carnegie Institute, and to contacts at the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation, Harvard, MIT, et al. Grim prospects and economic realities eventually forced Mauchly to take a position at a small liberal arts school, where he was a one man department, teaching introductory physics. While this assignment provided for his family, Mauchly was completely without resources for research to advance in his field and live up to his father's legacy of invention and prominence.
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After three years of unsuccessful struggle to grow the budget for the Physics Department at Ursinus College, Mauchly realized he needed to work with professionals in a purely research setting. To remedy this problem, in 1936 Mauchly swallowed his pride and took a summer-time assignment as "temporary assistant physicst and computer" at the Carnegie Institute in the Department of Terristrial Magnetism (DTM). This was a clerical position crunching numbers with a hand-crank calculator. Mauchly worked for his father's former supervisor, Doctor John A. Fleming, who had turned down Mauchly's application for full-time employment in 1932, and had previously supervised the senior Mauchly, prior to untimely death in 1928. This history presents a curiosity about working relations and agendas, given Mauchly's soaring credentials with a PhD in physics hired for clerical assistance.
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Mauchly reportedly took liberties by working outside his official assignment, making good on his objective to work in a professional research setting. He made friends, and eventually began to unofficially collaborate with other physicists on extending his father's original work -- examining dirunal variations in the earth's magnetic field. After three (3) summers of this "computer" regimen working for Fleming, and, also, doing research "below the radar," in 1939 Mauchly submitted a paper for publication in the Journal of Terrestrial Magnetism and Atmospheric Electricity, which was published by DTM and edited by his boss, Doctor Fleming.
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Mauchly's paper was rejected. Fleming's review questioned Mauchley's credentials, and criticized insufficient data for reaching broad conclusions about the ionosphere.
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To pursue publication of his work, Mauchly turned to meterology, where there is ample data published in the public domain by the US Weather Bureau, and which could be routinely accessed from his full-time position teaching physics at Ursinus College. He, also, studied statistics and collaborated with prominent academics at Princeton and Columbia, leading to recognition that his work at DTM on multivariate statistics was original. As a result, in about 1940 he was able to get an article published in the Journal of Terrestrial Magnetism and Atmospheric Electricity, and a related piece was published in the Annals of Mathematical Statistics.
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Concurrent with gaining professional recognition, Mauchly invested time for invention and innovation. He developed a household thermostat, leading to an idea for improving precision of industrial controls. Mauchly invented an electronic harmonic analyzer to study irregularities in weather, and demonstrated his technology at the December 1940 annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Earlier that year, Mauchly had attended the Fall conference of the American Mathematical Society held at Dartmouth College. He saw a demonstration of an electromagnetic relay calculator invented by George Stibitz at Bell Labs. This machine calculated complex numbers for controlling telephone switching equipment. Mauchly saw that similar principles could be applied to calculate sums of squares and cross-products for statistical analysis. He formed ideas for technology to perform these advanced calculations needed to advance his research in meterology.
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Mauchly was therefore ready to discuss the new and, as yet, arcane field of electronic digital computers when John V. Atanasoff introduced himself following Mauchly's lecture at the AAAS event, and told him about the ABC calculator he was assembling at Iowa State College. which used a unique electronic digital design for performing linear equations.
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Mauchly listened intently to Atanasoff's explanation of calculation with binary mathematics using electrical circuits controlled by vacuum tubes. The ABC device was much faster than existing electro-mechanical devices, just as Shannon had proposed in 1937 for improving the Differential Analyzer. Mauchly may have begun to sense at that moment that high speed calculation would significantly advance his work in meterology, and would be valuable across a broad range of scientific and engineering research. Following the chance meeting at the AAAS conference, Mauchly corresponded with Atanasoff to encourage completion of the ABC aparatus. Atanasoff's reply led to a continuing exchange of letters that increased Mauchly's understanding of digital calculation with electricity.
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This experience prepared Mauchly to make a major change in his life. He was obviously thinking seriously about electrical engineering, when a letter dated May 14, 1941 arrived for the Chairman of the Physics Department at Ursinus College. Knox Mcllwain, Director of Defense Training at the Moore College of Engineering within the University of Pennsylvania, said... We are planning to run a special Summer School at the Moore School of Electrical Engineering this year in connection with the Defense Program.
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Surveys have shown there is a serious, if not critical, lack of trained engineers available to industry to effectuate the industrial mobilization required in the time available. Some surveys put this lack as high as 40,000 men. In any case there is a terrible demand for engineers and the pressure on this group is very serious. All of our men this June have had a plurality of offers.
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On the other hand, we hear reports that the mathematics and physics graduates are not finding as great a demand for their services. One object of this letter is to verify this rumor. Our thought was that by taking trained mathematicians and physicists and giving them a ten week's dose of concentrated electrical engineering we could put them in position to enter engineering departments in factories as assistants. Their broad prospective and thorough training should enable them to win a full time engineering job within a very short time.
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Any student who has a Bachelor's degree or a higher degree in Mathematics or Physics will be admitted to this course. The course will also be open to a senior student in Mathematics or Physics upon recommendation of the Head of his Department. It will be expected that this latter group of students will return to their respective departments in the fall and complete their work for the degree in that Department.
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The course would consist of four classes each day. Electric Circuit Theory, Electrical Measurements, Electronics, and an option between Electrical Machinery and Electrical Communication. Since these men would not be as familiar with machinery as the usual engineering graduate, it would be planned to have them in laboratory every afternoon. The courses would be taught in the main by our regular faculty and would in general cover the electrical subjects given to our regular four year course insofar as would be possible in the time available. ..
Though the letter was aimed at Mauchly's students, at age 34, he decided to enroll in the course himself. Going to Summer School, with a PhD in physics already in hand, to take a beginning course in electrical engineering offered a chance to learn more about fundamentals for electronic calculating, and to search for collaborators who shared this interest. Mauchly's application was a surprise to Mcllwain, but he accepted Mauchly into the program underwritten by the government, and which some accounts describe as Engineering, Science, and Management War Training (ESMWT).
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One of Mauchly's instructors at Moore College was J. Presper Eckert, a graduate student working on his masters degree. Eckert taught the lab work described in Mcllwain's letter. Mauchly was not the only student in the course with a PhD degree. Mcllwain's sales pitch had been effective. Of the 30 students, over half had doctorates. Eckert, as a masters student, at first, felt misplaced and awkward teaching students with PhD degrees. Ordinarily both teacher and students would have protested. In the spirit of war parparations, everyone ignored differences in academic standing and age, which in peace time present emotional and often fatal social barriars of protocol.
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Eckert proved to be a good teacher, as well as a top student in the electrical engineering graduate program. He was further pleased to find that Mauchly shared an interest in electronic calculators, which Eckert had studied as an emerging field, and was excited about from having been hired part-time to help assemble and work on the Differential Analyzer at the College. It turned out that much of the material covered in the Lab class, was already familiar to Mauchly from teaching Physics at Ursirus College. He therefore had time during class to chat with Eckert about calculators. Though 12 years older, Mauchly drew on Eckert's engineering training through extended discussion of principles for an electronic calculator. Eckert discovered that Mauchly, though as yet untrained in electrical engineering, had formed insights about designing technology that seemed far more powerful than anything being discussed in the popular literature and professional conferences.
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Progress on his goals led Mauchly to stay on at Moore College to teach the same course to a rapidly growing wartime enrollment. He moved to full professorship filling in to teach basic electrical engineering when permenant faculty were reassigned to war research, as noted in Mcllwain's letter. The decision to abandon his position teaching physics at Ursinus College placed Mauchly in an environment at the Moore College of Engineering where there was academic potential for improving calculators, and where students coming through the program, like Eckert, provided energy and interest in advancing this new field.
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Correspondence with Professor Atanasoff at Iowa State College, also, continued, leading to an invitation for Mauchly to visit the College and see the ABC computer. On June 13, 1941 Mauchly drove to Ames, Iowa. He stayed at Atanosoff's home for four days, returning on June 18th. Atanasoff took Mauchly to the College and introduced his partner, Clifford Berry. Mauchly examined the ABC computer over several days, observing operations, and discussing the design with Atanasoff's small staff. Mauchly, also, read through at least parts of a 35 page document on the design and use of the ABC computer.
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Upon his return to Moore College, Mauchly prepared a memo on August 15, 1941 to capture what had been learned from his trip, and synthesize, organize, and expand prior and subsequent research on constructing an electronic digital computer. The memo was titled The Use of High-Speed Vacuum Tube Devices for Calculation. Mauchly described increasing the speed of calculation more than 1000 times by using electricity to replace electro-mechanical methods. Not only was electrical calculation faster, vaccumb tubes and connection wires would be much cheaper to buy and easier to assemble than heavy gears, wheels, and axles in the Differential Analyzer. Mauchly outlined differences between analog and digital design that introduced benefits of a general purpose computer programmed with instruction sets for a variety of calculating tasks.
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Analog computers used vacuum tubes to amplify current that coincides with, i.e., is an analog of, the speed of specific functions, for example elements of artillary trajectory calculated with the Differential Analyzer.
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Digital design uses vacuum tubes simply to set logic gate switches on or off (see Tesla); numbers are constructed with the Eccles-Jordon circuit in binary or decimal base, and manipulated with instructions to perform mathematics of any kind. The ability to program a digital computer with instructions to carry out a broad range of functions is a significant advantage that was not then fully in view, but would revolutionize technology with the advent of personal computers beginning about 40 years later.
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Mauchly discussed the memo with the engineering contact he had made, while taking the course on Electrical Engineering. Eckert indicated that using thousands of vacuum tubes presented significant reliability risks, but that he could solve the problem with quality control using good engineering. He proposed specifying high quality tubes, and reducing the voltage to well below product design limits would meet requirements for extended operational use.
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A secretary typed the memo from shorthand notes dictated by Mauchly, who, without realizing, nor intending, presented a biographical instrument that had accumulated and synthesized the precise knowledge for constructing an electronic digital computer that would make calculating faster by continuing orders of magnitude, and, as a result, one day revolutionize writing, drawing, design, communications, and the whole of knowledge construction, due to the speed and flexibility of programmable digital design.
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Professor Mauchly submitted the memo to his boss for distribution and comment, perhaps aimed toward publication. But, Doctor Brainerd took no action. The memo was not distributed inside nor outside of Moore College and the wider University of Pennsylvania community of scholars. The memo was not returned with rejection due to some alleged defect, as Mauchly's prior boss, Doctor Fleming, had done two years earlier in 1939 at the Carnegie Institute. There was no request for additions and corrections, for example, adding footnotes. There was no meeting to explore opportunities; not even a courtesy call from Brainerd saying he had the memo and would make a review in due time. There was only deafening silence, as if the memo never existed, or was so unreasonable and lacking in merit as to be beneath notice. This was precisely the opposite of what was true, and what Brainerd believed to be true. Like Tesla, Mauchly's truth was hidden in plain sight by the silence of a Genie in a Bottle.
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There is no record of Mauchly following up either. Silence dissipates the strongest will, even as truth gains power that cannot be contained. Perhaps communication was handled through third parties. Under the circumstances, Brainderd might have been embarrassed to contact Mauchly directly. An intermediary professor may have passed the word that the College did not have time for futile pursuit of impossible dreams, as Tesla's professor told him in 1880. Mauchly may been alerted to Dean Pender's views on career advantages of a team player. Getting "on board" is the path to getting ahead.
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At that time, in 1941 government experts, and leading scientists and engineers at IBM, Harvard, MIT, Bell Labs, and everybody, who was somebody in calculator technology, endorsed analog, electro-mechanical devices. The Differential Analyzer was the dominate design developed at MIT in 1933 by Vannevar Bush. In August 1941, Doctor Bush had very high credibility as the Dean of Engineering at MIT, and inventor of the most advanced calculator technology. The year before, on June 27, 1940 President Roosevelt appointed Bush chairman of new National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) for identifying technologies to prepare for America's entry into World War II, already raging in Europe and Asia.
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Budget committees readily approved acquisition of technology developed by the president's appointee to the hightest technology position in the land. How can anything be better than that? A technology 1000% better just seemed beyond reach, an impossible dream, which conveniently justified ignoring outrageous claims without the bother to investigate. Any excuse to avoid the burden of cognitive overhead is always a welcome relief. On the other hand, if a technology was really 1000% better, then people might complain that prior approvals had been rash and irresponsible. A threat to personal credibility threatens job security. Protecting credibility of professional standing required educators, professors, and College management to ignore professional standards by ignoring the merits of Mauchly's memo. They simply said that the credibility of a professor of first year electrical engineering proposing 1000% improvement was rash and irresponsible compared to credentials of the chairman of the National Defense Research Committee and Dean of Engineering at MIT. Case closed. Laziness and insecurity are a powerful one-two punch. Everybody understood 1000%.
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Like Tesla, Mauchly could not even give away his secret. The Emporer who wore no clothes was again leading the parade. "Electro-mechanical and analog paradigms for calculating technology dominated academic, industrial, and governmental minds in the 1930s, just as direct current dominated electrical utilities in the 1880s. There was no distribution channel for the Mauchly memo, because Moore College did not have requirements for computer design. Nobody did. The entire culture was willfully blind, inoculated by incestuous reinforcement of faith in a fiction that was impenetrable by truth.
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In August 1941, there was no faith in digital design. Without faith, progress could not even begin on 1000% improvement for calculating technology, just as Mitchell encountered in 1921 for improving military fire power with an air force, Aiken in 1939, and Atanasoff in 1940, along with countless others down through the ages. Everyone is afraid to go first. Like Tesla in 1883, Mauchly discovered that few have the courage to let the Genie Out of the Bottle, for a great many reasons unrelated to merit, as noted by Dean Pender. Investing a little time for cognitive overhead overcomes ignorance, fear, and denial, but nobody has time to investigate faith in the dominant paradigm. It presents an insoluable Knowledge Management dilemma. (see Prometheus and Galileo, Westinghouse, Edison and Tesla)
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Having crystalized in his memo understandings drawn from the visit to Iowa, on September 30, 1941, Mauchly wrote a cordial letter of appreciation to Atanasoff, which said: "A number of different ideas have come to me recently about computing circuits--some of which are more or less hybrids, combining your methods with other things, and some of which are nothing like your machine. The question in my mind is this: Is there any objection, from your point of view, to my building some sort of computer which incorporates some of the features of your machine?" ..
Mauchly did not attach a copy of his memo outlining an electronic digital computer for comment by his collaborator, and gracious host at Iowa State College. Nor did he mention having prepared a memo toward building the machine, for which he asks permission to use features from the ABC computer. Clearly, though in September, 1941, Doctor John Mauchly believed he was ready to build an electronic digital computer.
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War soon intruded on December 7, 1941, washing away all peripheral considerations. Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor launched a frenzy of mass mobilization for the largest military buildup in history. Mauchly, like Atanasoff, was forced to set aside personal ambitions to create an electronic calculator. Daily news of Germany and Japan advancing throughout the world made people forget everything else. Reports of Japan shelling the West coast, and German U-boats mining East coast harbors, and sinking American ships created a totally focused wartime mentality. There was little emotional capital and no time to fiddle with mere musings, for which there was no technology, no requirements, and no funding. Since Mauchly was already working on priorty wartime activity to teach electrical engineering, he remained at Moore College ramping up production for war.
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Mauchly's memo prepared in August, 1941, with great enthusiasm and care to outline what was to become one of the most significant technological advances in history, got lost in the fog of war. Doctor Brainerd lost his copy, and Mauchly lost the only other copy, underscoring that in August 1941, nobody cared about faster calculations enough to file the documents. The dream therefore survived only through word-of-mouth pollenation by students, at least by one graduate student.
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This thinnest of threads would weave the frabric of change in October 1942, when enabling forces at last slipped into alignment for technology to rise above the horizon of settled knowledge.
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The last cog of alignment was Lieutenant Goldstine posted to the BRL Annex in September 1942. Located 75 miles away from the spotlight of command Goldstine was largely an independent operator. He was without the usual protections of organizational procedures designed, at great expense, and through centuries of trial and error, to prevent communications from penetrating the daily work stream from outside proper channels, from incredible sources, and for incredible solutions. In this case, a memo to improve the work by 1000% fit all the criteria for ignoring unwelcome, intrusions which clerical staff and the full panalopy of hierarchial commanders typically filter out so that daily work focuses like a laser on acceptable ideas and approved tasks.
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Alone and adrift from cultural moorings for safe harbor, when desperate people took desperate measures, the Lieutenant could not escape notice of Mauchly's memo blurted out by accident. Only a mistake could slip through robust protections against new ideas. One, of only two people, who had worked on the memo a year earlier, also, happened to be working with the Lieutenant for reasons unrelated to the memo, and under circumstances which, through further coincidence unrelated to finding better calculating technology, routinely presented opportunity for disclosure, despite lack of standing and solicitation. Since Eckert was not in the military and had not been indoctrinated in proper protocol, truth transcended the usual defenses in government, education, law, health care, industry, the whole of existence.
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With protections breeched by mistake, notice was still without standing and credibility. Ordinarily unsolicited communication with dubious credentials is dismissed and forgotten. Why did Goldstine bother to follow up in this case, given his busy schedule?
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Since Goldstine met with Brainerd regularly, perhaps several times a week, if not daily, and since the main topic was increasing production calculating Firing Tables, and since Brainderd was the only recipient of the memo, and since Goldstine controlled the agenda, it took almost no effort and no time to simply ask about a memo issued a year earlier. Goldstine required no permission, and, unlike Brainerd, had no interests at stake. There was no risk of reprimand, rebuke, nor reprisal for asking a simple question directly related to the BRL mission. Since Goldstine and his boss, Captain Gillon, had made field trips to inquire about calculating technology, and learned that a year or so earlier IBM had rejected a proposal that sounded similar to the Mauchly memo, this coincidental alignment increased curiosity enough to ask Brainerd about Mauchly's memo.
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Goldstine might have talked this over by telephone with his boss, Captain Gillon. If the Captain had said don't bother Professor Brainerd about a phantom memo, then ENIAC might have ended before it began. Gillon could have said that he attended a class a week earlier sponsored by Army HQ and their experts said that vacuum tube calculation will never work, so don't bother the College about it. He could have said that he has a lot of confidence in Professor Brainerd. If there was anything to it, then Brainerd and Dean Pender would surely have mentioned the memo when the Army hired the College in June. Alternatively, Gillon might have missed the class by the calculation exerts, while he and Goldstine were visiting Watson at IBM in New York. He could have said... You know its quite a coincidence talking about the same type of technology approach, and presented about the same time last year. So, when you see Brainerd, go ahead and ask to see the memo. It can't hurt to read through it. It'll make Veblen happy. He likes that kind of thing. ..
Whether or not such discussion occurred between Goldstine and Gillon, with zero effort and zero risk, Goldstine was empowered to learn that Brainerd received a memo from Doctor Mauchly in August 1941, and that Mauchly's proposal for high speed calculation was not unreasonable. Having discovered a memo existed, Goldstine's high confidence in Doctor Brainered then justified asking to see the memo. When it turned out that the memo was lost, desperation to solve a growing problem combined with confidence in Professor Brainerd, and further combined with results of the trip to IBM, led the Lieutenant to request that the memo be reconstructed from shorthand notes of the original dictation, i.e., in for a penny, in for a pound!
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When the Lieutenant learned the student had been correct saying the proposal was to increase calculating speed by 1000%, his expertise in mathematics quickly calculated this met Army requirements for preparing Firing Tables in time to win the war. The memo further presented methods that were flatly opposed by every academic, industry, and government expert. But, Goldstine did not know that!
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Goldstine had not been inoculated by the prevailing paradigm against new ideas in calculation technology. Brainderd had said that Mauchly's design was not unreasonable, and that experts did not have time to read the memo nor the expertise to implement it. Goldstine had not received indoctrination from years of seminars and conferences nor from reading journals and articles with learned opinion that Mauchly's ideas on calculation technology should not be considered. He was not an expert in electrical engineering. Unlike Professor Brainerd, Lieutenant Goldstine's boss had not told him to avoid Mauchly's memo. The Army may have had classes at Aberdeen, where "experts" warned commanders to ignore, fear, and deny viability of electronic digital design for calculation, as Atanasoff encountered in the Navy. Goldstine co-located at Moore College, 75 miles away, missed the usual classes on Army doctrine to follow the prevailing paradigm.
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Relative independence and isolation from Army bureaucracy, in addition to very short time in service of only three months to that point, denied Goldstine a financial, emotional, academic, institutional, or career stake in rejecting Mauchly's memo out of hand. His focus was solely to improve calculating speed for accomplishing the BRL mission to help win the war.
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Goldstine's confidence in Professor Brainerd, who violated direct orders in speaking truth to power, was momentous. Brainerd saying the memo was not unreasonable. despite non-compliance with accepted scholarship practices and doctrine, broke through barriars that filter out communications on technologies which are disruptive and inconvenient to established interests. Brainerd gave Goldstine rationale, courage and curiosity to read the memo under exigent circumstances of paramount need for the solution in the memo. The fact that Brainerd was the Lieutenant's routine and primary contact with the College, with whom he regularly met, and whose opinion he respected, and happened, also, to have been the one person, who a year earlier had been the sole recipient of the only copy of the memo to be distributed, and that he possessed the courage to act at the crucial moment, seems to have been simply a lucky circumstance for the nation and future generations.
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Under these circumstances, Goldstine could not have "known" that he was supposed to reject Mauchly's memo without good faith review, so he found a way to insert time into his crowded schedule to read it.
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Goldstine read the memo with an open mind. He had not been inoculated against Mauchly's ideas because, like Westinghouse considering Tesla's ideas in 1887, he was totally ignorant of expertise that self-perpetuated widely held paradigms sustained only by incestuous fiction that religiously maintained the status quo for income, standing, and doctrine. Also, like Westinghouse, Goldstine was not ignorant about evaluating ideas. He had a PhD in that field. He was expert in rigorous "analysis" for determining the truth or falsity of mathematical propositions. Professor Bliss had taught Goldstine at the University of Chicago to review the record, read the memo, study, then calculate conclusions, rather than conform to fashion
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These conditions forged powerful positive synergy of enabling forces.
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Unlike Brainerd, who had many good reasons not to meet with Mauchly a year earlier, that aligned perfectly with IBM and the Navy refusing to meet with Atanasoff , Goldstine had many good reasons to meet with Mauchly. Goldstine's expertise identified opportunity in the memo for performing mathematics that solved special problems of ballistics, which he had a duty to solve. He knew present capabilities were inadequate. His training in mathematics complemented Mauchly's research in electronic digital computers. He could collaborate to improve Mauchly's ideas for mathematical calculation, rather than compete with attitude over who knew the most about building a computer.
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Ignorance that led to reading Mauchly's memo, thereby allowed expertise to break through barriars simply by calling Mauchly in for a meeting to discuss improvement and deployment, rather than tossing the memo in the "circular file" of silence, as occurred a year earlier, and everywhere else that truth came knocking. Since he was not being ordered to attend endless meetings on extraneous matters that fill up time in organizational culture, making everybody too busy to investigate improvement, Lieutenant Goldstine was able to make time to seek out and meet with Mauchly and Eckert on numerous occassions separately and together over a span of weeks and months. Mauchly explained the mathematics of a digital computer and that this could be achieved by improving and scaling up the prototype he had seen in Iowa. Goldstine began to contribute on refining Mauchly's initial outline into a feasibility design supported with mathematics. The synergy of collaboration placed Goldstine in the role of applying his training and expertise to solve an important problem, rather than a defensive posture of denial to avoid having to make a decision and suffer criticism from superiors for wasting time and spending money. As if Professor Veblen was whispering in his ear, "I brought you here to solve this problem," Goldstine took up the challenge to change the meaning of "computer".
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Collaboration combined expertise in mathematics and physics, with knowledge of design drawn from the Atanasoff computer, and extended by Mauchly's independent research, analysis, and imagination, and further supported by Eckert's engineering training, albeit largely unproven at that time. Goldstine became satisfied that Eckert's plan to reduce the failure of vacuum tubes seemed sufficiently plausable to justify attempting the project in order to meet requirements for better accuracy and speed calculating ballistic firing tables. This was supported by the absence of other alternatives. There is nothing in the record indicating broader or general use for a computer, beyond performing complex calculations. The Army needed better calculation, and Mauchly's outline showed that the Moore College of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania might be able to meet that need by building a digital computer.
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All that remained was for Goldstine to gain faith in the prospects of pulling off a "billion to one" shot. Were Mauchly and Eckert reaching too far? Why, for example, hadn't Howard Aiken, Harvard, IBM, MIT, Bell Labs, or the Navy produced an electronic digital computer? Why was everybody else ignoring digital and instead working on analog computers? On the other hand, could the Army leapfrog the Navy's efforts to accomplish breakthrough technology to solve an immediate problem for the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL), and, also, open the door for future scientific research?
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Faith was severely tested, when Lieutenant Goldstine and his boss, Captain Gillon, asked government "experts" about Mauchly's memo proposing an electronic digital calculator using vacuum tubes for logic gates to perform mathematics. They met with agencies assigned to seek out, find, and evaluate new technologies for the war effort.... At the beginning, Paul Gillon and I decided we would try to get opinions from the [National Defense Research Committee (NDRC), and the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD)]. In the first place, they thought analog computing was the way to go. They said digital computing is "for the birds, everything is analog, and 18,000 vacuum tubes is preposterous. There ain't such an animal ever been built and it will never work." So that was the learned opinion of those people. ( Herman Goldstine, interview November 13, 1996, for 50th anniversary of ENIAC ) ..
Ordinarily, due diligence ends at the beginning, when busy people encounter rejection from experts. However, despite official rejection in October - November 1942 aligning with Professor Brainerd's research in August of 1941, the Lieutenant made independent assessment by investing time for cognitive overhead. There is nothing in the record on Goldstine's calculas that cleared his schedule from the crushing burden of calls, meetings, travel, documents, and discussion that otherwise eliminate time to think about ideas and solutions totally discredited by learned opinions of experts and officials. How did the Lieutenant avoid becoming lost in irrelevancies of "noise" in the mainstream and instead follow the clarion call of the "signal" from Mauchly, as occurs everyday on the job (see Kissinger, and Brainerd
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In the early part of 1943, Goldstine discussed the prospect of the Army building a computer with his boss. Captain Gillon realized there would be resistance to such a speculative project, but, like Goldstine, he saw benefits of high speed calculations for tasks in scientific research, which the BRL was being asked to prform at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. He therefore told Goldstine to discuss the Mauchly outline with management at the College, and in the meantime, he would sound out people up the chain of command to build interest in the project.
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Lieutenant Goldstine met with Professor Brainerd, who would be responsible for supervising the College's contribution, if the project was approved. Brainerd supported Eckert's assessment that reliability issues could be solved, and offered ideas for preparing a proposal. Brainerd then took Goldstine to meet with Dean Harold Pender to present considerations for the College to construct a computer for the Army. Brainerd sketched his ideas for a proposal to the BRL, and Goldstine gave assurances that he would sponsor the proposal through the procurement process, and in fact had begun discussions with Captain Gillon, who was receptive. Dean Pender gave a "thumbs up."

