Computers Quote by Yuval Noah Harari
““I still remember the day I first came across the Internet. It was back in 1993, when I was in high school. I went with a couple of buddies to visit our friend Ido (who is now a computer scientist). We wanted to play table tennis. Ido was already a huge computer fan, and before opening the ping-pong table he insisted on showing us the latest wonder. He connected the phone cable to his computer and pressed some keys. For a minute all we could hear were squeaks, shrieks and buzzes, and then silence. It didn’t succeed. We mumbled and grumbled, but Ido tried again. And again. And again. At last he gave a whoop and announced that he had managed to connect his computer to the central computer at the nearby university. ‘And what’s there, on the central computer?’ we asked. ‘Well,’ he admitted, ‘there’s nothing there yet. But you could put all kinds of things there.’ ‘Like what?’ we questioned. ‘I don’t know,’ he said, ‘all kinds of things.’ It didn’t sound very promising. We went to play ping-pong, and for the following weeks enjoyed a new pastime, making fun of Ido’s ridiculous idea. That was less than twenty-five years ago (at the time of writing).””
About This Quote
Source Interview: 2023 podcast with Yuval Noah Harari, 2023
Early internet experiments showed potential despite initial failure, highlighting curiosity and perseverance in technology adoption.
In simple terms: Early internet attempts were messy but sparked imagination.
Embrace trial and error when exploring new tech.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- school projects
- startup brainstorming
- tech education
- prototype testing
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What can we learn from early tech failures?
- How does curiosity drive innovation?
Success often follows repeated attempts and community support.