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Brainerd, Goldstine, Mauchly, and Eckert then formed a project committee to prepare a proposal. Lieutenant Goldstine's memories set out their thinking at that time... I think it was Eckert and Mauchly with help from Brainerd, who put the proposal together. What I did was to get the idea across to them that if they could make a proposal, I felt confident I could sell it to Paul Gillon. And with Paul's help, Oswald Veblen was going to be a cinch. Veblen believed in people rather than in projects, and he had a lot of confidence that we would do it.
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[In the early part of 1943] I think it was Pres Eckert's [24th] birthday. We were driving down from Philadelphia with a proposal, with Pres and John Mauchly in the back seat, writing away to get this thing put together. We got there, and I felt confident that it was to be a fait accompli, no matter what the University personnel were going to do. One had to go through these formalities, though, and there were Leslis Simon and Oswald Veblen representing BRL, and there was Brainerd with his two young men. The presentations went on and finally Veblen, who was sitting with his feet up on the table leaning back, bounced forward, stood up, and said, "Simon, give Goldstine the money."
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Yes, I think it was kind of a letdown to Brainerd, who expected that it would be a big hard proposition. It took just a matter of a few weeks for Paul Gillon somehow to get the Philadelphia Ordnance District involved, and they wrote the contract. Away it went. ..
Such is the power of faith. Veblen had snatched Goldstine from an unknown, but perilous fate heading for combat, and brought him 3,000 miles precisely for the chance to change history, and when the crucial moment arrived, Veblen was the instrument of his own design. The gods of mythology would turn green with envy.
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It all seemed so simple and obvious, once enabling forces lined up in the person of Doctor Herman H. Goldstine, Lieutenant United States Army, Aberdeen Proving Ground, posted to the BRL Annex at Moore College of Engineering, University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
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What were these "enabling forces"?

In June 1942, Moore Engineering College at the University of Pennsylvania received a contract for use of the Differential Analyzer to help calculate Firing Tables under supervision of the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL) at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. This contract allocated resources for mathematical specialists conscripted into the Army to collaborate with technology specialists (engineers) on staff and being trained at Moore College.
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Electrical power was by then universal, and the knowledge of science and engineering for electrical circuits had evolved together with manufacture of vacuum tube technology and related components to permit construction of an electronic digital computer, as proposed by Shannon's 1937 paper. While very few had tried, and nobody had succeeded, Atanasoff's work on the ABC computer, indicated that the means were available to produce a general purpose, programmable computer using an electronic digital design.
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Lieutenant Goldstine was co-located to supervise BRL work at Moore College. Professional training in mathematics and experience managing the work of human "computers" provided impressions and hunches on requirements for performing this work faster and with greater accuracy to meet requirements that were not being met with existing methods. The Lieutenant wanted to improve this work in order to help fight the war. Co-location gave the Lieutenant a measure of independence and access to scientists and engineers for consultation with reduced burdens of military rank and bureaucratic structure. Independence and access bore fruit in notice of the Mauchly memo. Co-location freed Goldstine from organizational procedures designed to prevent communications coming from outside proper channels, from an incredible source, and for an incredible solution to improve his work by 1000%. Delivery of notice appears to have occurred entirely through chance and luck from the fact that one of only two people who had worked on the memo a year earlier and also happened to be working with the Lieutenant under circumstances that through mere coincidence provided opportunity for disclosure, despite lack of standing and solicitation. Goldstine's confidence in Professor Brainerd, who violated direct orders, and spoke truth to power, saying the memo was not unreasonable, broke through conventional barriars that filter out communications on disruptive, inconvenient ideas. Brainerd gave Goldstine the rationale, courage and curiosity to read the memo under exigent circumstances. The fact that Brainerd was the Lieutenant's routine and primary contact with the College, whom he regularly met, and whose opinion he respected, and happened, also, to have been the one person, who a year earlier had been the sole recipient of the only copy of the memo to be distributed, seems to have been simply a lucky circumstance. The fact that the professor told Goldstine that the memo was not "unreasonable" despite non-compliance with accepted practice, and presented ideas unacceptable to the college, to Brainerd's boss, and to all the "experts" of that time leaves an impression that notice to Goldstine, which resulted in requesting the memo, and then requesting that it be reconstructed from shorthand notes, when it was discovered that all of the copies had been lost, was a mere lucky coincidence combined with unusual courage that was lucky to be encountered. Goldstine becoming aware, requesting, obtaining, and actually reading Mauchly's memo on non-existing technology, which all learned sources said was "for the birds," were enabling forces that aligned through pure chance, accident, a "miracle" bereft of any recipe or lesson for helping another Goldstine in another setting at another time travel the path for advancing civilization.
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The US government committed to expend whatever resources were required to win the war, and there was national concensus in support of this commitment. A "blank check" mentality encouraged cooperation by reducing the level of conflict that typically diverts time and effort inherent to typical contract transactions. This commitment, though abused and misapplied, resulting in great waste and fraud, still held the best potential to fund unproven efforts in order to find, test, and develop more effective means of winning the war, because losing is not an acceptable alternative.
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There was awareness of need in the line of approving authority for better calculating capabilities. Goldstine enjoyed the confidence of the Ballistics Research Laboratory, and, also, the team at Moore College; his boss was deeply familiar with requirements for faster calculating capabilities, and the Chief of the Scientific Advisory Board, also, knew of these requirements, and respected Goldstine's credentials, based his record discussed with his old friend and teaching colleage at Princeton, and from working together at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds during World War I.
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Since the Navy Ordnance Department had supported Howard Aiken and IBM to build the Mark 1 at Harvard University, Army Ordnance was undoubtedly ready to sponsor a similar project, and departmental competitive incentives may have encouraged the Army to approve speculative ventures with the aim of topping Navy's capabilities.
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Mauchly's biography had drawn him through a path of discovery; his education, struggle, failure, and temperment fostered ambition and unique insight for integrating sufficient knowledge on a sufficiently wide range of fields and technologies to produce a first generation electronic digital computer with available tools and components.
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Eckert's engineering skills, youth, enthusiasm, energy, and talent guided by Mauchly's vision for computer architecture stood ready to overcome all obstacles with the aid of engineering talent from the Moore College, and resources of the United States Army.
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Goldstine had not been inoculated against ideas in electrical engineering at the time he read Mauchly's memo, because he was ignorant of establishment doctrine. He had a duty to perform work that was addressed by the memo, and he possessed complementary mathematical expertise. These forces drew Goldstine into discussions with Mauchly and Eckert on improving the Mauchly proposal, rather than ignore the memo, as expert opinion dictated the year before in 1941. Investing time for cognitive overhead injected study and analysis for learning that created knowledge of how to use electricity to calculate ballistic Firing Tables 1000% faster than accepted dogma using mechanical gears. By the time Goldstine encountered expert opinion, he was inoculated against established doctrine by faith in Mauchly's truth. He recognized that vehement objections had no rational basis of error in the Mauchly design, but merely increased cultural "noise" that drowned out the "signal" showing the way to a better future.

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The contract between the United States governement and the University of Pennsylvania was executed on June 5, 1943. The University was to be paid $61,700 for delivery in six months of a report on research and development of an electronic numberical integrator and computer (ENIAC). This arrangement gave Goldstine, Mauchly, and Eckert time to investigate feasibility, identify problems and opportunities, consult experts, and prepare analysis to formalize requirements.
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Mauchly's first port of call was Washington DC to consult with the only person to have implemented the Atanasoff design, as set out in Mauchly's letter on September 30, 1941. In 1943 Mauchly made several trips to Washington DC to meet with Atanasoff in his office at the Naval Ordnance Laboratory, where they again discussed Atanasoff's theories and ideas for digital electronic design, based on experience building the ABC computer. For security reasons, Mauchly could not disclose during these meetings that he was working on a big project to construct an electronic computer for the military along the lines of the ABC computer.
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The project was designed and built at the Moore School of Electrical Engineering within the University of Pennsylvania. J. Presper Eckert and his colleague, physics professor John Mauchly, drew on Mauchly's knowledge of the ABC computer project at Iowa State college. Their design for ENIAC significantly extended Atanasoff's prior work by constructing a fully operational electronic digital computer to perform mathematics with the Eccles-Jordan design for flip-flop logic gates that apply Tesla's counterintuitive concept for vacuum tubes to control the status of switches as on or off.
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This breakthrough all-electronic design enabled ENIAC to perform 357 multiplications in one second, about 1,000 times faster than the Harvard Mark 1 using electromechanical methods. Such dramatic improvement spawned greater faith in electronic computing, and presaged a famous observation 20 years later by Grodon Moore.

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In August of 1944, Captain Goldstine was alone, lost in thought pacing the platform. He was waiting for a train in Aberdeen, Maryland, in transit back to Philadelphia after attending meetings at the Proving Ground. He saw another man waiting for a train, whom, he did not know, but had seen on occassion with senior officers and civilian officials at the offices of the Ballistics Research Laboratory (BRL). John Von Neumann's world reputation for mathematics, along with being a founding faculty member of the prestigeous Institute for Advanced Studies (AIS) at Princeton, led to a great many consulting relationships. He often traveled during the war to visit the Manhattan project at Los Alamos, New Mexico, which was led by his colleage on the faculty at AIS, J. Robert Oppenheimer. At the time of this chance meeting, von Neumann was supporting work on numerical modeling of a triggering device for the atomic bomb, which required high-speed calculations. As a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for the BRL, he could enquire about technology for high-speed calculations, and offer suggestions for development of technology, though without disclosing requirements to support the Manhattan project. None of this was known to Goldstine that night on the railway platform in Aberdeen; and, von Neumann was not aware of ENIAC.
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Officials and commanders at BRL lacked sufficient faith in the advanced design of ENIAC to overcome fear that a man of von Neumann's world acclaim would dismiss the effort as beyond reach, and was therefore an erroneous, waste of taxpayer dollars; and secondly, they feared that, if the project gained visibility through von Neumann, and then failed to meet expectations, they would suffer for having approved a project that failed by using unproven technology that was beyond reach. Since BRL was not aware of the Manhattan project, they were prevented by secrecy from making a judgement that von Neumann's assignment to seek out and assess technology for high speed calculations, including contribute, as necessary, to accomplish elevated requirements at Los Alamos, trumped lack of full faith and confidence in success of ENIAC. Instead, reason and judgement had so far been trumped by fear of embarrassment, loss of face and career advancement that might result from removing von Neumann's ignorance about ENIAC. Only serendipity ovecame the inertia of ignorance and fear to prevent these two ships passing in the night.
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With time to kill, Captain Goldstine introduced himself, and greatly enjoyed von Neumann's well known gregarious personality and skills for innocent small talk. But, when Goldstine turned the discussion to ENIAC, unaware this was unknown to von Neumann, Goldstine recalls in his memoirs... The whole atmosphere of our conversation changed from one of relaxed good humour to one more like the oral examination for the doctor's degree in mathematics. ..
From this chance encounter of two people waiting for trains going in different directions, von Neumann joined the EINAC project, adding another assignment to his wartime contributions. He immediately changed his travel plans, and within a few days visited the machine under construction at the Moore School of Engineering. Goldstine introduced von Neumann to the project team, and thereafter, von Neumann was regularly engaged in meetings and decisions on design. This primarily related to the follow on machine.

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After the war ended in 1945, having glimpsed the future by attaining a 1000% improvement with transformation to electronic calculation proposed by Shannon in 1937, scientists, engineers, business, and the military were anxious to explore new frontiers of first generation computers. ENIAC was the template for bigger computers to dramatically improve speed and accuracy of calculation. However, ENIAC had 6,000 manual switches for programmers to set, and maintenance was significant because vacuum tubes burned out frequently, i.e., several every day. Improvement presented three (3) challenges. Under the traditional paradigm that "big is better," increasing computational power by adding more vacuum tubes and wiring directly increased the cost of labor, materials, space, power and especially maintenance; and, further, more wiring slowed performance because current had to travel longer distances. Engineers first realized that better performance and lower cost required better technology for flip-flop logic gate switches to replace vacuum tubes; and, second, over a matter of years engineers discovered that better cost/performance could be achieved by reducing the size of computers with smaller components that required less wiring, less space, less power, less labor, etc. Over time, computer technology would entirely reverse the big is better paradigm that was successful for Tesla in electrical utilities and for Ford in automobile assembly, yet miraculously achieve economies of scale that dwarf all precedents. Transformation began with inventing the transistor.
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People are familiar with elements and composits that conduct electricity well, e.g., copper, aluminum, water, gold. Similarly, other elements and composits are insulators because they do not conduct electricity, but rather resist and impede the flow of current, e.g., the common "extension cord" with rubberized-type coatings and sheathing that protect the electrical conductor. Scientists and engineers had long been aware that another class of substances are semiconductors, in that normally they resist the flow current, but under certain conditions, current flows through the material. Obviously, stopping and starting the flow of current is the essence of a logic gate switch. If a delicately constructed, high cost, and fragile vacuum tube, could be replaced so that flip-flop logic gate switching could be performed with solid state (i.e., solid chunk of metal that could be manufactured in bulk, handled roughly, and never wear out) semiconductors, this alone would solve major problems to advance computer architecture and other applications for radios, and telephone switching relays. During the 1930s research by Eugene Wigner and Frederick Seitz developed theories of quantum mechanics that indicated a promising path for development of solid state semiconductors. The solution required discovering and inventing ways to control electrical current flowing through a semiconductor medium, just as Tesla, Flemming, Lee De Forest, and others had developed over the past 50 years for vacuum tubes.
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After the war ended in 1945 a great many top scientists and engineers were suddenly available from winding down defense projects. Bell Labs, then part of AT&T in New York, tapped this pool of talent to become a premier research institution, essential for expanding telephone service to the nation. They hired William Shockely to lead a project team researching transistor technology.
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William Shockley was a brilliant engineer, who won the Nobel prize in 1956 for helping invent, along with John Bardeen and Walter Brattain, the transistor at Bell Laboratories in December, 1947. Breakthrough occurred through trial and error, including a series of mistakes, e.g., Brattain dumped one experiment into a thermos of water. Each mistake fortuitously yielded better results, eventually leading to the first point-contact transistor. However, conflict followed over credit for the invention that would later earn all three a share of the nobel prize.
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Piecing the story together from many accounts, in 1945 Shockley directed Bardeen and Brattain to implement his design for a field effect transistor. This effort was eventually abandoned as unsuccessful (though ironically Shockley's original work would be re-examined in the 1960s and lead to the industry standard for transistors, and continuing to the present day). By December of 1947 the team's research was focused on a point-connection transistor. Most accounts seem to agree that Shockley provided occassional input to Bardeen and Brattain on this new direction, and that it was Brattain's trial and error experiments, which yielded a solution in keeping with Edison's creed of hard work driving the invention process. Against this background, rancor ensued, when Bell Labs gave Shockley prominence in news releases, despite a limited role. A photograph showed Shockley seated in the laboratory working with transistor equipment, while his two colleagues were standing behind to observe, as evident assistants. This overstated Shockley's contribution, and understated Brattain's work performing actual experiments, and that Bordeen did most of the theoretical physics to understand, explain and direct the work.
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In February 1948, just a few months after Bardeen's and Brattain's success in December, Shockely independently produced an alternate design for a junction transistor, which solved serious manufacturing problems with the initial point connection component, similar to Tesla's discovery of alternating current that greatly improved Edison's direct current system in 1893. The Shockley design was, therefore, chosen by AT&T for production and survives for some applications still today.
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From this experience vehement and enigmatic disputation persists to the present day over attribution of credit for a truly momentous success. Some accounts charge that Shockley wanted sole credit for developing the transistor, and that he lobbied company lawyers to file for a patent under his name only. This charge is not supported by the public record. Through the years, when news stories were published giving Shockley sole credit, he personally wrote to correct the record, fully and lavishly crediting Bardeen and Brattain. Perhaps then ill feelings flowed serendipitiously from clumsy public relations. If Bell Lab had issued the famous picture with a caption that read something like "Bill Shockely inspects world's first transistor thanks to the work of John Bardeen, and Walter Brattain," emotions may not have seared so quickly into irreparable dispute lasting half-a-century.
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Shockely may have stirred the fires by 1) failing to disclose his improved design to his two colleagues in February 1948, and instead had another group perform implementation secretly, while Bardeen and Brattain worked furiously and unsuccessfully to solve manufacturing issues in their initial design for a point-contact transistor; and, 2) by privately assigning Brattain and Bardeen to less challenging projects, thwarting their careers at Bell Labs. Some might observe that pursuing two tracks for the best solution is good management. Perhaps, too, there were compelling reasons for research assignments that do not justify charges of mendacious ill will. John Bardeen soon left Bell Labs, commenting that Shockley had fostered an excellent research environment, but difficulties stemmed from invention of the transistor.
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Walter Brattain's account of Shockley's management style following assignment at Bell Labs in 1945 supports his colleagues assessment, saying... "I cannot overemphasize the rapport of this group. We would meet together to discuss important steps almost on the spur of the moment of an afternoon. We would discuss things freely. I think many of us had ideas in these discussion groups, one person's remarks suggesting an idea to another. We went to the heart of many things during the existence of this group, and always when we go to the place where something needed to be done, experimental or theoretical, there was never any question as to who was the appropriate man in the group to do it." ..
Bell Labs success achieving breakthrough technology demonstrated Shockley's managerial skills for research and development. Momentous discovery through coordinated efforts of great minds fits the model of leadership and collaboration presented in text books and taught in classrooms for MBA degrees. However, soon after breakthrough was achieved, success drove team members toward secretive hoarding of information and squabbling over credit, fame, and fortune. Collaboration on the transistor project eviscerated, casting a pall of anger, fear, and fragmentation that resisted sharing information at Bell Labs. Harvard Business Review reported in an article reviewed on May 10, 1994 that innate biological drives to compete for survival are always present below the thin veneer of civilization that promotes cooperation. Tension between cooperation and competition presents a powerful knowledge management dilemma.
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Concurrent with work at Bell Labs on the transistor, after the war ended, over the next 10 years, Aiken, Mauchley, and Eckert had the opportunity to refine their computers with follow on projects for the defense department.

IBM's lineage traces to Herman Hollerith, who quit the US census department to invent and market a counting machine.

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That same year in 1956 Shockley launched his own company. Shockley Semiconductor in Mountain View, California hired a team to develop advanced technology, building on Shockley's earlier work. Shockley was, however, secretive and distrusftul, perhaps shaped by prior experience that demanded confidentiality to protect intellectual property rights on new breakthroughs. Management that elevates protecting rights to property above producing property that is worth protecting frustrates and alienates engineers charged with getting things done. After a failed corporate coup, eight (8) of Shockley's top engineers resigned, later called the "Traitorous Eight," left Shockley to escape overbearing management. Led by Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, in 1957 the group started Fairchild Semiconductor with a modest investment of $3,500 from the parent company, Fairchild Camera and Instrument. Seeking to break with past restrictions that stifled productivity, Noyce encouraged hard work through collegial collaboration, but without traditional trappings of hierarchial and authoritarian management experienced at Shockley.
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At Fairchild, Robert Noyce was credited for creating integrated circuit (IC) technology. Previously, electrical tools used conductor wires and cables to connect transisters, resistors, diods, capacitors, and other components into a working system, e.g., lawnmower, refrigerator, stop lights, radio, television. Complex products required a maze of wires that were expensive to manufacture, transport, and assemble owing to limitations of human hands handling and connecting parts. These constraints severely limited constructing high performance technology. For example, early computers required entire rooms full of components that took months, even years to assemble and test, and were called "mainframe computers." IBM dominated the computer business in the 1950s selling mainframes to customers who could afford the space, expense, maintenance and application costs. Hospitals, banks, insurance companies, big universities, the military and big business found these big expensive systems cost effective for processing high volumes of data. The most visible application of computer technology occurred in the Space Program managed by NASA. Billions of people watched on television as NASA engineers used computers from control centers in Cape Canaveral, Florida and Houston, Texas to direct landings and then humans walking on the moon. Integrated circuits replaced these physical components with microscopic elements and connections etched onto the surface of a very thin silicon wafer. IC technology, that applied Fairchild's expertise in cameras, eventually made it possible to compress rooms full of computer hardware weighing several tons into a small box weighing about 20 pounds, and called the "personal computer."

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circuit, a thin slice of silicon that has been specially processed so that a tiny electric circuit is etched on its surface. The circuit can have many millions of microscopic individual elements, including transistors, resistors, and capacitors, all electrically connected in a particular way to perform some useful

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launched Intel. Both had started their careers at Shockely Semiconductor in Palo Alto, California; however, they, along with six others, became dissatisfied with William Shockley's difficult management style Intel was a new company formed to manufacture memory chips for computers. The founders, Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, came from Fairchild Semiconductor, which they had started in 1957 as a subsidiary of Fairchild Camera and Instrument, after getting started in the transister business at Shockly Semiconductor in the 1950s, and then leaving along with eight others in a rift with Shockley himself, leading to the opprobrium of the "Traitorous Eight."
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A Japanese company, Busicom, contacted Intel to design and manufacturing 15-set semiconductor chips with specialized functions for a new line of calculators. Since this request was outside Intel's line of business, management hesitate. An engineer, Ted Hoff, was sent to meet with Busicom. He developed a proposal to reduce the original 15-set of chips down to only a four
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Intel was paid $60K for computer chips. They paid the $60K back to recover for late delivery of the product, and in exchange got rights to the design in hopes this might lead to more orders for the memory business. For the next 15 years, Intel's main source of revenue was selling computer memory. Development and sales of microprocessors was a "sideshow." Intel became uncompetitive in the memory business, but n 1981 they won the award to supply IBM with the microprocessor for a new line of personal computers. Over the preceeding five (5) years, Apple computer in Cupertino, California had demonstrated that personal computers could be come a major new market. IBM's entery into the new market gave both Intel and Microsoft a powerful position in an emerging disruptive technology. This expanding and secure market gave Intel a revenue base for improving performance of microprocessors.

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This is under construction, transferring KM analysis from POIMS into NWO.

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Knowledge Management (KM) has the right literation for tools that make intelligence support a routine practice of daily management for saving lives, time, and money, as called out by Drucker, who has long championed a concept of "knowledge work." (see review on October 25, 1999) This potential has proven elusive. While "knowledge" is a common term, building tools that are usefully distinguished from information technology (IT) requires an "out of the box" conceptual leap that integrates computer science, management science, and cognitive science. Equally, routine exposure to knowledge of causation with better accuracy from precision access using links and feedback encounters resistance to transformation because the inertia of culture resists change, discussed above. A Knowledge Management dilemma presents an innovation loop where inexperience with benefits of intelligence support engenders greater fear of accountability for mistakes than for damages caused by mistakes under the common rule from the Legend of Prometheus that ignorance is bliss. (see review on November 8, 1999)
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In the face of engineering and cultural obstacles driven by ignorance, fear, and denial, market forces have driven the banner of Knowledge Management (KM) in many disparate directions, largely for selling past initiatives that failed to improve communication through executive training on conversation, and technology that focuses on information (IT), discussed above. Review of IBM's announcement on February 26, 1998 to market services for Business Intelligence found little relation to either intelligence, knowledge, nor management, and found strong correlation with past initiatives to market IT under new names. IBM's experience with Lotus Notes in the 1990s, IBM's difficulty evolving Lotus Notes into Raven for Knowledge Management reported on November 30, 2000, and the subsequent report on August 22, 2002 that people are feeling some pain using Lotus Notes aligns with analysis of Peter Drucker's work in the early 90s, noting that people have given up, because the complex architecture of human thought makes communication vastly different from information, and therefore difficult to improve. Research sponsored by SRI found in a report on March 7, 2000 that Knowledge Management is a lot of hard work using popular information technologies (IT). This suggests that a different kind of technology is needed for KM. However, IBM later reported on June 6, 2000 that Knowledge Management failed to meet expectations, and was merely another name for information technology with no substantive improvement, which aligned with prior analysis in 1998, and with concerns cited by the team meeting at SRI who concluded on June 15, 2000 that there isn't enough knowledge to develop tools for Knowledge Management.
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The cultural leap from information to knowledge tools has seemingly imbued Knowledge Management in all of the following... Information Technology (IT)
Artifcial Intelligence (AI)
Management
Accounting
Documents
Filing
Records Management
Ontology
Library Science
Context Management
Project Management (PM)
Cost Control
Schedule Control
Integrated Cost and Schedule Control (CSCS/C)
Command and Control
Communication
Learning
Religion
Self-actualization
Meditation
Communication
People Skills
Executive Training
Leadership
Salesmanship
Collaboration
Change Management Management by Objectives (MBO) ..
Transformation from 20 - 30 traditional disciplines into a unified theory of Knowledge Management necessarily takes time. Presently, two (2) distinct camps have emerged, representing the binary structure of existence. Both groups aim to advance civilization by improving communication in daily meetings, calls, memos, reports, correspondence, books, etc. The popular term for this effort is "collaboration." Each group strives to improve different parts of collaboration, roughly divided between speaking and writing. Historically the division between orality and literacy can be summarized as a dichotomy between talent and tools. Other binary forms are instructive on foundational divisions in management under Theory X and Theory Y. (see again Drucker) For example, notify or consult, command and control or creativity and empower, proactive study to deliberate, plan, and prepare or react spontaneously on impulse, accountablity or license all reflect competing benefits of expediency and accuracy.
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Best practices of leadership teach executives skills for relying on natural talent (i.e., intelligence) for speaking, hearing, and observing extemporaneously in continual discussions, and email, while tools strive to augment intelligence with alphabet technology, wordprocessing, and now POIMS technology for authentic conversation verified with alighment to original sources, as called out in management standards. (see review of PMBOK, and ISO on July 21, 1995)
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The traditionalist, orality, natural intelligence group "collaborates" and exercises "leadership" to make things happen in the moment with fantastic social networking. These social skills rely on talent for talking people into saying "yes," with convincing and entertaining speech, dialog, conversation, and discussion that demonstrate exceptional memory, wit, rhetoric, and charm. In classical times people were called orators who rose to prominence with strong communication skills for collaboration. Orality relied on poetry and pictures to aid human memory in delivering an entertaining story to hold audience attention. (see history of writing reviewed on November 11, 1999) Today, roles for people skills closely align with "salesmanship" and leadership, aided by executive training, and formal education that sharpens talent for speaking, debating and people skills to communicate with minimal use of tools. Powerpoint programs, for example, are used to prepare pictures that make speech convincing, and cell phones are embraced for extending the reach of natural talent for talking, both without pause about compounding the risk of error, loss, crisis and calamity due to meaning drift.
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The second group promotes KM for collaboration using tools that augment intelligence and strengthen cooperation, beginning with alphabet technology to produce documents. Information technology (IT) evolved over centuries to improve publishing documents with ink, paper, the printing press, typewriters and, today, wordprocessing, email, and the Internet. These powerful tools lift civilization by empowering collaboration. People can act in concert over time by preserving original understanding through literacy in documents that extend human memory beyond the moment.
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Time is the bridge between talent and tools in knowledge work. Talent using tools over time in particular ways augments natural intelligence (talent) for understanding causation that drives future consequences.
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At least from the time of Plato and Aristotle in 400 BC, advocates of orality, i.e., reliance on natural talent (i.e., intelligence) for speaking, and those working on tools for literacy, each distrusts the other, as evidenced by Plato's Phaedrus. This distrust presents another knowledge management dilemma that balances binary structure, since, talent for people skills, and tools for memory are both essential to civilization. As stated above discussing thinking and doing, progress requires taking action, in the moment, based on accurate understanding of cause and effect derived from experience that is aligned over time, beyond the moment. However, still today, suspicion and fear manifest the ancient divide between talent and tools.
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One group advocates knowledge management to develop fantastic social networking that build good "relationships." This important effort promotes traditional behavioral methods for improving verbal communications within the framework of collaborating, expediting, reengineering and TQM. The other branch of KM comes from artificial intelligence (AI) and project management efforts that offer software tools for "thinking," and for planning, like flow charts showing organization structure and work flow, e.g., CPM, WBS. This second group is developing powerful information technology for using the Internet to collaborate on preparing documents, which are "tools" that aid human memory, like contracts, product specifications, books, letters, and so on. These tools enable people to prepare professionally formatted and linked documents that include pictures and spreadsheets. Version control, the Internet, and wireless technologies, enable a lot of people around the world, across the street, and down the hall, to contribute on preparing documents.
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Email (along with instant messaging and Live Chat) is an information technology that merges perspectives of Knowledge Management as both conversation and as technology, by making it fast and easy to prepare documents using spontaneous, stream-of-conscious information, similar to speaking. This forms an impression that email merges strengths of orality and literacy, making an inviting target, like fools gold, for KM advocates to rally hopes of improving communication and collaboration. Moreover, email makes direct contact with people, who are otherwise difficult to contact, and email seems to provide an effective alert format that triggers action for people to respond, as an ad hoc Action Item list. AI and web page engineers are working to add classification and structure for documents through ontology, XML, SMGL, computational linguistics and other means, to improve document management.
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This perspective has four (4) defects....

There is no record that AI and web page engineers can support an effective architecture for human intelligence.
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Email does not merge strengths, but rather compounds weaknesses of orality and literacy. It is far more error prone than conversation, because, like speech, email is spontaneous, cursory, lacks organization, and it lacks alignment with objectives, requirements, commitments and history. Email, therefore, necessarily escalates information density; and, it increases accountability, as seen from the Microsoft case reported on November 11, 1999. Clearly, there is no incentive to maintain a lot of documents riddled with errors. In fact, email encourages people to destroy, rather than invest, intellectual capital. This environment, therefore, builds demand to strengthen "intelligence" that avoids errors, and discovers opportunity by converting the growing mountain of information from meetings, calls and email, into useful knowledge for people and organizations.
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Documents are a good medium for information, but a poor medium for knowledge; and, collaboration is a small, albeit, important derivative of Knowledge Management; however, the primary benefit of KM is intelligence for taking timely, effective action. Structure is important for organization and context, but flexibility is, also, essential to enable creativity.
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Action Items are more effective based on "intelligence" using the context of objectives, requirements, and history for setting priority of all pending issues, rather than being driven by momentary demands of others received through email that crowd out time for accurate understanding. (see example of Action Items on September 22, 2000)

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Meetings

Organizational Learning

Organizational Memory
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Presencing
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Some authorities search for a solution that advances beyond information technology by proposing a process of creating documents through collaboration on the Internet as a form of collective intelligence.
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Documents are a cultural modality for using alphabet technology that evolved in a manual world 2,000 years ago, and are only a small part of the factors that influence daily action. A more robust solution empowers people with technology that moves up the scale of cognition from information to knowledge. Knowledge Management (KM) captures the right flavor for improving the information technology (IT) paradigm, but has been implemented with familiar methods (e.g., email, wordprocessing, dialog skills) that are already comfortable to everyone. (see collaboration, discussed above) People have therefore lost confidence in this phrase (KM) for identifying meaningful advance. (see review of IBM's research on June 8, 2002)
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Knowledge tools (by any name) should significantly broaden the range of intelligence factors aided by technology for making action effective, i.e., on time, within budget and accurate. Centuries ago, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Edison, and the lessor known Nikola Tesla pointed the way with prodigeous notebooks capturning contemporaneous records of daily work. Tesla's remarks on discovering the operating system for the 20th century succinctly presented one of many requirements for a system of knowledge management... For a while I gave myself up entirely to the intense enjoyment of picturing machines and devising new forms. It was a mental state of happiness about as complete as I have ever known in life. Ideas came in an uninterrupted stream and the only difficulty I had was to hold them fast. ..
Precision access to accurate memory is the dominate requirement in every aspect of science, education, business, and government. Since accuracy, time and money are always in conflict, the only solution is to develop technology that strengthens the weakest link in the productivity chain. POIMS calls for expanding span of attention to continually align conduct along a broader range of objectives, requirements and commitments than the human mind can maintain on its own, so that people are better able to take complementary action, rather than cause conflict. (see meaning drift and secrecy). Enabling complementary action and reducing mistakes by using technology to work intelligently brings a sea change in productivity and earnings, similar to driving a car, rather than walking. (see discussion above) Today, we have an electronic world that permits, indeed now requires, moving beyond Information Technology (IT) that produces documents (e.g., books, memos, email, etc.), to a culture of knowledge that leverages intelligence in the microcosm of the mind to enable a new way of thinking, learning and working. (see New World Order...) Connectionist theory in cognitive science (see, for example, Jeremy Campbell's book, The Improbable Machine) opens the door to a new kind of technology that lifts civilization with a powerful modality of Knowledge Space that strengthens daily action by adding an intelligence process to integrate information in documents with experience, i.e., time. Knowledge technology must aim higher than mere collaboration and documents, by integrating cognitive science, management science and computer science.
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Intelligence support for knowledge is a significant step to lift civilization by lifting the capacity to think, remember, and communicate. Retooling basic literacy skills to read and write requires a more robust paradigm than traditional documents based on alphabet technology.
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Documents contain information at the time of publication, while knowledge occurs in the human mind from the intelligence process of organizing and integrating a continuous information stream received through sensory perception by the conscious mind, as an evolving context, that forms connections of cause and effect in relation to human needs and experience. Most of this continuous information is processed primarily in the subconscious mind. Since the intelligence process that converts information into knowledge occurs innately, people feel that documents contain the actual knowledge that guides daily conduct, because documents are external objects available to the conscious mind, while the millions of connections for managing context that comprise knowledge are hidden in the subconscious. As a result, people tend to describe creating documents on the Internet as "Knowledge Management," and assume, without any experiential evidence, that this combination somehow aids productivity through better collaboration, all without hesitation about the distinction between information and knowledge. This omission, that overlooks the binary structure of cognition based on conscious (information) and subconscious (knowledge) processing, conceals the larger opportunity to lift the capacity to think, remember and communicate by transitioning from information to a culture of knowledge.
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POIMS argues that an effective practice of Knowledge Management (KM) requires technology, skills, and a professional role that enhance human life and enterprise by strengthening alphabet technology to support "knowledge," rather than its traditional function of creating and preserving information in documents. Using "intelligence" as a continuous information stream, integrated with experience, steps beyond traditional practice of isolated "documents" to provide an effective Knowledge Space that improves personal and organizational management, hence POIMS.
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Until now, enterprise outside the military has avoided intelligence (see again New World Order...). and has relied, instead, on an amalgamation of ad hoc information systems, commonly called documentation, which, as reported by the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology, necessarily degrades over time into useless entropy, that escalates cost and delay. In the vernacular: the paperwork never catches up with the real work! As a result, decisions are based on the stream-of-conscious component of "collaboration," i.e., conversation and email, guided solely by human memory, in the moment, which devolves into mere "guess and gossip" under Feel Good Management practice that aims more to avoid accountability than to meet objectives and align the work with requirements and commitments. Since stream-of-conscious communication lacks the metric of intelligence, errors mount causing escalating delay, loss, crisis and calamity, because people are working more on problem handling, i.e., expediting, than on moving ahead. Information gridlock turns energy and talent into a frenzy of self-protection, rather than an engine of progress. Productivity, earnings and stock prices implode, because too many people are having too many problems (see the report by Reuters on December 7, 2000).
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Improvement comes, not by reducing conversation and documents, but by adding intelligence that integrates time and information, as elements of Knowledge Space connected to human experience. This requires tools, practices and roles to speed up the process of investing intellectual capital so that the human mind can keep up with the pace of expanding information from collaboration through documents and conversation.

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Taking the Quantum Leap into the 21st Century Takes Courage
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Tapestries, legends and writing documents with alphabet technology (e.g., books, correspondence, email, pictures) used for knowledge work in the Old World Order need a boost to meet new realities of a new millennium.
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Communication Metrics fosters a culture of knowledge with new science, tools and skills in a faster paced world that compresses time and distance. Since speed and accuracy are the primary metrics of communication, integrated computer tools to think, remember and communicate significantly leverage traditional literacy for investing intellectual capital in a well ordered record that yields the power of knowledge to control the future. Combining new tools with new skills for intelligence support synthesizes managing time and context into a process of routinely "connecting the dots" for understanding cause and effect. This new Knowledge Management discipline leverages individual and group efforts through coordination and collaboration beyond the power of the alphabet, which has been the core engine of civilization for the past 2,000 years.
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Knowledge Management for intelligence support that converts information into knowledge provides a quantum leap in the capacity to get the right things done correctly the first time. Like a gifted poet summoning the right connections for rhyme and meter, tools for Communication Metrics penetrate like a laser to find only relevant connections from the mountain of information that piles up over days, weeks and years, so that people can discover critical correlations and implications of cause and effect that show the best course of action in time to be effective. Thus, speed and accuracy are the essential metrics of communication for improving productivity in the new world order.
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Today, SDS technology supports the intelligence process for transitioning from information to a culture of knowledge. While many in education, government, and business seek a solution to expand human potential, powerful tools are only part of the equation; leadership is essential to help people through the fog of war that accompanies the advance of civilization.
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Leadership with a broader vision can bring a quantum leap in productivity using the science of Communication Metrics. The power and elegance of this idea can be seen from a conceptual lineage going back thousands of years to the original meaning of religion. "Old Time Religion" melded with New World technology can lift the capacity to think, remember and communicate, yielding the lever that Archimedes sought to lift the world. He might have called it "Automated Religion." Aristotle might have marveled at the prospect that time can at last expand wisdom and vision, rather than error. He might have called it a "truth machine."
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Common refrain that problems arise because others do not tell the truth, echoing Aristotle's admonition, suggests the power of Communication Metrics to discover truth might be welcomed to avoid error, so that people have a happier truth to tell. Indeed, reducing mistakes that cost lives, time and money, would seem welcome relief from pain and agony driven by worry and doubt about the future. How then to secure the future with accurate understanding of cause and effect, and further prevent annoyance of constant corrections that people hate and so avoid in normal conversation?
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Beginning approximately 5,000 years ago, and especially from about 700 BC with refinement of the Greek alphabet, people developed a technique for arranging graphical images to symbolize the rich array of sounds that form recognizable patterns used for human speech, which, in turn, signify human thought and understanding. This explosive technology renders fleeting internal thoughts into external objects that can be shaped, crafted, refined, preserved for future information, and, also, conveyed to others, especially future generations to accelerate the growth of ideas, and to secure the blessings of hard won experience by avoiding mistakes through the miracle of a recorded history. Thus began the long march of civilization driven by the power of knowledge constructed carefully from sifting and analysing daily working information. Everyday alphabet technology empowers people to discover, present, and preserve truth by assembling pictures, called "letters," into words, sentences, paragraphs, poems, memos, articles, books, and, today, movies and email. This ancient technique to augment intelligence with precision and accuracy makes people superhuman, and so provides a powerful foundation of progress by relying on the alphabet for an "operating system" of civilization.
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Communication, then, is the engine of community that empowers civilization, and it falls to us the beneficiaries of this great legacy to take, at last, the next step by moving from information technology to a higher level of cognition, which for convenience we call Knowledge Management. The journey can begin only by grasping the architecture of human thought as an intelligence process driven by the irreversability of time. see POIMS
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Talking and listening are here-and-now communication that bring immediate action. Since action takes place in the present, talking and listening are necessarily the dominate mode of communication. This need plays tricks on the human mind. It fools people into feeling that understanding is accomplished by talking things out. Nothing can change these emotional drives wired into human mental genetics. Emotion, however, is in conflict with accuracy, giving rise to the rule that Talk is cheap.
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Writing is accurate, but slow and expensive. It is a communication technology for understanding to survive and grow despite frailties of memory so that community advances over the long-term. Some 2,000 years ago a unique class of people assiduously linked their writings in order to build and maintain shared meaning of a story that brings enlightenment and confidence to face perils of daily life. Belief in the value of truth to enable a community to be "good," or like "god," justified investing time to ensure accuracy by binding back to original understandings.
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This faith resulted in a tradition of "religion" that spoke of the power to "turn water into wine." However, the time and cost of conventional writing technology resulted in the power of linking or binding back being applied only in the practice of law to align communication in order to discover and maintain truth. People fear the law because it reveals that limited span of attention in human acuity is costly, as judgements are rendered to adjust huge misunderstandings. These costs do not undermine faith in short-term communication for accomplishing understanding because they are removed by many years from original events.
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Therefore, the genetic drive and need for daily communication leads people to view the law with suspicion and regard opposing views of truth as lies and "second-guessing" in order to maintain faith in talking and listening because these faculties seem like a fast and easy way to get things done and acquire understanding. This form of faith is often called denial. Overcoming ignorance, fear and denial requires courageous leadership.
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Writing made possible the first "science of life," as religious practitioners found the means to accurately maintain shared meaning essential for successful community. Through succeeding centuries newer technologies have made possible highly focused study of the many subjects discussed in the Bible. New sciences in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology, anthropology, archeology and so on, spawned and nurtured by the strength of community supported by religious prescriptions, have seemingly stripped away pieces of biblical rationale. New terminology makes the Bible appear outdated by the enlightenment it brings in unraveling the mysteries of life.
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A core mystery that modern science has not unraveled is the workings of the human mind. The Bible speaks of the soul as central to the question of life and death. Only within the past few decades has a new field of Cognitive Science emerged to attempt a deeper understanding of the process by which the mind accomplishes its wonders. An article in Time Magazine (Mar 25, 1996 p. 50 by Robert Wright) reviewed the correlation between the Biblical soul that steers the body through life, and modern terminology of cognition, awareness and intelligence that comprise human consciousness. This faculty of soul, or consciousness, enables the mind to make the connections that convert information into knowledge. Exactly how this is done in the brain remains a mystery, similar to the Biblical rendering of "turning water into wine." Mysteries can only be accepted by faith until enough experience is accumulated for people to believe in new science. In order for experience to accumulate, faith is needed to overcome ignorance and fear so that some may venture forth into uncharted waters to discover the secret of human intelligence aided by technology.
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Communication Metrics is on the frontier of new management science to exploit the original idea of religion, which, today, is supported by study in cognitive science, in combination with advances in computers and the Internet. Integrating management science, cognitive science and computer science with the right design advances the 3,000 year old technology of using the alphabet for creating information, to a new era of creating and managing knowledge. Transition from information to a culture of knowledge makes the Information Highway an "intelligence" asset, rather than a liability, by adding the ingredient of time to support human cognitive processes for creating, crafting and maintaining connections of chronology in daily experience. Since sequence from chronology imparts knowledge of cause and effect, human reasoning and understanding are strengthened. Expanding span of attention empowers people to maintain alignment of understanding with original sources and track follow up so that things get done correctly, on time, and with less rework, thus reducing cost and increasing creativity, simply by augmenting human intelligence.
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Leveraging innate mental capacity to think, remember and communicate by integrating time and information, enhances traditional alphabet technology to create the connections of cause and effect that yield knowledge, wisdom and vision, is the modern equivalent of "turning water into wine." Since knowledge is the engine of civilization, industry may be on the verge of discovering how to "turn straw into gold." People are not going to talk less. Therefore, adding a new player to use new science and new technology will ensure that the "straw" of constant information is not lost in the wind of guess and gossip, but rather each day is converted into the gold of knowledge and ideas. Like the transition from orality to literacy reported by Plato in his famous dialogues on Phaedreus, profound transformation of a culture from information that provides immediate emotional rewards, to a culture of knowledge that yields much greater, but deferred, cognitive and material rewards, will occur over many years, decades, and centuries through sustained courage and leadership of pioneers in research, education, government, and business who take the first steps.
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While terminology has changed from Aristotle's day, after 5,000 years, it's time for a change, if only there is time to listen and courage to act.